DON'T "DISS" ME NO MORE Cars Can Be Disabled, But Not People

	July 1999

DON'T "DISS" ME NO MORE
Cars Can Be Disabled, But Not People
By Brett Dreyfus 1999
Reprinted with permission from the author.
Words shape our world and give form to thoughts. The way we describe people, places and things, the words that we choose, reflects the way we see the world. The reverse is also true - when we change our view of the world, the words we choose also change, corresponding to our new thoughts and perceptions.
I am proposing a new word to describe people who "have" what are currently termed disabilities. Why bother, you might ask. We've gone through this whole name thing a dozen times before, and everyone has pretty much settled on the phrase "person with a disability." I believe that phrase does everyone a disservice, and that a new, more evolved word-concept would radically change society's perception of all of its citizens.
Standard Words We Use
What do the following have in common?
Dis * * * * *
Dys * * * * *

In * * * * * *
Im * * * * * *

All of these are prefixes that mean "NOT-something." Its interesting that negative prefixes like these are combined with words that are considered positive and active such as "able," "valid," and "functional."
Dis-ABLED
Dys-FUNCTIONAL

In-VALID
Im-PAIRED

These words are used to describe someone in a certain way, usually to distinguish them from other people who do not share certain observable or perceived characteristics. The problem is that all these labels negate something positive in order to make the distinction.
Buzz Words Abound
In recent years, new words have been introduced which attempted to overcome those limitations. Some of these words include "challenged," "handicapable," "developmentally different." Others use "special" or "exceptional" in part of the description.
Many people find these words unacceptable because at best they seem like euphemisms, sugarcoating or denying a very real life condition, and at worst they appear condescending - subtly reinforcing the notion that something is "wrong" or "out of the norm."
EXAMPLE: "Challenged" may sound positive, but it actually implies a contest or event, or an obstacle a person needs to overcome. We may be challenged in a game of chess, but would we want to have our entire life labeled as "challenged?"
So the specific problem with most of the words used today is that a positive description is made negative: An ABLE person is "Dissed" (negative thought prefix) and becomes "Dis-ABLED." Alternative words such as "challenged" still base their meaning on differentiating people from one another. The reason that occurs in our language is because we haven't yet evolved a deeper, more insightful mindset that perceives ourselves and other people in a new light - not as a collection of segmented body parts, but in our totality as complete, functioning, higher consciousness beings.
A New Mindset
The whole of a person consists of layers upon layers of intricate biological, emotional, and intellectual circuitry operating, almost unbelievably, in unison with each other to produce a totally unique, conscious human being. There are hundreds of billions of cells, miles of nerve paths, and countless extremely detailed chemical reactions and specialized biological functions all interacting through an amazing array of feedback loops in order to maintain a self-conscious organism capable of generating and communicating perceptions, thoughts and emotions.
Realization #1: Every human being is an amazingly complex lifeform, and every one of us has millions of powerful nerve impulses and cellular interactions occurring every second. Perfect health occurs when all bodily systems function in their proper mode in harmony with all other systems. This is termed an "optimal body state."
Once we recognize our biological complexity, we also begin to see that every single person on this planet has bodily systems, which do not function at optimal performance. From the moment sperm meets egg, our optimal body state faces a continual onslaught of environmental factors, as well as an emerging genetic heritage. These environmental and genetic forces interact with our optimal body state our entire lives, and the result is a constantly changing flux state of limitations, restrictions, and sub-functioning of various physical, mental, and emotional systems. I call this a sub-optimal body state.
These conditions vary from moment to moment, from person to person. We are battling "bad" bacteria with our "good" bacteria in our intestines, without realizing it, we have small retina or lens "failures" that cause us not to see clearly, we lose some cilia on the inside of our cochlea and imperceptibly lose some of our finer hearing abilities, we genetically develop a heart that beats irregularly, we breathe polluted air and diminish our lungs ability to transport oxygen, we eat highly processed foods which irritate our stomachs and digestive tract, a muscle spasms for no apparent reason, we injure our wrists and lose strength or dexterity, a back injury produces recurring pain, the list is endless .... from the moment we are born, we are less than perfect. This leads us to a second realization.
Realization #2: Every human experiences sub-optimal body states on a continual basis because every person continually encounters environmental or genetic forces that adversely affects, on some level, the full-functioning optimal body state.
With this new mindset we can now clearly see why it's not acceptable to label anyone as disabled. The word truly makes no useful distinction or characterization. Everybody has certain restrictions and functional limitations. Everybody's immune system, body temperature, and digestive systems are constantly shifting and readjusting, trying to stay in a state of maximum production and efficiency which is the optimal state of that cell, organ, or system. We are all adjusting to constantly changing body conditions, whether on a microscopic level or on a macro scale.
Some people have sub-optimal body states that are more permanent. These sub-optimal body states can result from genetic conditions (diabetes, cancer, Down's syndrome), diseases, environmental conditions (loss of oxygen during birth, automobile accident, overexposure to sunlight) or unknown causes (muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis). These types of sub-optimal body states, that are more permanent and specialized, can be termed system-specific sub-optimal body states.
So let's return to the question: What word conveys the impression that all people have, on some level, a continuously changing sub-optimal body state or a system-specific sub-optimal body state, that we are complex beings constantly adjusting and readjusting to changing conditions?
What is needed is a word that does not focus on any one quality or condition of sub-optimal conditions - but describes the whole of the person. Ideally this word would not use any negative prefixes or euphemisms, yet it would make discernments within the full spectrum of humanity. The word would still be able to make distinctions between people about their various bodily conditions and abilities with a clear, positive, simple descriptor.
I propose we use the word "ADAPTER."
Why Use Adapter?
Adapt is defined by Webster's New World dictionary as: 1. To make fit or suitable by changing or adjusting, and 2. To adjust oneself to new or changed circumstances.
Whatever condition we embody, whether its physical, emotional, mental, or environmental, we adjust and respond to it as we attempt to rise above and surpass the limitation or decreased capacity. Every cell in our body and every impulse travelling along our nerves strives for full functioning in an optimal body/mind state because that is coded in our divine genetic blueprint. Most of the time we are not even conscious of that striving to return to balance and full vitality and full functioning.
Realization #3: Every human being is continuously adapting, every second, every moment of the day and night, to the changing forces of entropy: biological, emotional, and environmental forces, that result in sub-optimal, body conditions. Staying healthy means readjusting to changing conditions, and the body's innate focus on restoring functionality and harmony with other systems.
We realize our true nature is a synthesis of form and function that exceeds any particular condition or combination of sub-optimal states. Our true nature expresses itself through the relentless energy put towards healing and growth: the return to an optimal body state. We may never achieve it, or if we do, its only fleeting and impermanent, for we are constantly adapting to new and changing conditions at every moment. Science recognizes these principles as the concept of homeostasis: a movement towards balance and biological harmony in an organism.
Adaptations can take many forms. Some adaptation mechanisms are biological - produced in the body. An infection (sub-optimal body condition) results in the body raising its internal temperature (a fever) as it responds to changing conditions and attempts to bring itself back to an optimal body state. There are also technological, medical, and environmental adaptations.
Adaptations can be temporary or permanent. Life forms adapt as a species, as a collective group of beings. When certain environmental conditions are present for a long enough period of time, certain members of that species will manifest adaptations to that condition. If that adaptation is successful, the condition that the being was responding or reacting to will be overcome - surmounted - and the adaptation will be genetically encoded into the species optimal bodily state.
The human species not only adapts as a collective group, but individually through what I term enhancers. Enhancers are external adaptations to conditions, which adversely affect the optimal body state. Anything which enhances a being's ability to live, work, and interact with others is an adaptation in action. Enhancers come in many forms: technological, medical, and environmental.

SUB-OPTIMAL BODY STATE
1. Inability to use legs
ENHANCERS (Type)Use wheelchair (technology)

2. Inability to see objects
Wear glasses or contact lenses (technology)

3. Higher bacteria count ENHANCERS (Type)Use wheelchair (technology) Increase production of white blood cells Take antibiotics (medical)
4. Breathing difficulty
ENHANCERS (Type)Use wheelchair (technology) Use air filters (technology) Relocate to warm, dry climate(environmental) Use respirator (technology) Use inhaler (medical)

Clearly we are all adapters, relying on technological, medical, and environmental enhancers in order to rise above constantly changing conditions that result in sub-optimal body states.
The Nature of Adapters
As human beings, individually, and as Homo sapiens, the species, we are creatures that adapt to changing situations and conditions. We adapt to individual sub-optimal body states and to system-specific sub-optimal states through our own bodily mechanisms, or through external enhancers - which may be technological or environmental in nature.
Adapters use technology in a variety of ways. When technology is used to help an individual overcome - surmount - his or her sub-optimal body state, the adapter is using assistive technology.
Adapters who need assistive technology can obtain it in many forms: for mobility conditions an adapter can use manual or power wheelchairs, walkers, braces, crutches, or prosthetic devices such as an artificial knee, joint, or bone. Communication adaptive equipment includes Telecommunication Devices for the Deaf (TTYs), speech synthesizers, cochlear implants, hearing aids, or electrolaynxes. Adaptations for independent living include personal assistants, service animals, and alternative living arrangements. Sub-optimal visual conditions might result in the use of glasses, contact lens, the use of eye patches, or text-to-speech computer programs and print materials written in Braille.
Sometimes assistive technology can serve multiple purposes. A person who has an injured knee (sub-optimal body state) may use an elevator (enhancer) rather than walk up one flight of stairs in order to maximize that individual's efforts to return to a state of unimpeded walking (optimal body state). A person who has a system-specific mobility condition, such as a person with multiple sclerosis who uses a wheelchair, utilizes an elevator to get to the second floor (assistive technology) - it is a way for that person to independently reach the desired location.
Examples of Word Usage
The following examples are given to illustrate how to use the word "adapter" in the context of a system-specific adaptation and how to designate bodily characteristics within that broad descriptor:
1. A group of visual adapters marched on Capitol Hill today, seeking legislation that will provide more computers for libraries ....
2. Paul Johnson, a 33 year-old from Flint, was appointed yesterday to head the Governor's Commission on Waste Management. Johnson, who is deaf, stated, "This is a great moment for all adapters who seek political office...."
3. Laura Wilson felt that programs for mobility adapters should not face additional budget cuts.
4. Independent Living Centers are helping adapters live more productively and independently within their communities.
Disabled No More
You can call a car disabled, but you can never call a person disabled because the whole of the person, their totality, is not without value to either self or society. When a car is disabled, it means that for some reason it cannot operate. Except in rare cases where someone is in a coma, almost everyone can participate in a community through a variety of means .... some common, some not-too-common.
Assistive technology and enhancers allow everyone in society to overcome some of the limitations of their sub-optimal conditions, and be more independent, productive, and connected to their community.
Some people have dubbed individuals without any visible sub-optimal conditions as "TABs: Temporarily Able-Bodied," because time ultimately undermines all "fully" functioning bodies and minds. What we can now see is that everyone is facing adverse conditions at every moment, and that adapting to changing situations is a general life principle that is inherent in all life forms. Even a person with a system-specific sub-optimal state (such as a person who cannot walk) has actually millions of cellular and biological systems functioning perfectly, and in harmony with other bodily systems. In fact, most of the person's physical being is continuously striving for an optimal body state, making the system-specific sub-optimal state only one component out of the totality of being.
So the next time you see someone in a wheelchair, talk to someone who is using a hearing aid, listen to someone using a voice synthesizer to communicate, or meet a person who has some suboptimal physical, mental, or emotional condition, remember this: The totality of our being, the sum total of all the millions of cellular and bodily functions that are performing at an optimal state, far outweighs the sub-optimal conditions that we are constantly adjusting to. On multiple levels, from the microscopic and cellular level, to the level of bodily organs and systems, all the way to various levels of human society, the adapter that you encounter is "able" to do and to be almost anything, because all humans are born in full harmony with the creative, life-giving adaptive forces that flow through all of us. Let us now use words that reflect this deeper understanding.
Brett Dreyfus served as Communications Director for TECH 2000, Michigan's Assistive Technology Project, for four years, and is currently a Video Producer in the Mid-Michigan area. Readers can get in touch with Mr. Dreyfuss via e-mail: aton@earthling.net

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