I’m not just ‘lazy'

Dyspraxic people such as myself are always having the phrase ‘you’re just lazy’ thrown at them by other individuals with little to no regard. Society in general is not attempting to understand dyspraxia, or anyone who is different, for that matter. Myself and my community are not lazy we just have limitations.

I may not be able to tell the time but it not because I am simply ‘lazy.’ I attempted to learn to read a clock face for a long time before accepting that I was just not going to be able to tell the time. Reading a clock was not to be my only limitation in life. I would argue that I did not suggest that I could not complete a task before I had attempted for a while. My dyspraxia has made me more of a determined individual. Dyspraxia has not made me lazy; it has taught me to be a hardworking and persistent individual.

I choose to look at obstacles brought about by my dyspraxia as challenges to overcome. I choose to rise to challenges presented to me rather than picking the easy way out to quit. If I was lazy, I would not have succeed in gaining a master degree, or succeed in achieving anything for that matter. I actually enjoy the challenge, calling me lazy has given me an aim to beat. Achieving my aspirations has felt even more superb as I have been able to prove society wrong.

 Those who call dyspraxics lazy are actually the ones who should be considered lazy;

They have put in little to no effort to researching and understanding dyspraxia. Instead, they choose to spend their time putting myself and many like me down. Making others feel unworthy is not a decent use of time.

Every aspect of life is significantly more difficult with dyspraxia, as a result even tasks that are simple or mundane to others require more effort. Myself and my community are the complete opposite of ‘lazy.’ Simple tasks, for example, creating and maintaining friendships are harder to achieve with dyspraxia. I have found the prospect of finding friends to be more intense due to my dyspraxia partially due to the lack of empathy or understanding around my disability. However instead of choosing to give up, I have persevered and found some outstanding people.

The amount of hurdles I have had to overcome in my 25 year existence would prove to be the complete opposite of the adjective “lazy.” Partly due to my disability, I have always believed in seizing opportunities and taking the road less travelled. I have taken on a lot of opportunities I have been offered, and have created my own.

Just within my advocacy for Dyspraxia I can prove that I am far from “lazy.” I work incredibly hard to help to create a society where Dyspraxia can be accepted. I believe that as an individual within the community it is partially my own responsibility to change these perceptions. Within the past two years I have held the role of Youth Champion, I have created articles on Dyspraxia, created the role of editor and started the process to become a local group coordinator. I am only one individual within the community, though I am sure plenty of other individuals within the community are also far from “lazy.” I am not just “lazy”.

Author: Charis Gambon
LinkTree: https://linktr.ee/CharisGambon

Instagram: @that_historygirl