As someone who requires skilled support 24 hours a day I’m never really on my own – but if I am it’s because I’ve failed. Failed, that is, to meet my most basic need, the continuous presence of someone who can keep me safe, someone who can administer emergency medication if necessary, who can prevent friction burns from my repetitive movements, or who can turn me over so I can breathe.…

It’s New Year’s Eve, a time when we take stock of the year that’s been and look ahead to the next. Usually, I write a post about everything that’s happened, but this year I decided to represent it as a drawing instead.…

I’ve just about finished my Christmas shopping. It’s always a complicated process for me because I have to leave deciding who’s going to get what until the last minute so my tics don’t spoil the surprise. But this is obviously harder with very personal gifts.…

For the last few weeks, we’ve been sharing guest posts by creatives supported by our Young Artists Development Programme (YADP). This week we’re showcasing Emily Heather Bower’s poems and images which she’s collated into a powerful zine. Emily takes us through the process.…

For today’s post we head to Scarborough where visual artist Liam Burke’s been working on a series of colourful digital drawings. Liam’s one of the ten artists we’ve supported to explore their ideas in our Young Artist Development Programme.

Liam tells us more about the buildings of Scarborough, the drawings they’ve inspired and his experience of exhibiting a piece of work at a gallery.…

In a matter of weeks life across the world has changed dramatically, and like most people I’ve been trying to adapt to the uncertain times ahead. While many people are focused on navigating the challenges of home working, home schooling, increasing social restrictions and living with uncertainty, I, like many disabled people, have been focused simply on survival.…

Just over a week ago it became clear that in order to stay as healthy as possible during the current COVID-19 pandemic, I needed to self-isolate. I always need close physical support from others to complete many essential daily tasks like washing or moving in and out of my chair, but this close contact increases the risk of me catching the virus or me passing it to others, so I also decided to limit the number of different people providing my support.…

I’ve tried to manage my tics a number of different ways over the years and one of the most effective for me has been through practical solutions and interventions that make life easier and safer.

Several years ago I did a round-up of all these interventions, and I often share it with others who might find it useful.…

Disclaimer: I’m not writing this post alone. There’s a heavy weight lurking on my chest, vibrating relentlessly, and occasionally batting my face for asnmyu,uuuuu attention. My vibrating companion also keeps stepping on the keyboard…

Introducing Monkey the cat. Monkey is Chopin’s cat and he’s come to stay for a bit.…

In my early teens I was introduced to the idea of ‘Pen Portraits’. These are described online as informal descriptions of a person that may include ‘hard’ characteristics like age, but will also focus on softer dimensions such as attitudes or appearance.…