Access & Accommodations

Click for for information on activism around and the problems of access & accommodations here. New

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Here's some tips for getting better access to resources, as well as accommodations to be able to navigate in the community, at work, and at home for people who are struggling with dissociation and other issues around DID:

• Local public transit passes — call 211 in the US and find out what accommodations there are for people who have disabilities in your community, and at the least ask them about transit passes in your community or whether there are special waivers for taxi or special busses for people with disabilities.
• Contact your local independent living center, mental health association, or a peer-run mental health non-profit — they may have a peer support program that provides advocacy services to help you navigate the community and find/acquire the resources you need to ease the stress of daily living activities. They can help you make appointments, help drive you to appointments, or accompany you in court or for filling out and delivering applications for services, etc.
• If there are no public accommodations for transit in your area, see whether there's a Jewish Family Services — they help people regardless of religion and have volunteers who drive people to appointments, help out with laundry detergent or coins for laundry, etc. — will vary by specific office.
• You have the right to work accommodations according to the ADA and you do not need to disclose that you have DID to get them. If you must have anything in writing from your doctor, they can say "Needs reasonable accommodations usually given to someone with PTSD" or "Needs reasonable accommodations usually given to someone with ADHD" rather than tell your diagnosis itself. If you have anxiety, depression, may be confused or miss reminders or appointments, or be forgetful, there are plenty other diagnosis that can be used as an example of the accommodations you might need without disclosing and thus garnering the suspicion and stigma surrounding DID. See the movement Access and Accommodations New page for a list of Job Area Network pages that would be reasonable DID work accommodations. We need activism to demand a list of our own accommodations there.
• Be very careful about asking for driving accommodations — many people with DID lose their driving privileges due to switching and time loss behind the wheel. You can use a mobile app to help you remember where you park your car unless you have a physical disability for a disabled parking permit. Please only drive if your collective is safe to do so.

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