As a society, we often ignorantly assume that if we can’t see a visible disability, then the individual must be living a struggle-free life. There is a huge spectrum within each disability, however, and considering that 80% of disabilities are invisible, we need to start being more vocal, and visible, about what we cannot see.
Invisible disabilities (also known as non-visible or hidden disabilities) is when there is nothing external, like a wheelchair or a cane, that signals a disability. These can be temporary, situational or permanent and include visual impairment, hearing impairment, neurological, cognitive and neurodevelopmental conditions, anxiety, depression, chronic diseases (like lyme and lupus,) multiple sclerosis, but also diabetes, asthma, endometriosis and more. So how can we make the invisible more visible?
