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Kelly

@broadwaybabyto

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Disabled & chronically ill writer. Former theatre critic. Clean air is a human right & vulnerable people aren’t expendable. Covid is airborne 😷 #SpacesHost

Toronto, ON
Joined November 2009
Don't wanna be here? Send us removal request.
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
2 months
Friend was traveling & wanted to visit - I declined because they don’t take Covid precautions. They get home & tell me “omg I’m so sick - it’s a good thing we didn’t visit as this would kill you.” I asked if they considered the other people like me they exposed on travels. A 🧵/1
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
3 months
Before HIV most people didn’t use condoms - especially within the gay community. By early 90s the public health campaigns had been so successful it was considered unthinkable to have sex without them. Humans can change & adapt when there’s a threat - we’re capable. Mask up.
@PeoplesOracle
Dayna Lynn Nuckolls
@PeoplesOracle
3 months
The HIV-AIDS epidemic required a global change in human behavior. Sex without condoms became an extremely high risk behavior. But condom use had to become the new norm because it is an effective form of prevention. Still, there was resistance. Masks are the same.
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2 months
“Why should I bother testing for Covid? If I’m sick I’m sick. Knowing it’s Covid doesn’t change anything.” Actually - it does. If you know it’s Covid there are things you can & should be doing differently - despite what the CDC or other people want you to believe. A 🧵/1
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@broadwaybabyto
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@broadwaybabyto
1 month
Awhile back I went to a specialist for unexplained & painful lower leg swelling. His diagnosis? “Maybe your legs are just getting fat.” Horrified…I asked how many people gain weight ONLY in their calves. He shrugged me off. A 🧵 on knowing your body & advocating for care /1
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@broadwaybabyto
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@broadwaybabyto
3 months
Make no mistake - the CDC decision to change Covid isolation from 5 days to 1 day is an economic & political one. It’s NOT about health and it will kill & disable people. It’s to push people back to work & drive the narrative that Covid is only a risk to the “vulnerable” /1 🧵
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@broadwaybabyto
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@broadwaybabyto
3 months
HIV was a novel virus that changed people’s perception of sexual risk. Public health campaigns revolutionized the role of condoms in sexual health. Covid is ALSO a novel virus - why are there no public health campaigns helping people assess risk? A 🧵 on novel viruses & risk /1
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@broadwaybabyto
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1 month
It took me FOUR trips to ER - and a male advocate - to get any tests when I had a giant infected abscess from a post op bleed. I was told I was overreacting & sent home. Had I not had an advocate on 4th attempt - I would have died. We need to believe patients. Heartbreaking 👇🏼
@LongCovidHell
Dame Sa 🐝 3.5%
@LongCovidHell
2 months
“Young rugby star Maddy, 20, died 'screaming in pain' after doctors branded her 'difficult'. She died of sepsis in hospital after dislocating her hip while playing for the University of the West of England.” #Sepsis #MedicalGaslighting #NHS
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@broadwaybabyto
26 days
When I was a teenager - my mom’s pancreatic cancer was misdiagnosed as “anxiety.” The experience shaped my view of the healthcare system & the damage that bias, gaslighting and psychologizing illnesses can cause. A 🧵/1
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@broadwaybabyto
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@broadwaybabyto
4 months
“You’ve been sick for yrs - just die already or get back to real life.” I can’t believe someone said these words. I knew the pandemic had ripped masks off many & revealed their ableism/lack of compassion - but I was not prepared for this amount of hate. How did we get here? 🧵/1
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@broadwaybabyto
3 months
Covid prevention is 100% a class struggle. Respirators, HEPA filters, nose sprays, tests, single dwelling homes… they all cost money. We need to acknowledge this & push for free respirators for everyone who wants/needs one & clean air in all public places.
@elle_carnitine
elle carnitine 🍉
@elle_carnitine
3 months
Twitter leftists who insist covid is a bourgeois hangup: 45% of ppl who earn <$25k have long covid, vs 15% of those who earn >$200k The struggle for infection control is part of the class struggle, and ignoring covid is participating in the mass disabling of the working class
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@broadwaybabyto
14 days
I’ve got a family member who hasn’t seen me in 5 years because they “don’t do sick”. Suddenly they wanted to visit. I’m housebound - which limits options. When topic of masking came up - I was rudely shut down. They demanded “normal”. 🧵 on the importance of setting boundaries /1
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@broadwaybabyto
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@broadwaybabyto
19 days
Why do we undervalue the lives of disabled people so much? Why do we expect them to survive on a disability benefit that keeps them below poverty line - especially when being chronically ill drives expenses up? I spoke to a friend about this & was shocked by the response 🧵/1
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@broadwaybabyto
5 months
A mask 🧵 for the Covid conscious. At a hospital clinic (in a facility that still requires masking) and nurse only wearing baggy blue under her nose. I asked politely and repeatedly for her to pull it up and explained I was immune compromised. Her reply? /1
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@broadwaybabyto
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@broadwaybabyto
2 months
The more I talk to people who are sick & not testing for Covid - the more I realize that they’re not testing because deep down they know if positive there’s a moral obligation to isolate. And they simply don’t want to. Plausible deniablity should be the motto of the pandemic.
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@broadwaybabyto
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@broadwaybabyto
2 months
Had a discussion with a friend on CDC isolation guidelines & how we’re fostering a culture of eugenics & forced infection. Their response? “More like we’re just finally going to stop paying people to sit at home.” This is someone who had been a kind & logical person. Thread 🧵/1
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@broadwaybabyto
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@broadwaybabyto
2 months
I’ve got a friend who’s not taking any Covid precautions because he’s angry about restrictions placed on people at the beginning of the pandemic. He wants to forget it ever happened. I mentioned Covid can infect dogs. He loves his dog. He paused & said “well what can I do?” 🧵/1
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@broadwaybabyto
5 months
Today when I tried to explain why I couldn’t attend a holiday gathering - I was told (rather curtly) “we don’t do sick - happy thoughts only”. At first I thought this was just toxic positivity - but after reflecting I’m realizing it’s another example of denial & ableism /1 🧵
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@broadwaybabyto
3 months
It’s 2024 - can medical professionals PLEASE stop accusing those of us masking in hospitals of having “anxiety”?There’s an airborne pandemic disabling & killing millions. If I’m sick enough to need the hospital I’m too sick to get Covid. A 🧵 on HCW pushback on masking /1
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@broadwaybabyto
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@broadwaybabyto
1 month
The death of Prof Amit Patel in the UK highlights a frightening problem in medicine. One that disabled and marginalized individuals have been screaming about for years. Doctors don’t always listen to the patient - sometimes with catastrophic consequences. 🧵 /1
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@broadwaybabyto
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@broadwaybabyto
5 months
This is what we are subjecting our clinically vulnerable people to. This was a needed appt that I couldn’t skip. So I have to risk exposure to Covid & defend myself against accusations of anxiety only to be validated in the end when they confirm half the staff are out sick. /3
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@broadwaybabyto
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@broadwaybabyto
5 months
Considering this was in a facility that still mandates masks my heart breaks for those needing care in facilities with no mandates. We need masks back in healthcare. Respirators would be even better. It shouldn’t be this risky to access needed care /end
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@broadwaybabyto
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@broadwaybabyto
1 month
“If you’re too sick to microwave a meal you need full time care! You don’t have full time care? You must be faking!” The comments I’ve seen about disabled people needing to use food delivery apps are hurtful & judgemental. A 🧵on disability, ableism & lack of support /1
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@broadwaybabyto
5 months
“You seem really anxious about Covid”. I explain I’m not anxious but high risk & would appreciate her wearing mask correctly. She sighs & pulls it up. At end of appt I mention how quiet it seems & she says yes half the staff out sick so I’m “lucky” my appt wasn’t cancelled 🤦‍♀️ /2
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@broadwaybabyto
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@broadwaybabyto
2 months
We discussed how they were relieved they didn’t see me because they recognize the severity of their illness would be catastrophic for me - but they can’t extend that same courtesy to strangers. They can recognize the risk - but it’s not a concern if they don’t know the person. /8
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
3 months
Health isn’t black & white. Many conditions won’t kill you - but you won’t recover. You’ll watch your quality of life disappear while doctors shrug their shoulders because they don’t know how to fix you. If you don’t understand this - listen to disabled ppl who’ve gone through it
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
4 months
When we had mask mandates - the majority were wearing cloth & surgical. The majority were doing as they were told. The majority stopped wearing them as soon as permitted. Those STILL masking are NOT the majority. A 🧵 on masking in 2024 /1
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
2 months
This is why vulnerable & disabled people are so unsafe. I often hear “just stay home when sick” in response to asking people to mask - but the vast majority of people don’t stay home. MANY workers are unable to stay home because they don’t have adequate sick leave. /9
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@broadwaybabyto
4 months
On compassion, exclusion, Covid caution & the rise of denialism & ableism. A 🧵. I’ve got a friend who I’ve known for years - long before Covid. This friend knows about my health issues & knows they pre-date the pandemic. In the before times she would avoid visiting if sick /1
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@broadwaybabyto
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@broadwaybabyto
6 months
I’m tired. We are approaching year 4 of SARS2 pandemic & we have less testing, less disclosure, less precautions & MORE research showing the extensive long term damage it does. I’m sick of being told if I’m vulnerable to “just stay home”. I want masking, clean air & safe spaces.
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@broadwaybabyto
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@broadwaybabyto
2 months
Pregnant friend sick for 3rd time in 4 months. Refuses to mask or take precautions. Needed parents to come take care of her. They caught her “mystery virus”. Parents are now traveling - symptomatic - because they need stress relief. This is why vulnerable people feel unsafe.
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
3 months
This is why disabled patients say they feel unsafe in hospitals. And why we need to normalize masking & restore mask mandates to hospitals. Being put on a psych hold without access to your phone or meds & exposed to Covid longer? For requesting that staff mask? Unacceptable.
@CovidintheChart
Covid Diaries by HCW's 🍉
@CovidintheChart
3 months
Patient Care Tech in CO: "I'm devastated. Last night at work, a patient who was very covid cautious and immunocompromised came into ER with a 4-day migraine, with days of vomiting, unable to eat, etc. She even planned it for 3 am. trying to hit the Er off peak. /1
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@broadwaybabyto
2 months
I’m severely immune compromised and high risk - so given we’ve abandoned all mitigations at a societal level I’ve been forced to isolate to protect my health. I’ve lost many friends as a result. When someone offers to come see me - it could provide a much needed boost. /2
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@broadwaybabyto
3 months
I don’t understand the opposition to masks in hospitals. Even if you don’t think covid is a risk (it is) … universal masking reduces the risk of all kinds of hospital acquired infections. They can be very serious & have been a threat in hospitals for years. Masks make sense.
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
1 month
This doctor did NO tests before deciding it was weight gain. Wouldn’t discuss it with me further & wouldn’t permit me a second opinion. I went home completely dejected and also worried because I KNEW something was wrong. /2
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Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
1 month
I’m very grateful to the doctor who figured it out and helped me get homecare so I could get proper nutrition & stay off my feet while the swelling was at its worst. But it took a LOT of courage to go to the ER after being so rudely dismissed. /10
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
4 months
I keep getting asked why I think ‘let it rip’ Covid policies equal eugenics. I’ve written threads to address - but here’s a simple summation: Being ok letting people die because they are old or already sick just so you don’t have to make any changes to your life IS eugenics.
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
1 month
Turns out it was a combination of third spacing from my MCAS (when the fluid doesn’t stay in the vascular system & leaks out into the tissues - can be a big issue if you have POTS as well) and low albumin. Dangerously low albumin. /5
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Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
1 month
Needless to say I was suffering from malnutrition due to my extensive GI issues and that was causing the swelling. It most definitely wasn’t weight gain. I was underweight with the exception of my legs. /6
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Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
2 months
Even people who know a severely vulnerable person & express relief at having not exposed them to illness - still can’t apply that compassion at a societal level. Which is why we’ve got so much Covid spread. People don’t care to protect others anymore. /10
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
1 month
Lastly can we please start listening more to patients? We know our bodies best and when you dismiss us it causes not only physical damage - but emotional damage too. You make it harder for us to seek care in the future. /13
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Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
14 days
First off - I reject the idea that one person can determine another person’s idea of normal. Second - if you can’t be happy just because you have to wear a mask for an hour… you may need to re-examine some things about yourself. /8
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
4 months
A NYE Covid 🧵. It’s nearing the end of year four of the Covid pandemic and I’m exhausted. I’m sad. I’m frustrated. And not for the reasons you might think. In the beginning Covid didn’t significantly alter my life. I was already disabled & housebound when the pandemic hit. /1
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
2 months
Many folks are pushing to go “back to normal” because they’re upset that their lives were upended in early days of Covid pandemic. I get it. My life was upended when I became disabled. But here’s the thing - “normal” isn’t working. It’s a mirage. 🧵 on denial & false ‘normal’ /1
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Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
1 month
Given the DoorDash discourse started because of someone with MCAS requiring specific food - let’s talk about MCAS. It’s a BEAST of a syndrome that can drastically alter quality of life - it is NOT just a histamine issue. It’s one of the hardest things I have to manage 🧵/1
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Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
1 month
So I went to the ER. I was actually nervous about going because I could only imagine what that doctor had put in my chart. Thankfully I had a doctor who took the swelling very seriously and ordered a wide range of tests (and immediately put me on bed rest to protect my ankles) /4
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@broadwaybabyto
2 months
I’m shocked - just shocked - that the White House has more stringent guidelines in place for COVID. Shocked! It’s almost as though they realize the very serious risk of reinfections & don’t want the President & staff exposed. But sure - 1 day isolation is fine for the plebs.
@myrabatchelder
Myra Batchelder
@myrabatchelder
2 months
Currently, @WhiteHouse website says "Within the 10 days prior to the public tour, anyone who has tested positive for COVID-19, has had any COVID-19 symptoms, or been in close contact with someone confirmed or suspected to have COVID-19, should stay home"
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4 months
My dad lost his oldest sister to measles as a child. It’s incredibly serious and not something you should be trying to catch. You know why people don’t realize how serious it is? Because vaccines have done such a good job.
@BuDs_UK
Buckinghamshire Disability Service BuDS
@BuDs_UK
4 months
@ELHopkins We have been contacted by three separate groups of parents who are planning a 'measles party' so their children can catch measles and get 'natural immunity' to it and 'boost their health resistance'. We've obviously recommended MMR but 'they don't trust vaccines'.
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@broadwaybabyto
3 months
I’m concerned for all the people who’ve been putting off medical & dental care waiting for people to wake up & take Covid seriously. Most believed that we would have mandatory respirators & clean air benchmarks by now. Inaccessible healthcare will harm so many & is so easy to fix
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@broadwaybabyto
2 months
Anyone in my life knows exactly WHY I’m so high risk - and thankfully most of the people left in my circles take precautions to protect me. If someone won’t take any then I decline a visit. I’m too exhausted to argue - if you don’t want to mitigate I simply won’t see you. /3
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@broadwaybabyto
3 months
I don’t share memes often but as a complex chronically ill patient in Canada - this feels painfully accurate. We are failing disabled people in ALL countries - we need fair, equitable, timely & safe access to healthcare for all. #KeepMasksInHealthcare h/t @eatonhamilton
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Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
5 months
This story hits so close to home it’s taken me a week to process & share. In my 20s I was sent home from ER 3 times w/infected cantaloupe sized abscess in my belly from post op bleed. My then BF had to take me a 4th time & make a scene so they wouldn’t discharge me again. 🧵 /1
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@broadwaybabyto
1 month
For the next few days I elevated my legs as much as possible and tried to gently massage them to see if it helped. They just kept getting bigger. Eventually they started weeping (fluid was seeping out of my skin) and my ankles were dislocating from the pressure. /3
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@broadwaybabyto
2 months
If you’re newly disabled - whether by Long Covid or any other chronic illness - you need to prepare yourself for gaslighting. Doctors, HCWs, friends, family…. You will be surprised how much it’ll happen. A 🧵on how to cope, why it happens & finding your tribe. /1
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Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
1 month
A right leaning friend told me that given all the lies told at beginning of Covid pandemic he didn’t feel anyone would reconsider mitigations unless “bodies start piling up”. I explained that it’s not death toll in acute phase that is the biggest concern - it’s disability. 🧵 /1
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Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
1 month
This is a lesson in the importance of knowing your own body & having an advocate with you whenever possible. I KNEW something serious was wrong but I had no one with me to challenge the first dismissive doctor. And he was completely unwilling to listen to me. /11
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@broadwaybabyto
14 days
This is when I mourn the loss of empathy & compassion that’s been escalating since Covid. I don’t think someone else has the right to decide my “normal”. I find it incredibly insulting that they insinuated they were “deserving” of a happy visit (as though I somehow wasn’t). /11
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Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
1 month
Doc to me: Could you be pregnant? Me: Nope - they removed my uterus. Doc: Are you sure? You look young. Maybe it was your appendix? Me: I know the difference between my appendix and my WOMB. Doc: Orders pregnancy test anyways. This thread is so on point it hurts 👇🏼
@chantz_y
chantzy
@chantz_y
1 month
Or this far
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@broadwaybabyto
2 months
As a result anyone who is vulnerable is basically excluded from society. This could be fixed with common sense measures like clean air & masking - but instead of doing that we’ve adopted a “you do you” approach that is completely and utterly failing. /11
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Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
14 days
The idea that I should risk what’s left of my health just so someone else can feel like things are “normal” is patently absurd to me. So I held my ground and the visit was cancelled. This person is now angry that I’m unwilling to see them. /9
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@broadwaybabyto
2 months
Covid policies and mitigation are a social justice issue. Low income & marginalized individuals are at much higher risk. Adele is a multi millionaire who recently began wearing a respirator & had plans to improve air quality at her venue. Now she’s cancelling multiple shows. 🧵/1
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@broadwaybabyto
2 months
I pointed out that there are many people working in these places who are vulnerable like me - and that they had put them at risk. Their response? “We had no choice we had to get home.” So I asked if they masked. They said no. /7
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1 month
Addendum: Had I not trusted my intuition and sought help elsewhere - or worse had I actively TRIED to lose weight since he suggested it was wright gain - my condition would have become dire even faster. Imagine telling a malnourished patient they need to LOSE weight.
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@broadwaybabyto
2 months
The CDC decision to change Covid isolation guidelines pushes us further into a culture of forced infection, disability and eugenics in the name of capitalism. It will disproportionately harm disabled, marginalized, unhoused & low income people. A 🧵 on social justice & Covid /1
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Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
1 month
Don’t ever feel like you can’t get a second opinion or go to a different hospital if you feel you aren’t being taken seriously. And don’t ever apologize for advocating for your health. If you don’t have someone who can go with you - try & phone or video a friend. /12
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@broadwaybabyto
1 month
I never knew that low albumin could cause painful swelling like that - nor did I even think that I was suffering from malnutrition. But with both POTS & MCAS it makes sense. /7
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@broadwaybabyto
2 months
Why is it that people who are most angry that their lives were temporarily inconvenienced for a short time due to stay at home orders - are the ones who yell loudest that disabled people should “stay home forever”? We have just as much a right to be in society as everyone else.
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@broadwaybabyto
2 months
Often this decision ends or severely impacts the friendship. People don’t like it when you set boundaries or question their behaviour. This situation was unique because the friend who was traveling ended up getting sick halfway through their trip. /4
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@broadwaybabyto
14 days
This is where boundaries come in. I was completely willing (and actually excited) to see this person after so long. I simply set boundaries to protect myself. They didn’t agree & cancelled the visit… as is their right. They do not have the right to shame me for my boundaries /10
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Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
4 months
Now it’s rude to mask? Makes me think back to the early days of the HIV/AIDS pandemic when asymptomatic spread was poorly understood (like with Covid!). Many people saying “I’m healthy - don’t you trust me?” And eschewing condoms. Some lost their lives.
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@broadwaybabyto
6 months
Immune compromised, chronically ill folks are NOT ok. We are scared. We are sad. We see people raging against increased mitigations & ignoring impending healthcare collapse and we ache. Our lives have value & being told to just “stay in our homes” isn’t sustainable. 🧵 1/
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
2 months
This is why you use the Precautionary Principle for novel viruses. With HIV/AIDS - 5 years wasn’t enough time to understand the true scope of devastation. We are just beginning the 5th year of Covid & learning more about long term damage every day. Clean the air. Wear a mask.
@pot8um
potatum🥔
@pot8um
2 months
CDC, 1985: “The fact that two thirds of men infected for over five years have not developed AIDS or AIDS-related illness is an encouraging indication that infection with this virus is not necessarily followed by rapid development of symptoms and death.” History rhymes.
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
3 months
As we emerge from another Covid wave I find myself lamenting the dashed hopes I had at the beginning of the pandemic. I feel defeated, sad & frustrated by the squandered opportunities to create a safer & more inclusive society that cared for the vulnerable and disabled. 🧵/1
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
4 months
When you’re chronically ill your baseline becomes everything. Whatever limited function you have left you want to protect at all costs. I suspect that’s why many who were disabled before Covid understand & take as many precautions as they can. They know what they’re risking.
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
2 months
This person doesn’t care about their own health or the health of those around them - but they DO care about their dog. Yet getting a HEPA & masking when ill was considered “too much” to prevent something they described as horrific. I don’t get it. How do we get people to care? /4
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
4 months
I’m sick of people acting like I need to apologize for protecting myself from Covid. I’m severely disabled - if I lose more function I’m in big trouble. The people demanding I go back to normal won’t help me should I worsen & need support. If you won’t help? You don’t get a say.
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
1 month
People keep shouting that if disabled people can’t cook or clean they should be institutionalized. Apparently accommodating us so we can live independent lives is angering others. Setting aside how awful many care homes are - do you realize there aren’t nearly enough beds? 🧵/1
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
2 months
Now the CDC are looking to shorten the Covid isolation period to 1 day - which will increase spread and tells disabled people that our lives are not worth protecting. People won’t do the right thing unless there are rules demanding they do. It’s sad but true. /12
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
14 days
Here’s the thing - being disabled is lonely. The pandemic has only made that worse. The isolation wears on you and it’s easy to accidentally get your hopes up when you really should know better. When this person offered to visit … I thought maybe things had changed. /4
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
5 months
For those still unable to comprehend that people masked before 2020… a short story. I spend a lot of time in ERs due to my health conditions. In winter I would wear a mask & take extra precautions - even before Covid. I’m immune compromised & HCWs would mask around me. /1 🧵
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
2 months
After they began showing symptoms - including fever and a “wicked cough” … they had 4 more days of travel. That’s 4 days checking into hotels, eating in restaurants and using public service stations. 4 days of exposing other people. /6
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
2 months
We are in an airborne pandemic. Everyone needs to breathe the air. In public spaces that air is shared. So we must acknowledge there’s a risk and work COLLECTIVELY to lower it. It’s been 4 years of forcing disabled people to stay home. It’s time for something to change. /14
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
3 months
Another day - another person telling me I need to “try harder” to find a care home where I will have ‘round the clock care’ & not be a burden to friends & families. People refuse to accept that for MANY chronically ill & disabled people there are no suitable options. A 🧵 /1
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
3 months
I’m seeing more people with Long Covid who got sick after dropping mitigations because the government told them Covid was “only” a risk to the vulnerable. I want to thank them for sharing their stories. This narrative that only certain people are at risk is dangerous. A 🧵 /1
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
2 months
People keep asking why the CDC changing Covid isolation guidelines matters since “people aren’t isolating anyways.” It matters because it emboldens people to knowingly spread a deadly virus & it further pushes the narrative that the vulnerable are expendable. 🧵 👇🏼
@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
3 months
Make no mistake - the CDC decision to change Covid isolation from 5 days to 1 day is an economic & political one. It’s NOT about health and it will kill & disable people. It’s to push people back to work & drive the narrative that Covid is only a risk to the “vulnerable” /1 🧵
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Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
2 months
As a result they had to face the reality that a) their lack of mitigations caused them to become severely ill and b) had they come to visit me there’s a very good chance they would have given that illness to me. /5
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
1 month
Our digestive systems are controlled by the autonomic nervous system (the system malfunctioning when you have POTS) so it’s not uncommon to experience vomiting, diarrhea & other gastric complaints. /8
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
2 months
First off - stay home. If it’s at all possible for you to isolate please do so. These guidelines that suggest you can go back into the world as long as your fever is gone or symptoms are improving make ZERO sense. If you’re testing positive - you’re contagious. /2
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
2 months
The reason so many of us are advocating for masks and clean air is because most people are like my friend (or worse). Only capable of thinking of themselves or people in their immediate sphere - and don’t care at all if they infect others. /13
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
5 months
I shared a story about being in hospital w/a mask mandate. HCW not masking correctly accused me of “anxiety” for asking her to mask. A week later & still getting troll posts. I fail to understand why people are so angry a patient in a hospital would try & protect themselves 🧵 /1
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
2 months
When you’re chronically ill - and especially if your autonomic nervous system is broken - the smallest setbacks can devastate you. I don’t think healthy people understand this. Our baseline means everything - and it’s far too easy to destroy it. A short 🧵 on recent struggles /1
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
1 month
Patients shouldn’t be dismissed without any tests being run. Had I not gone to the ER I could have ended up with life threatening cardiac issues from the electrolyte & fluid imbalance. A simple lab test would have confirmed the diagnosis had the first doctor cared to do them. /14
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
2 months
Also if you’re not aware of the risk of Covid in dogs (and all animals) I highly recommend researching it and doing whatever you can to protect them from infection. They are completely vulnerable and need their humans to do the right thing. /end
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
2 months
This type of personality shift is one of the aspects of the pandemic that bothers me the most. This person was kind & considerate and never opposed paid time off. Now they’ve become angry, intolerant & spew right wing rhetoric despite claiming to not belong to any “side” /2
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
2 months
Many people I know are sick right now with a “mystery virus” - yet none are willing to test for Covid. Their rationale? What difference does it make - if I’m sick, I’m sick. They fail to understand it will 100% make a difference to the people they potentially infect.
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
4 months
The person who excluded me from holidays by saying we “don’t do sick” really got me thinking. As did all the replies. We know everyone gets sick - it’s part of life. So I think what they’re really saying is “we don’t do disabled/chronic illness”. But WHY would that be?🧵/1
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
3 months
To all the people who stopped masking or mitigating for Covid because they have pandemic fatigue & just want to go back to “normal”…. Your normal will disappear in an instant if you’re left chronically ill from Covid. You won’t get a choice. So choose carefully now.
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
2 months
Fourth - REST. Radical rest is important when you have Covid. Some studies suggest you should be resting for a minimum 4 weeks after infection (yes even if you feel “all better”). Rebound is a concern & Long Covid risk appears to increase when people don’t slow down. /5
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
2 months
Friends say to me “I had no idea being sick was SO bad. It’s hard to get care. I didn’t realize when you warned me.” They’re looking for reassurance that their case will be different than mine - that they will be exception. I can’t give it. This is why I advocate for prevention.
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
2 months
It’s a multi system virus that has proven vascular, neurological and immune system damaging capabilities. It disables 1 in 10 people and the risk of disability increases with each infection. It’s been downplayed for economic & political reasons but the science is clear. /8
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@broadwaybabyto
Kelly
@broadwaybabyto
1 month
And remember dismissal & gaslighting is often far worse for marginalized individuals. There’s a LOT of bias in medicine. If you’re someone in a position of privilege please call it out when you see it - and offer to be an ally to those who need support. Allies save lives /end
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