"On Being a Cripple"




Nancy Mairs, in the wheelchair she uses occassionally


 I recently read the piece by Nancy Mairs, On Being a Cripple. Now, I must say that I can never really understand why people with disabilities resent themselves to a point of no return. Obviously, one who has a disability may very well go through some phases where he doesn't like himself, or the cards he was given, because of his disability; however, he bounces back. But, there are some who don't ever bounce back. Some people cannot handle the complexities of having a disability. This is too unfortunate, in my opinion. Having a disability is liberating, because we are contributing to a diverse population of people who must accept us, according to certain laws that are now in place in America.

In the article, Mairs talks about how she acquired Multiple Sclerosis, "a chronic degenerative disease of the central nervous system, in which the myelin that sheathes the nerves is somehow eaten away and scar tissue forms in its place, interrupting the nerves' signals." (Mairs 246). I can understand how it is much different to live with a disability your entire life compared to acquiring one after leading a "normal" life. However, I still think it is just like all other aspects of life, and you just have to learn to roll with the punches. Sometimes I wonder, am I wrong to think this way? After all, I've had my disability my whole life, but that doesn't mean that I'm used to it, or that things aren't constantly changing within my body.

Mairs discusses her life as a professor, writer, and speaker. When she speaks to audiences about her MS, she also speaks about the depression she suffers because of her "disease." This is what I'm getting at. Depression in a person with a disability seems to me a person who is not accepting of people with disabilities, and also someone who previously discriminated against us. In On Being a Cripple, Mairs also writes about how she has been "lucky so far" and how she is thankful to those who help her (247). But she also just wants people to treat her as they would treat any other human being. My question is: how can you request that of someone when you yourself may not have treated a "cripple" like any other human being before you acquired MS?

Sometimes I truly believe that I am so confident (in terms of given the fact that I have Spina Bifida) because of my parents, who never treated me as though I was different, but took care of me when I was going through surgeries and other procedures that my younger sisters never needed. However, I also never thought, or was trained to think, of myself as different. I had friends in school, was picked on like other kids, and even had to undergo the horrors of dating during my teenage years. My point here is: so things may be hard; but they are for everyone! Everyone has issues. It's about learning how to handle them. Am I right?