Issue 19 - Disability

Salient DISABILITY

Vol. 83

Issue 19

07 Sep 2020

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A S W VU For the 2021 Student Executive

Elections

Voting is now open! voting.vuwsa.org.nz Paper ballots can be cast at the VUWSA Kelburn office between the hours of 10am and 4pm.

Voting closes 11 30am September 10

Annual General Meeting ‘20 Thursday 10 September 12pm in The Hub Come along to our AGM and keep VUWSA accountable to the students they serve!

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Scan me!

Contents Editorial......................................................................................................................................................................... 04 DSA: President's Address....................................................................................................................................... 05 News End of Life Choice, Post-COVID, and Banter: A Sit Down with Grant Robertson............................................... 06 The Rundown: Your Candidates for VUWSA 2021................................................................................................... 08 Mediating Level Two Restrictions: Accessibility For Our Disabled Community................................................. 10 Opinion: Disability Pride is Not a Pedestal, It's Normalisation.............................................................................. 11 Opinion: We Need to Talk About More Than Just Depression and Anxiety......................................................... 12 Features The Ins and Outs of Vaginismus.................................................................................................................................

Living Life in the Punchline..........................................................................................................................................

The Mad the Bad and the Sad....................................................................................................................................

Diary of a Professional Social Distancer...................................................................................................................

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Centrefold

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Poetry

Columns Politically Minded......................................................................................................................................................... 28 UniQ................................................................................................................................................................................ 28 To Be Frank.................................................................................................................................................................... 29 Culture Rating Lifts at Te Herenga Waka............................. 29

Salient is funded by VUWSA, partly through the Student Services Levy. Salient is kinda, sorta editorially independent from VUWSA. It’s a long story.

Salient is a member of the Aotearoa Student Press Association (ASPA). The perspectives and opinions in any issue of Salient do not necessarily reflect those of the Editors.

Entertainment Bingo Occupation Station Horoscopes

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Complaints regarding the material published in Salient should first be brought to the Editors.

If displeased with the Editors’ response, the complaint should then be brought to the Media Council. Complaints should be directed to info@ mediacouncil.org.nz.

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Editorial Welcome to the disability issue of Salient. This issue is co-edited with the Disabled Students Association.

Salient is perhaps the most inaccessible space in the University. Literally and figuratively. The office is only mobility-accessible during Hunter Lounge open hours—the only way to get here via wheelchair is through the back door of the Hunter Lounge. This means that after 4 or 5pm, during weekends and uni breaks, Salient is only accessible via Zoom for some.

Figuratively, Salient is hard to reach too. That’s on us. Our inbox is a void of political press releases that refuse to be marked as spam. Our feature spots are decided weeks in advance. This makes it almost impossible to pitch an idea if we don’t get the issue themes out to students with plenty of notice. This is why guest edits and co-edits are important.

We know this issue has been a long time coming for many. Earlier this year, we asked what issues you wanted to see in Trimester 2. A disability themed issue was by far the most requested.

This issue is going to look a bit different. In this issue you may notice that we’ve increased the text size and margins, we’ve included image descriptions too. We’ve simplified our fonts to make them easier to read, and focused on shortening paragraphs. You might also notice we have high contrast colours too.

These little changes make a big difference for reading accessibility, and we’ll be continuing to make efforts like this so that Salient can be more accessible for all.

We couldn’t be more grateful for Alice and DSA for working with us on this issue, enjoy.

Kirsty Frame (she/her) Rachel Trow (Kāi Tahu, Ngāti Tūwharetoa she/her)

WELLINGTON CENTRAL CANDIDATE DEBATE 1pm Tuesday 8 September, The Hub Hear from:

(Labour) Robertson Grantyour election! vote this inform Come along andHon Nicola Willis (National) Hon James Shaw (Greens) Brooke van Velden (Act) Abe Gray (TOP) Jesse Richardson (Independent)

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DSA Address An entire Salient issue. About disability. Co-edited by us, the Disabled Students Association.

About. Fucking. Time.

I guess this is the time when I should be saying how grateful we are to be given this issue. How much it means to us to have a voice on campus and be recognised as a marginalised community for once. How awesome it is to be seen and heard and take control of our own narrative for once.

Nah. Disabled people have been hidden for too long for gratitude. We’ve been ignored by the world, by politicians, by Doctors, by the mental health system, by the media, by the education system, by polite liberals, senior leadership teams who have only just started to invite us into their meetings, by aspiring student politicians who only engage when they want our vote, and by past Salient editors (oops-).

So, nah, we aren’t grateful. This is our time, thank you very much. We’re here to celebrate us and our community of gorgeous cripples and invalids.

On ‘cripples’ and ‘invalids’­ —the title “disability” may be off putting to you. But, there’s an important reason we chose it. It is time to acknowledge that the disabled existence encompasses so much more than the little wheelchair figure on bathroom doors. As you’ll soon learn, there is so much diversity within our community (which is, in fact, the largest minority group in the world!). We’re different but, importantly, we are all disabled.

Us disabled folk are united by one thing: living in a world that rejects us. Throughout this issue you’ll notice that what we are wanting is not alleviation from our disability or illness, but a shift in the dialogue and culture that stigmatises us.

This is why we choose to proudly use terms like “disability” and “disabled”, which are still loaded with so much stigma and hate. Not only is it important to be a united front pushing for universal accessibility, but it’s important to recognise that- despite the messages we’re sent—there is nothing inherently wrong with being disabled. There is something inherently wrong with an ableist society, though.

Ableism is one of the least spoken about forces of hatred. And, it’s everywhere. Our culture is filled to the brim with inspiration porn (See Connor’s article), ignorant jokes made at our expense (see Grace’s article), and blatant villanising of our personalities (see Tara’s article).

We’re tired of letting non-disabled people tell our stories. This is why we didn’t give our contributors any particular direction or prompts. We wanted the contributors to tell their story, the way that they wanted to.

Ultimately, if there were a handful of things I want you to take from this issue it is: •

We are oppressed by an ableist society, not by our disability.

•

However, disability is not the same for everyone. I do not and can not speak for everyone within the community.

•

Finally...VOTE. It is up to you to demand better mental health services and accessible housing. We need a welfare system that doesn’t make disabled, Māori, and Pasifika communities disproportionately poor. We must push for explicit policy on disability issues.

Ultimately, we have a chance to help end oppressive and ableist forces. Please, take it.

Peace out, Alice xx

Brought to you by

Peoples Coffee Newtown

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News

MONDAY 07 SEPTEMBER 2020

End of Life Choice, Post-COVID and

Banter: A Sit Down with Grant Robertson Finn Blackwell | He/Him

Image by: Salient

Continuing our coverage of Wellington Central electorate candidates, Salient sat down with current Wellington Central MP and Minister of Finance Grant Robertson to catch up about all things Wellington.

End of Life Choice and Cannabis With important referendums on the way, Salient asked Robertson what he believed the significance of the End of Life Choice referendum was. “It’s a hugely significant issue,” commented Robertson, “I actually don’t think it should have gone to a referendum, I think it’s a very difficult, morally challenging issue, and I actually think members of parliament should’ve made the decision ourselves.”

“Having said that, the only way of getting the legislation to the point we’ve got it to was to agree that there would be a referendum.”

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“For me this is a really significant issue around, effectively, dying with dignity. Anyone who’s had a relative terminally ill, the pain that the person goes through and their family goes through, I think that there’s a way of creating a framework that has all the right safeguards in it, that protects people's rights, that ensures no one is exploited, but provides that opportunity for a dignified death.”

“I’ve looked and worked closely on this legislation.

The safeguards are very tight (arguably too tight) in terms of who can access it, but I think it’s reached a point where New Zealanders can be confident that this is actually part of a society where we support people to both live and die with dignity.”

While discussing cannabis, Minister Robertson stated that he will be voting in favour of the cannabis referendum. "From my perspective, it’s not the most important issue facing New Zealand

at the moment, but this is an opportunity for us to get on top of what is a health issue.”

for life in national politics by teaching him “a lot about advocacy and dealing with the media”.

He continued, explaining “the longer we leave cannabis unregulated and without the right health and education messages around it, the more opportunity there is for the people who make money out of it, which includes gangs and also those who don’t understand the impact it's having. It’s going to be used, it has been used for a long time. I want to make clear that I will be supporting it.”

“Fundamentally it was also about standing up for what I believed in. I learnt a lot about how you marshal your resources and you use what you’ve got. They were great times, great people, and a few stories we won’t tell”.

Plans for Post-Covid Economy With many experts stating that New Zealand is headed for an economic downturn, Robertson outlined his plans for a post COVID economy.

“We’ve worked incredibly hard to try to cushion that blow,” he stated. “I stood up in parliament and said that we would not be able to save every single job or every single business, but we've worked really hard to cushion that blow”.

Robertson continued by saying that “relative to the rest of the world I think we’ve done okay”.

Explaining his plan for a post-Covid economy, Robertson said his focus was on “the importance of supporting small and medium enterprises in New Zealand and supporting people to set them up and establish them. The Labour party recently announced the extension of a policy called the flexi-wage which supports people who are on benefits to be taken on and subsidised”.

“Part of that funding is ring-fenced to help people establish their own businesses, which I think is a really important part of the kind of economy we want as we emerge from COVID.” “The second thing that I think is hugely important is future-proofing our economy,” Robertson continued. “Actually seeing the importance of not only getting to a low carbon economy, but the opportunities that exist alongside that and the ability for us to lead the world in things like renewable energy and so on”.

Student Politics and National Politics Before he became a key member of the Labour Party, Minister Robertson spent time working with Otago’s Students Association and the New Zealand Students Association as its president.

Robertson remarked that this had prepared him

Banter (as labelled by Minister Roberston) As with all previous candidates interviewed, Salient asked Robertson who had his vote for New Zealand Bird of the Year.

“This is always a controversial thing. In terms of who shows up at my house, I want Kākā this time round. Paula Bennet has cornered the market on Kererū, and we see a lot more of those up at our place, but I’m backing the Kākā.”

As Minister for Finance, Robertson (obviously) deals with a lot of money, and naturally, he has a favourite bank note: “I like the ten dollar note, because Kate Shepard is on it. She’s pretty cool,” he stated.

After a long day of being Finance Minister, one would wonder how Grant Robertson takes some much needed “chillax time”. He revealed that his go-to chill out album was Foothills by The Bats. “I’ve got reasonably niche music tastes”, Robertson revealed. “I’m a big fan of New Zealand Music and particularly the music I grew up with. If I’m looking to chill out there’s a band called The Bats [...] I’m looking forward to chilling out The Bats - Foothills. I recommend it.”

While Wellington Central MP, Robertson is also an avid Highlanders fan, leading some to wonder whether he calls himself a northerner or a southerner. “The purpose of the north/south rugby game that’s being discussed is you going back to where you first played provincial rugby. I grew up in Dunedin and do support Otago and the Highlander, but, I have lived in Wellington for the best part of 25 years now, so I have mastered the ability to have two teams.”

“If I were being selected for the north/south rugby game, which remains a prospect given my obvious physique, I’d be selected for the south team,” Robertson concluded.

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The Rundown: Your Candidates for VUWSA 2021 Finn Blackwell & Te Aorewa Rolleston

VUWSA’s candidate’s debate kicked off last week with questions surrounding experience, policy delivery, advocacy and engagement.

Incoming Presidential candidate Jack Walker explains that he will aim to “serve the people, to listen to them, to collaborate with them, to engage with them, and to advocate for them.”

“What drew me to [the presidency] was my desire to make a difference in other peoples’ lives: to listen to them, to understand who they are, why they do what they do, and to empower to make a difference.”

Second candidate for President, Michael Turnbull, said that his focus is on “reigniting, re-engaging and reforming” VUWSA for the upcoming year.

“I know how powerful VUWSA can be in creating change and steering the direction of student advocacy at VUW” Turnbull added. “Some crucial change is needed to ensure that our association continues to deliver for our students.”

Both Presidential candidates also spoke on ^The Young Matt Show to outline their policies.

In regard to working with Ngāi Tauira, and introducing a kāwanatanga agreement initially discussed in 2019, Turnbull said “that is something that VUWSA should have at the core of it’s agreement … myself and members of Ngāi Tauira have had discussions this year about how we can implement that Kāwanatanga agreement and the MOU that was essentially going to be created.”

Walker spoke to the need for changes to be implicated towards supporting the welfare of students.

In particular a discussion relating to improved mental health support and advocacy was posed to which Walker said “I’ve struggled with my own mental health in the last few years… I’d like to see more counseling at Te Aro and Pipitea, I would also like to see more accessible services for students, the communication and distribution of

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| He/Him & She/Her

information could put steps in the right direction to make it more accessible for everyone.”

A question was posed during the live debate surrounding how the pair would seek to represent and engage with VUW’s representative groups, given that both candidates were self-classified as privileged.

Walker stated that “I don’t think I can speak on their behalf. I’m a cis white male. But with that comes a standing in society where you have a foot in the door. I don’t believe I should be using that foot in the door for myself, I believe that I should be using that foot in the door to open it for everyone.”

Taking the podium, Turnbull remarked that “It’s important to acknowledge that, when we’re working in a colonial university system, there are going to be issues where I don’t have the lived experiences of a lot of those marginalised groups that we have to really push for, especially within a colonial system.”

He added that “I think it’s about open consultation, having those hard discussions, and being able to actively listen and take on board from those groups. Understanding that, as president, and as someone who is inherently privileged, we have the opportunity to work with groups to help deliver for them, in a way that the University often doesn’t.”

In other aspects of the VUWSA candidacy debates, the roles of Academic VP, Engagement VP and Welfare VP were also presented with candidates squaring off with the definitive again being experience versus delivery.

The candidates for Engagement and Welfare VP are running unopposed. Engagement VP candidate Grace Carr has voiced her focus engagement between students and VUWSA, Empowering student voices, and transforming this role within VUWSA. Welfare candidate Ralph Zambraro’s campaign has focused on the advancement, betterment

and strengthening of the student body.

The Academic VP candidates highlighted a number of focal points for their campaigns. Laura Jackson explained that her platform was one of collaboration with staff to make substantial changes for student learning. Cherri-Lyn Lomax Morris is standing on a platform of advocacy, with focusses on transparency, representation and empathy. Finally, Blake Steel is focussing on delveriving accountability, empowerment and inclusion from VUWSA in 2021.

The officer roles were also presented with candidates suggesting ideas for further shaping VUWSA in 2021.

Education Officer candidates Caira Mitchell and James Daly shared the views of inclusivity for the role and strive for policy changes that reflect this.

Campaigns Officer candidate Kathrine Blow brought up her focus towards student voice, student issues, and the student experience, while alternative candidate, Rilke Comer stated her focus on inclusion, involvement and innovation.

Third candidate Alexis Mundy was not present for the forum but c self-advocacy” as one of her key focusses.

In regard to the Clubs and Activities Officer Candidates, Tara O’Sullivan outlined her vision for 2021 by placing emphasis on networking for VUWSA events, establishing working groups for engagement at campuses outside of Kelburn, and creating more accessible relations between students and clubs. Alternate candidate Zoë Simpson discussed her three initiatives during the forum which were inclusivity, sustainability,

engagement and advocacy as key factors she’d bring to the role.

Returning Sustainability Officer Candidate Sophie Dixon and new-comer Louise Coram-Lasnier were next, outlining their policies for a more sustainable VUWSA. These included Dixon’s ideas for reducing food waste, strengthening and promoting existing Uni services. Coram-Lasnier focused on accessible sustainability, specifically flatting and lifestyle changes. Both candidates agreed on the priority for the University to gain a Fair-Trade accreditation.

The Equity and Wellbeing Officer role has two candidates: Monica Lim and George Garnett.

Both strive for accessibility and accountability, with Lim also focussing on representation, and Garnett on looking toward working with Greater Wellington Regional Council.

The final position of Treasurer-Secretary has five candidates. Nathan Campbell focussing on adaptability, accountability and accessibility.

Amelia Blamey on financial independence, better services and COVID assistance. Troy Brown for a more vocal, organised, transparent and economical VUWSA. Levi Gibbs on support, reallocation and transparency. And finally, Lachlan Craig on accountability, reform and the student body.

The VUWSA elections begin today (Monday) and close11:30am Thursday. To register to vote and select the new VUWSA exec for 2021, go to voting. vuwsa.org.nz.

Results will be announced at the VUWSA AGM on Thursday, beginning at 12pm.

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Mediating Level Two Restrictions: Accessibility For Our Disabled Community Keana Virmani

Amid the newly revisited Level 2 restrictions, many disabled students are feeling the additional hurdles placed in front of them at University.

Members of the Disabled Students Association (DSA) spoke of the ways in which the protocols at VUW have affected accessibility.

Wider restrictions have meant “less space on buses, meaning some people miss out and fewer people are able to use lifts which slows them down.”

Looking at the University campuses, DSA commented that “the main entry point at Kelburn isn’t close to many accessible car parks, meaning it’s very difficult to get inside.”

Once inside, it’s also difficult to get to the access suite, as the ground level entry of the Library is closed off.

Pipitea campus accessibility has been especially difficult. DSA specifically noted that Rutherford House the accessibility ramp has been blocked off.

To add, the lift in the Student Union Building has in recent weeks, broken twice. This elevator specifically allows access to VUWSA offices, Student Health, enrollment offices, and key club spaces.

The lift first broke on August 10th, and after being repaired the day after, broke again. The lift was out of action thereafter until August 26th while parts were delivered.

| She/Her

Recent feedback received by Disability Services indicated that “the majority of students with disabilities were making full use of the blended course and service delivery and valued having the choice.”

Many have decided to study remotely in order to “reduce their commute and fatigue,” ultimately moving at their own pace to meet their needs.

The University further stated that many students with disabilities are “developing new strategies to navigate our campuses and access study and university life,” with many doing so “with the advice of our disability and inclusion advisers.”

These strategies have involved “sticking to accessible routes, accessing the orientation and navigation services provided by Blind Low Vision NZ, avoiding crowded spaces, and developing confidence in disclosing their disability needs to staff and others.”

For those disabled students learning remotely, Disability Services at VUW have placed student wellbeing at the forefront of their response, with all services for students now available online.

Such services include education access plans, tailored notetaking and sign language interpreters, to name a few.

DSA did, however, highlight some difficulties that have been overlooked by the University.

There have been “issues with the recorded lectures in terms of transcribing, and some students finding it difficult to learn online.”

This placed those who require elevators to access key student services disadvantaged during this period. DSA emphasised the urgency of getting such issues fixed, highlighting that “other accessible routes are often slower, are outside and exposed, and ultimately really difficult.”

Furthermore, the unavailability of printed materials “is extremely difficult” for some students, whose disability makes it hard to read on a screen. DSA noted scans are often “too difficult to read or be picked up by OCR’s.”

VUW commented on the ways in which the university aimed to mediate the challenges of level two accessibility for the disabled community, specifically in regard to physical distancing.

DSA also stated that lecturers themselves have found the dual model difficult in order for “equitable learning, which has meant the learning hasn’t been great.”

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Opinion Disability Pride is Not a Pedestal, It’s Normalisation Connor Adamson | He/Him

‘Inspiration Porn’ is detrimental to disabled people. When disabled people are used as inspiration this can slow down and even reverse the normalisation of disability.

What is Inspiration Porn? It describes how people with disabilities are often used as objects of inspiration rather than being seen as human beings. The term was used in a TED Talk by Stella Young in 2014.

Now you might be thinking, “this is ridiculous, I am inspired by people with disabilities and still see them as human beings.” Stella points out that often disabled people are just living their lives and not achieving anything exceptional if their disability is not a factor.

Images of disabled people simply living their lives hinders the ability of disabled people to be a normal part of society, as we’re always being viewed as exceptional.

On the flip side, when a disabled person achieves something that is noteworthy, circulating inspirational images of the person downplays their achievement. Their achievement is suddenly seen as easier and people decide “well if they can do it then I can as well.”

In reality, the task is still just as difficult, all that has changed is the person’s perception of how much work is involved. People are more likely to appreciate and understand the work involved when an able-bodied individual achieves the same task.

The social model of disability argues is the idea that individuals are not disabled by their bodies, but by what they are required to do with their bodies. I like to imagine completing a task is like a sprint with hurdles but everybody has a different number of hurdles they have to jump.

The sad truth is that disabled people are often thought of as inspirational simply for trying to

Image: Disability Memes Facebook page

overcome hurdles that are often ignored. That is, until they receive enough attention from everybody else, like the ability to work from home, for example.

Listening to and fixing issues that disabled people face would allow us to become more active in the community. It would also allow us to become a normal part of society instead of being thought of as inspirational for simply trying to overcome these hurdles.

Many of the hurdles those with physical disabilities face can be removed if architects spent more time planning accessibility options for buildings.

Those with cognitive or learning disabilities may require more time or assistance with learning.

Funding teacher training to help these individuals or hiring support staff would help overcome these hurdles. Some hurdles will be difficult to remove and I acknowledge that there is not a one size fits all in these situations. The important thing is that we try to address these issues and find out what works.

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Opinion We Need to Talk About More Than Just Depression and Anxiety Annabel McCarthy | Te Whakatōhea | She/Her When we talk about mental illness, depression and anxiety tend to dominate any discussion.

This is probably because they are the most predominant mental illnesses in our society. Most people, whether they are aware of it or not, know someone who has struggled first-hand. So much so, the term “mental illness” is often used as a synonym for depression and anxiety.

While these mental illnesses are completely valid in their own right and are endured by an increasing number of people in our communities, the definition of mental illness extends far beyond these two disorders.

It extends to the mental disorders where we still rely on inaccurate stereotypes portrayed in the media and perpetuated by wider society; the disorders which we still have no idea how to approach or as to how to treat those diagnosed.

Bipolar disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, eating disorders, dissociative disorders, borderline personality disorder and posttraumatic stress disorder are just a few such mental illnesses which fall under this category.

While there’s no doubt that, as a country, we’ve made massive strides towards acceptance and normalisation of mental illness in recent years, poor mental health is still one of New Zealand's most pressing societal challenges.

Growing social awareness and increasingly open discussion of mental health issues has led to a gradual move away from viewing mental illness as a source of shame, embarrassment or fear.

However, with the statistics not getting any better and the momentum for real change showing signs slowing down, it’s clear we’re still not getting it right.

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The stigma that exists towards people living with mental illnesses other than depression and anxiety is no doubt a driver of this. The less palatable, less understood mental illnesses are still largely ignored in public discourse and people living with these illnesses are often left to suffer in silence. For some, the stigma can be more harmful than the experience of mental distress itself.

Stigma is an issue because it could be stopping sufferers from getting the treatment they desperately need. Stigma breeds shame, and shame is one of the greatest barriers people face towards recovery. The desire to not be discriminated against or humiliated for seeking treatment is something which should not go unnoticed.

The media, including social and news media, is a primary source of information on mental illness and stigma-relevant misinformation.

"Stigma breeds shame, and shame is one of the greatest barriers people face towards recovery."

More often than not, the more severe or complex mental illnesses are painted in a negative light, perpetuating the stigmatising misconceptions.

Unnecessary links between violent or criminal behaviour and mental illnesses are often made, and certain conditions such as anorexia or selfharm are romanticised and idealised.

When it comes to wider society, there is a tendency to label a person by their mental illness or to use language that implies people are their mental illness. It’s far too common to hear the phrases

“she’s anorexic” or “he’s bi-polar” in conversation.

Referring to people living with a mental illness as “the mentally ill” is equally as common and inappropriate.

If a diagnosis is relevant to what is being discussed (and often it is not), then phrases such as “this person is living with”, “experiencing” or “has a diagnosis of” a condition should be used instead.

Language is a powerful source of stigmatisation and poor choice of words can imply a separation of ‘us’ from ‘them’.

One of the most crucial steps that can be taken to break down the stigma is to talk about mental health conditions that go beyond anxiety and depression. Removing the stigma around all mental illness is important, not just the ones we find the easiest to discuss.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD, isn’t just a disorder exclusive to war veterans. It isn’t something experienced solely by those who have endured war or experienced the unthinkable.

Anyone can develop PTSD and it is not limited to a certain type of trauma.

"If a diagnosis is relevant to what is being discussed (and often it is not), then phrases such as “this person is living with”, “experiencing” or “has a diagnosis of” a condition should be used instead."

Eating disorders do not only affect thin, white women and they aren’t restricted to just anorexia and bulimia.

They aren’t a showcase of extreme willpower or an attempt to meet conventional beauty standards, fuelled by exposure to ultrathin Instagram influencers or Vogue models.

One in five eating disorder sufferers will lose their life as a result of the disorder, making eating disorders the deadliest psychiatric disorder.

And, just as importantly, obsessive compulsive disorder is not some cute quirk or a personality

trait in which OCD is simply a general desire to be clean and tidy.

The day Covid-19 was declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organisation, none other than New Zealand’s very own Health Minister extrapolated these misconceptions.

“This is the time for OCD,” he said, when urging the public to take the pandemic seriously and wash their hands thoroughly.

"One in five eating disorder sufferers will lose their life as a result of the disorder, making eating disorders the deadliest psychiatric disorder."

While OCD causes significant distress and disruption to a person’s life, impacting their ability to function, take part in society and form meaningful relationships with others, washing your hands for 20 seconds regularly during the height of a pandemic will not.

Flippant use of the term ‘OCD’ in this case is not only hugely inappropriate from a Minister of Health—the very person who should probably know better—but it also reinforces the myth that people who live with OCD are extra-committed to cleanliness, undermining the seriousness of the condition.

If we are serious about addressing poor mental health in this country, then we can’t limit the conversation to depression and anxiety. There is too much at stake for us to shy away from the difficult topics.

On an individual scale, I urge you to challenge discriminatory attitudes and behaviours by interacting directly with the people who have first-hand experience with more complex mental illnesses.

Replace the myths with factual information and speak out when you hear others fuelling negative stereotypes. If we start tackling the issue individually and in our communities, society can no longer sweep it under the rug.

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Image depicts a still life of vaginal dilators

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The Ins and Outs of Vaginismus Words by Janhavi | She/Her CW: Mentions of Sexual Harm

Like most born with a vagina, I assumed mine would do everything it was supposed to. Bleed, open wide for the male girth, and even wider for a watermelon-sized human to someday exit my body. I took my vag for granted. A rookie mistake—turns out, I have vaginismus.

While it sounds like a dinosaur name or someone trying to say the word ‘vagina’ with their mouth full, vaginismus is a medical condition. It means the muscles on the pelvic floor and around the vaginal entrance involuntarily tighten, making penetration exceptionally difficult. It makes inserting a finger, tampon, or penis very painful, and also means vaginal examinations are more distressing than usual.

Before being diagnosed, I’d never heard of vaginismus. It wasn’t completely due to social stigma, which implies people speak about it—just in hushed tones. Unless you have it, there’s only a microscopic possibility that you know it exists.

In Season 2 of Netflix’s Sex Education, during a hookup, a character reveals that they have vaginismus and therefore can’t have sex in the way their partner had assumed they could. What followed was an informative and unapologetic explanation of what having that condition meant, followed by an enthusiastic conversation around alternative forms of sex.

When I watched this scene, my heart stopped and tears rolled down my face. I had never seen mainstream media address this condition, let alone strive to normalise it by educating the masses. There had never been enough discourse around what sexual dysfunctions were and how people lived with them.

Wellington-based pelvic floor physician Liz Childs sees around 120 patients a fortnight, half of whom have tight muscles, and a notable portion of them having vaginismus.

Liz tells me that causes of vaginismus include anxiety, holding stress in your diaphragm, breathing pattern disorders, and fear of penetration. The onset of vaginismus can also

Feature: The Ins and Outs of Vaginismus

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The most well known treatment is dilator therapy, which focuses on desensitisation. Vaginal dilators are essentially the unerotic cousin of the dildo. They’re cylindrical instruments, often made of plastic or rubber, that come in various sizes and train the pelvic floor muscles to relax when something is inserted into the vagina.

You begin with the smallest dilator, which is usually the width of a finger. Once you become comfortable with inserting it, you move on to the next size up… eventually conquering the penissized dilator.

But dilatory therapy is uncomfortable, highly not-sexy and degrading. It feels bizarre that I have to actively train my muscles to behave the way they’re supposed to, just so I can someday fulfill my biological purpose of procreation. It’s like everyone around me can cartwheel to their heart’s content, while I can barely do a headstand.

be triggered by past trauma, with the body developing tightness as a protective mechanism from both physical and psychological pain.

While the condition is fairly common, the lack of awareness around it means the age at which women are diagnosed varies. Many spend years suffering in silence, assuming the pain they experience during intercourse is just their lot in life. Some of Liz’s patients had been told by GPs to “have a glass of wine before sex”, perpetuating the misconception that this was a surface level issue attributed to nerves.

"Many spend years suffering in silence, assuming the pain they experience during intercourse is just their lot in life."

Another misconception about vaginismus is that it is untreatable. Whilst alcohol isn’t the answer in this scenario, treatments for vaginismus include: breathing and relaxation exercises, posture improvement, medication, and psychotherapy.

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Words by Janhavi

Penetrative vaginal sex is the most accepted form of sex in our society, so vaginismus can become a cause for insecurity. Letting a guy know he can't stick it in you can be awkward, offensive or hurtful.

Vaginismus can be the difference between whether or not someone commits to an exclusive relationship with you. One night stands can turn sour when the other party has assumed you’re going ‘all the way’—whatever that’s supposed to mean. In no way is this a woman’s fault, but we’re the ones left feeling defective.

Liz has worked in the field of pelvic floor physiotherapy since 2002 and has noticed a large shift around the awareness of vaginismus.

I myself was referred to Liz by my GP, who was familiar with vaginismus and wanted me to get properly diagnosed.

However, Liz now sees more self referrals, meaning that more women are confidently self diagnosing. She partially attributes this de-stigmatisation to online communities, who encourage transparency by publicly sharing their experiences. “We also use [online resources] every day at our work” she says, explaining how she refers her patients to useful websites so they can further educate themselves.

As well as online information, I believe that for sex education to be comphrehensive, it must include

information about sexual dysfunctions like vaginismus. One of many gaps in our current sexed curriculum is the lack of knowledge around how to actually have sex. We explore STIs and how babies are made, but if the act of sex isn’t discussed, people will remain unaware of barriers that prevent them from having it.

"for sex education to be comphrehensive, it must include information about sexual dysfunctions like vaginismus."

It’s especially disappointing to see classes divided when teaching male or female-specific health, as students grow to only care for the issues relevant to their bodies. These gaps in knowledge become full-fleshed idiocy, when some people refuse to accept that tight muscles are a legitimate reason not to have penetrative sex.

Some of Liz’s past patients have brought their male partners to appointments, so a medical professional could confirm that their inability to have penetrative sex wasn’t because they “didn’t like him enough.” Liz said it proves helpful when partners understand the causes of vaginismus and how they can get involved in the treatments, as this prevented the condition from posing issues in their relationship.

If you’re someone constantly experiencing pain, bottling it up could lead to bigger issues. Bodies are unique and beautiful but vaginismus isn’t a ~quirky~ flaw you should put up with. Get help because you and your body deserve the best.

Personally, I take no pleasure in divulging my condition to the world. The thought that there are people I don't know—or worse, those I might someday meet—who have learnt about my vaginismus through the University magazine terrifies me. But I didn’t write this for judgemental assholes or taboo-loving prudes.

This is for anyone who has felt afraid, ashamed, and angry because their body won’t listen to them. It's for everyone who walks around with undiagnosed conditions because they didn’t receive an adequate health education. It's for teenage me, who navigated this by herself because she didn’t know who to turn to.

Sexual dysfunction isn’t something we talk about enough. But I want you to know that it does not define you. Sex is for anyone who wants it —people with vaginismus included.

Navigating the ins and outs of vaginismus is a reminder: you don’t have to stick it in to get it on.

For more information, visit: www.pelvicphysio.co.nz or check out @thevagnetwork on Instagram

I used to think I was weak for wanting to scream every time I tried inserting a tampon: that I wasn’t woman-enough to push through it. Being diagnosed and learning about treatment options helped me realise vaginismus didn’t have to be a permanent part of my life.

Image Opposite: Depicts a Cup of tea Image Above: Depicts a medical diagram of a tight vaginal opening

Feature: The Ins and Outs of Vaginismus

17

Living Life in the Punchline Words by Grace Maguire | She/Her

Image depicts

The conversation around diabetes needs to change.

Miseducation through media discourse has moulded diabetes into the punchline of a sick joke, at the expense of those living through this invisible illness. You know what I’m talking about: the “diabetes on a plate” in The Great British Bake Off, and the “one-word: diabeetus” memes.

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two insulin pens

These punchlines have transformed people’s perception of an unpreventable condition.

I’ve heard people joke too many times about getting diabetes as they help themselves to a second slice of cake, or laugh at the idea of being “so obese” that they could get it. The truth is, there are several different types of diabetes—none of which are caused by sugar intake and none of which are a laughing matter.

I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when I was eight years-old. At the time, I didn’t know a lot about the condition—only that I needed to prick my finger and inject insulin before I ate so I wouldn’t get sick. My parents worked hard to let me continue living as a child, so I still had playdates and went to birthday parties.

Here, due to the miseducation around what diabetes actually entails, I was denied some foods by other parents and scorned for wanting the same as everyone else. I was made to feel like a problem, different, and a ticking-time-bomb despite doing all my blood tests and injections myself.

I now know that type 1 diabetes is a chronic autoimmune condition in which the pancreas stops secreting insulin. It is in no way caused by the eating habits of its sufferers. Because insulin is a hormone that allows glucose from the bloodstream into the liver, fat, and muscles, it’s needed to survive.

would lead to diabetes, the same way it is often portrayed in the media.

This is not true; this is a stigma. No form of diabetes only applies to those that are overweight.

It is possible for anyone to be diagnosed with diabetes, even an Olympic athlete. In fact, Sir Steve Redgrave, who has 5 Olympic gold medals, 9 World Championship golds, and 3 Commonwealth golds for rowing has type 2 diabetes.

Speaking as she did, the girl explaining that diabetes will make your vital organs rot sounded pretty convincing. If I didn’t have diabetes myself I might have even believed it. Diabetics can eat all foods—we just need to adjust our medication to cater for the amount of carbs we eat or drink.

Eating a chocolate bar for dinner isn’t particularly healthy, but doing so won’t give you diabetes.

Type 1 diabetics must check their blood glucose level (BGL) and inject insulin multiple times a day and night to keep their blood glucose levels steady, within a good range, in order to avoid life-threatening complications.

"No form of diabetes only applies to those that are overweight.

It is possible for anyone to be diagnosed with diabetes, even an Olympic athlete."

Type 1 diabetes is sometimes referred to as ‘juvenile diabetes’ or ‘adolescent-onset diabetes’, because more often than not, those diagnosed with it are children. These children did nothing wrong to get a lifelong condition, yet are treated as if they should have known better.

Rather than referring to diabetes as having chocolate for dinner or the takeaways you had last week, we need to adjust our thinking to recognise that diabetes is a chronic autoimmune disorder no-one would choose to have.

This is something I have grown to accept, yet it still affects me—as an adult I have come across more and more people telling me it could’ve been avoided, that it’s my own fault.

Recently, I was at a friend’s house with a few people I hadn’t met before. They didn’t know I have diabetes—it’s invisible. Someone pulled out a chocolate bar and joked that it was their dinner; instantly, another girl piped up and exclaimed “you’ll get diabetes eating like that! Your organs will rot, and you’ll die!”

Those in the room that knew I have diabetes didn’t say anything (what do you say when someone excitedly says a friend will rot and die?).

She was certain that eating chocolate for dinner

It results in being kept up all night by hard to manage blood glucose levels; feeling guilty when people question what you should be eating and embarrassed when they make a scene about it. It is constant needles and tubing, calculating the number of carbs in everything you eat, or drink and it is physically and mentally demanding. It is the risk of your blood turning acidic, getting neuropathy, or losing your eyesight.

Don’t be afraid to break down the stigma surrounding diabetes. The next time you hear a “diabeetus” joke, consider educating the ‘comedian’, or suggest they read this article.

Feature: Living Life in the Punchline

19

20

RO

21 ORA BLUE, CHRONIC ILLNESS REIMAGINED AS SOMETHING GLAMOROUS, 2017, FROSTING WITH PILLS AND RESIN

The Mad The Bad and The Sad Words by Tara Ó Súilleabháin | She/Her

Image depicts a subverted Queen of Hearts Card, in which the Q has been replaced with the letter B 22

Personality disorders were traditionally organised into three clusters based on their manifestations. To help students of psychiatric studies remember this, they nicknamed them ‘mad’ for cluster A, ‘bad’ for cluster B, and ‘sad’ for cluster C. CW: Suicide

I was 21 the first time it was suggested to me that I might have Borderline Personality Disorder, or BDP for short. It’s situated within cluster B —a ‘bad’ personality disorder.

I've been in the mental health system since I was 15, and had BPD listed in my file as a future potential diagnosis—they can’t diagnose you officially with BPD until you’re 18. Since then, I have seen countless therapists and psychiatrists as I've been in and out of remission. At 22, I spent an entire year as an inpatient at a psychiatric hospital. I’m 32 now, and it’s fair to say I’m well -experienced.

bubbly, ecstatic and telling them that we should get married within minutes. The feelings we experience daily are equal to the intensity and pain of big life events, such as losing a loved one —and we have to manage that 24/7, often without any treatment.

We also get to experience heightened positive feelings—being in love is suffocating, but in the best way. For me it feels like floating, like every inch of my body is made of pure light.

At this point you might be thinking that I’m describing Bipolar Disorder, and that’s a common misconception. Bipolar is a mood disorder where people experience depressive and hypomanic episodes. BPD is not classed as an episodic disorder, but rather triggered by environmental factors.

"The feelings we experience daily are equal to the intensity and pain of big life events, such as losing a loved one—and we have to manage that 24/7, often without any treatment."

I know that I am not ‘bad’, like the cluster will have you believe.

A lot of people on the borderline forums have both BPD and Bipolar, and often describe BPD as “bipolar but faster.” While common moodstabilising medications are used to treat Bipolar and are largely successful, there is no specific medication for BPD. Researchers have done MRI scans on people with BPD and found that parts of our brain are either smaller than usual, or show unusual levels of activity.

It’s difficult to accurately portray what BPD feels like to those without it. I used to describe it as “emotional hemophilia”; as though I had no shell to contain everything I felt and no way of controlling it.

BPD isn’t an episodic disorder, but I’ve found for me personally that it is much harder to manage during times of high-stress—such as a relationship breakup, and that’s often when I find myself needing treatment again.

The way those with BPD think, feel, and behave is fundamentally different to others. The parts of the brain used to regulate emotions, planning, decision making, and self-control behave differently for a lot of us.

Our emotions can go from 0-100 in less than a second. My past partners have commented on how I can go from beside myself devastated, convinced that they don’t love me anymore, to

The stigmas and where they start One of the main treatments for BPD is dialectical behaviour therapy, but we struggle to access it on a practical level. The therapy itself was created by Marsha M Linehan back in the 1980s specifically to treat BPD. It’s a type of cognitive behavioural therapy, so it’s purpose is to change problematic patterns of behaviour or thinking.

Feature: The Mad The Bad and The Sad

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An example of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, or CBT, is looking at how your thoughts create your reality. It’s like this: if you think nobody likes you, you may push them away before they have a chance to get to know you in order to protect yourself. In doing so, that person then believes you don’t like them, so they act standoffish towards you, which reinforces your belief that nobody likes you.

Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) takes CBT and adds in things like mindfulness and distress tolerance techniques to help patients identify their feelings and ground themselves during times of high emotional distress. One of my main distress tolerance techniques has been playing games on my phone. It sounds really simple, but it never occurred to me to try and take my mind off things, so I had to create that connection for my brain.

CBT is typically administered one on one for 1-3 months, but DBT consists of one-on-one and group therapy, and usually lasts 18 months. It’s helpful for a number of mental illnesses too, but for us, it’s one of the only things that’s known to work.

I remember when I first started DBT and was learning how to make better decisions for myself, it was incredible. I could see a path to a future that I had never thought existed, but that’s because I was ready to learn. It was empowering for me to feel like I had autonomy over my life for the first time.

But many with BPD struggle to access these treatments. Within our facebook communities I read stories of people being declined these therapies because some clinics simply don’t treat those with BPD. There are countless stories of microaggressions from those in the medical industry and the public.

The stigma associated with having a ‘bad’ personality disorder is that there is something evil about us at a fundamental level. We struggle immensely with the discriminations we so often receive. Many in the BPD community resist a formal diagnosis for a long time, for fear of what this stigma will mean for them.

One of the 9 diagnostic characteristics of BPD is suicidality, and up tp 10% of those diagnosed with BPD will die from suicide. The stakes are simply too high.

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Words by Tara Ó Súilleabháin

Many of us with BPD have a history of repeated suicide attempts and medical intervention. I myself have been hospitalised 5 times from the ages of 14-21 for this reason. When I was 14, there was a lot more understanding from the doctors and nurses I encountered. But, whether it was my age, or just that I kept ending up back at the A&E, their manner became more frustrated. I had a nurse tell me to “just stop doing it”, and I've been treated by doctors who wouldn’t even look at me.

Recognising our symptoms for what they are We’re constantly trying to challenge these stigmas, and to educate those we encounter so that we can interact productively.

Our emotions can be incredibly confusing, and sometimes we have no idea why things upset us the way they do. Topics of discussion in which we have strong emotional reactions too often result in us having to remove ourselves physically. For me, I often need time to figure it out and ground myself in a safe space after escalating situations.

Before I had a better hold on my BPD, I wouldn’t have known how to slow down my thoughts by removing myself from social situations, and I’d likely end up screaming, even at a friend. In these instances, I can see how this behavior can be misconstrued negatively.

Often, those with BPD are seen as manipulative.

This is because many view us, and our symptoms, through a neurotypical lens. Manipulation also suggests malicious intent, which is not a symptom of BPD. We are highly emotionally reactive, and what people mistake for manipulation is often our overwhelming distress and mal-adaptive coping mechanisms.

But there are fine lines that myself and many in the BPD community recognise. Abusive behavior is never okay, and this is where it can get a bit tricky. I’m asking you to understand that we’re dealing with emotional instability and that affects our actions, but it would be negligent of me to tell anyone that they should stay in a situation that is causing them harm, just because the other person has BPD. When I ask you not to judge our behavior, I am not asking you to put up with it. I do want you to meet us halfway and understand that our reactions may be more passionate or unexpected than

someone neurotypical, but there is a difference between sticking by someone, and being abused by them.

Where our responsibility ends and yours begins Living with BPD has taught me not to take other people’s outbursts personally. I can usually tell when someone’s anger is about them, and not about me, so I’ve learnt to be more understanding and accept apologies. But, that’s not going to be the case for everyone. You can accept that someone is having a rough time and choose not to judge them, while also choosing not to have that person in your life, and that is totally okay.

So then, what responsibility do we have as those of us with a mental illness to manage our own health? There are always arguments on the BPD forums from one person saying that “you have a responsibility to control yourself,” and another person replying with “we have BPD, it’s not always easy to do.” I tend to sit more with the latter.

For a long time, I used to beat myself up about losing control and it made it harder for me to recover. I hate being told it’s my responsibility to manage something I didn’t choose so that I can be more palatable to the general public, who will never walk a day in my shoes. But, when it’s coming from inside our community from others with the disorder who are trying to help me, I do listen.

If I look back at the 21 year old in the hospital that night, as much as I know that she desperately

wanted to get better, she needed time before embarking on something like that. When it comes to mental health, you can be doing everything right and still be unwell. Medication doesn’t work for everyone and neither does therapy.

To sum it all up I am only one person with BPD, and I don’t speak for us all. The stigma of being ‘bad’ comes from a place of ignorance and it makes it harder for us to access treatment. We are managing this 24/7 and need you to understand the challenges this entails. We’re trying really hard for you. If I stand up and walk out from our coffee date, it’s likely nothing personal, and it would be really nice if you could meet me halfway.

People are making progress on destigmatising and accepting other illnesses, such as depression and anxiety. I ask you to think about what you’ve learnt and will continue to learn about BPD so that we too can be more accepted.

We are not ‘bad’ people, like the clusters will have you believe.

If you, or someone you know are struggling, know there are free services for support available: •

Suicide Crisis Helpline: 0508 828 865 / 0508 TAUTOKO (24/7)

•

Lifeline: 0800 543 354 or text HELP to 4357

Feature: The Mad The Bad and The Sad

25

Diary of a Professional

Image depicts two hands holding a piece of note paper, tearing a section of the bottom right corner

Social Distancer Words by Hannah Pym

2020: more painful than a razor scooter to the ankles. Navigating life amidst a global pandemic has not been easy. This is especially true for chronically ill, disabled, elderly, and/or immunocompromised individuals. I tick three out of four of those boxes. Here’s how COVID-19 has impacted life from the perspective of a spoonie* student.

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| She/Her

Self-isolation and excessive hygiene operations are not familiar practices to many people. However, for those of us who fall under the vulnerable category, these are likely to be standard practices we implement without much consideration.

Taking extra precautions around flu season, reducing our surface contacts on public transport, wearing masks, and staying indoors when our

immunity is low; these actions are second nature to many chronically ill people. We are not strangers to long, lonely stints indoors. Therefore, for once, we had the advantage over able-bodied folks going into lockdown.

flexible learning hours are now attainable. Why? Because it affects the masses. Seemingly healthy people are now experiencing what disabled and chronically ill people go through on a daily basis, only without the major inequity and ostracising.

Now don’t get me wrong, this is not to say lockdown was a breeze—we are human after all.

Talking with my fellow vulnerable category peers, it was as if there was a storm looming above.

The clouds were composed of idiots not taking restrictions seriously, people feeling butt hurt about missing out on fun, and individuals who felt they were above the law.

While these measures were put in place to prevent viral spreading, unite the nation, and save lives, I can’t help but wish these kinds of accommodations were made in regular climates, not just in times of crisis. It would be so relieving to have someone meet us halfway without making us feel like burdens or as if our request is a major inconvenience.

This was hard for us to process. We go through our lives making accommodations not only to keep ourselves safe, but also bending over backwards to prevent people from feeling awkward on our behalf. Like regularly ‘outing’ ourselves to boomers in the supermarket who believe it is perfectly acceptable to demand our entire medical history when we use our walking sticks. Just standard procedure at this point.

This pandemic has highlighted the systemic ableism in society and proven that employers, schools, and other positions of authority can make accommodations; they just don’t want to.

When Level 4 was in full swing, the students were told physical teaching would stop and content would move online to keep everyone safe. What a relief! Right? Only it was hard to celebrate when there was a raging feeling of frustration and disbelief burning inside.

We will fall through the cracks of unaccommodating education, hide ourselves away as people’s conscientiousness depletes, and resume the battle of accessing the basic assistance that has been taken from us once again.

You see, chronic illnesses and disabilities are not often straightforward. In my case, I can walk around campus with little pain some days, and the next day I could be bedridden lacking the strength to sit up unassisted. This makes it extremely difficult to take the car ride, train, and bus each time I need to attend a class.

"This pandemic has highlighted the systemic ableism in society and proven that employers, schools, and other positions of authority can make accommodations; they just don’t want to."

In hopes of preserving the little energy I have, I (among numerous others) reached out to the University administrators to discuss the possibility of further online content. We talked about how the mere uploading of a lecture recording could make all the difference. However, we were always met with the same response, in fewer or more words “it is simply not worth offering online content to accommodate one student”. Oof. So, I was somewhat shocked to discover the entire University had adapted to and implemented online content in a matter of days, when this was such a monumental task. Miraculous right? Online lecture recordings, supplementary content, and

When (or if) society returns to normal, I hope you remember how you felt during lockdown. When you resume your routine, enjoy outings again, get to see those you have missed so dearly; remember that not everyone is so lucky.

A typical piece of writing has a conclusion which suggests something has been resolved. But the fight continues thus a conclusion doesn’t feel appropriate. So I remain one of the many disabled, chronically ill, immunocompromised students who will chew your ear off next time you mention how much you despised attending an afternoon Zoom meeting from the comfort of your home. *Spoonie: An individual with chronic illness/ disability, relating to ‘Christine Miserandino's Spoon Theory’.

Feature: Diary of a Professional Social Distancer

27

Politically Minded

UniQ

Niva Chittock | She/Her

Will Eland | They/Them

THE ELECTION BALANCE

INTERSECTIONALITY OR BUST

As the orange election guy is so fond of telling us, an election is a time when everyone ‘gets their say’. In order to have the opportunity to have our say, elections have to be able to accommodate for all.

I sometimes feel like I’m collecting labels like I’m trying to fill a sticker book. I’m queer, bisexual, non-binary, neurodivergent, chronically ill, and disabled. I also sometimes fear that I am taking up too much space, hoarding all these identities for myself and not quite fitting into any one particular group.

Thankfully for us, the Electoral Commission has had a bit of practice in making sure elections are practical for most (if not all) of us. Aotearoa currently has measures in place for overseas Kiwis to be able to vote or to ‘advance vote’ if you can’t make it on election day.

You can enrol to vote online, over the phone, or by mail up to and on Election Day. Wellington Central MP, Grant Robertson believes that being able to enrol on Election Day is a great way to increase accessibility to voting: “I think you should have the right to vote as long as you get yourself enrolled.

Being able to do this on Election Day is keeping it [the election] accessible.” And once you are enrolled it lasts for life: which = more voting.

Moving forward, Robertson acknowledges there is still some work to be done. “There are lots of things that could make an election more accessible, lowering the voting age [and] those sorts of issues.”

As with most things, while change is good, there has to be a balance. The challenge now is to maintain this good start, while continuing to build on it, in the hope that one day our elections really will be accessible to all.

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Issue 19: Columns

However long it took me to come to grips with my gender and sexuality, or the fact that my body no longer functions as it used to, the convergence of both of these parts of my identity was an entirely new beast for me to grapple. Queer identities are hypersexualised, disabled ones often infantilised.

My chronic pain and fatigue mean that I struggle, and then struggle to talk about it.

Don’t get me wrong—there are many overlaps and shared struggles also. While the specifics might be different, the fight for equality in work, school, healthcare, and everyday life is one that unites us.

More and more, queer and disabled communities are overlapping and working together on shared goals. People are realising that no movement is complete without considering the intersection of many different identities—not all minority groups are the same.

Progress is moving forwards. If you’re also in the same intersection as myself, or in another configuration, then rest assured that people are working on creating spaces that can fit us.

Somewhere that we can ask our hyper-specific questions and learn about ourselves. In the meantime, I’m trying to steer UniQ there.

To Be Frank Frankie Dale | She/Her

A DAY IN THE LIFE Last week I had a chat with my friend who works in the Wellington sex industry. Through our discussion, I learnt a lot about what the sex industry is really like: How did you get into sex work? It’s something I had always been interested in, but I had never seriously considered doing until last year. I was googling something like ‘escorts Wellington’, and stumbled across this agency run by a woman that sounded awesome.

What does a typical day with bookings look like for you? I’m basically on call. But I can always say no and I’m never ever pressured into working.

Once I’ve confirmed the booking, I’ll head to work, which is in a discreet CBD location. There are lots of clear rules during bookings to keep us both safe,and I can stop and walk out of the booking anytime I feel uncomfortable. Afterwards, we usually cuddle a little, then they’ll pay, shower, and leave. I clean the rooms, and then I’m out.

What are the best and most challenging parts of the job? The sense of making someone feel valued, listened to, and desired is super special—for many clients, it’s more about the companionship than the sex. I also love being part of such an empowering, feminist work environment. The money is pretty awesome too.

It gives me the freedom to focus on my studies, treat myself and my friends, and save enough to pay off my entire student loan at age 20.

It’s challenging to avoid comparing yourself to others. Sometimes it’s hard when you haven’t had a booking in a couple of weeks. Also, dealing with

the social stigma associated with being a sex worker, and keeping a part of your life hidden.

What effect does your work have on your mental health? It’s largely positive. Before entering the industry, I had quite a toxic relationship with sex.

Sex work has helped me to understand my value.

Now I’m like, why would I fuck some mediocre boy for free, when I could be getting $450 per hour?!

Sex work has also helped me immensely with my body image/disordered eating. I work with women of all different body types, and they’ve helped me to see my own beauty.

How do you keep yourself safe, and would you have any advice for people entering the industry?

I feel so blessed to be living in a country where sex work is legally protected. The New Zealand Prositute’s Collective is amazing , and any type of sex worker can access their services—they offer free (or very cheap) supplies, counselling and sexual health services, and legal advice.

I would say do your research. Try and meet others in the industry, find SW communities on social media, know your legal rights, and apply for workplaces that are safe, fair, and feminist. Most importantly, be proud and educated about what you do!

For support NZPA - New Zealand Prostitutes Collective 204 Willis St - Te Aro Open Mon-Fri 10am-6pm 04-382-8791

Issue 19: Columns

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The Game is Afoot

A poem for the VUWSA election season Do the mahi Get down with the kaupapa It's cool to kĹ?rero But, can you really get the treats of a reo you roll out once a year?

Lachlan Ewing

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Poem

Your carelessness makes me hate myself a little

You; Drape your underwear over the lampshade, a flag on a post we mustn’t raise.

We both know we are blinded.

You tell me it’s to create mood lighting, but I think you only want to paint the parts of me the light lands on.

Me; with my nails too sharp for my hands and my teeth too sharp for my mouth.

I have been watering myself down for too long.

My stretched out skin became so thin that it is becoming translucent.

My tabletops were all rice fields.

I worked until the canvas was sodden, and I drowned in the mud.

We; lay down in the colours I muddied.

I hold on tight to the plug in my puku.

Keep water out by holding pressure on the wound.

Send your poems to poetry@salient.org.nz

Tomorrow I see my watercolour paper skin, stretched out over my thighs dry and burning in morning sunlight. and, my teeth too sharp for my mouth and my nails too sharp for my skin.

Maisie Chilton Tressler

Poem

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Rating lifts at Te Herenga Waka Alice Mander | She/Her

Rating lifts at Te Herenga Waka. Alice Mander bringing you some niche cripple content.

The Hunter Building Lift: These are the GOAT lifts. They are the mother you never had, the sister you always wanted, and the family you always deserved. They are the only source of stability in my three years at University. I like these lifts because: a)

There are many of them

b)

They are speedy

You never have to wait for them to come and, if you’re too socially awkward to go in the lift with strangers, waiting for the next one is, like, totally do-able. The robot lady’s voice telling me that this is the “accessible route” makes me feel less alone in the world. Also, I like the sound the buttons make.

10/10 Lift in the Hub Why does this lift have the audacity to announce to the entire hub when I’m using it with its obnoxious ding? Why does this lift close its doors on me when I’m halfway out? Why does this lift not directly take me to the VicBooks platform (bitch, you know I’m too internally ableist to use the little moving platforms near Vic Books)?

3/10 Student Union Building: The most ableist lift at University. Always broken.

Awkwardly big. Like, have you ever stood in there with one other person? That shit is so intense that I was in there with a boy once and a security guard walked in and asked if he’d interrupted something.

Bonus star for the girl in the picture on the wall looking like me.

1/10

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Culture: Lift Review

Law School I respect the cage lift’s hussle and ^Rocky Horror^ vibes. But, I can’t open it and it was broken for years. The other lift is OK, except for two words: Law. Lecturers.

1/10 Any lift across the bridge at Kelburn: If the house from the movie Monster House were more accessible, these lifts would be in there.

2/10 Rutherford House There are so many floors that I feel guilty taking it one floor up even though I have no choice and that reminds me of internalised ableism and I don’t like it. Don’t know what the lift can do about that though.

Five stars though for the campus security staff who ride it. They’re really nice to me. I like them.

You should say hi to them.

5/10 Bonus Lifts Dirty Little Secret I like this lift because everyone must take it to get to the bar. The lift is the great equaliser.

10/10 Chow/The Library This may be a surprisingly high rating but I like its ambiguity and spunk.

6/10

'Things You Hear When You Are Chronically Ill' Bingo Hannah Pym | She/Her

You don’t

Have you

look sick!

tried yoga?

Oh I get

Just go

that too

sometimes

You take too many medicines

I wish I

had time

for a nap

So what’s actually

wrong with you?

for a walk, it will help

You’re

just being dramatic

Were you born like that?

You’re too young to have a condition

why can’t you today?

It can’t be that bad

It could

try this diet

be worse

Just push

I wish I could

through it

stay home

like that

!

You could do that yesterday,

You should

You’re just

You’re still sick?

heard of that, is it real?

My friend had that,

stressed

they died

Is it

Try not to be

contagious?

I’ve never

so negative

Have you

tried crystal therapy?

You’re not actually disabled though right?

Entertainment: Bingo

33

Crossword: Celestial Bodies

ACROSS

1.

6.

10 11.

12.

13.

15.

17.

19.

21.

22.

23.

24.

25.

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DOWN

1988 role for Michael Keaton, creepy in a black-and-white striped suit (10) Long, arduous voyage (4) Considered; believed (7) Deliberately caused, as a coma (7) Org. whose Bucks boycotted their playoffs recently (3) 2004 role for Gary Oldman as Harry's godfather (6,5) 2004 role for Gary Oldman as Harry's godfather (6,5) Making reproductions (7) Meeting handouts (7) 1994 role for John Travolta, as a hitman getting confused about the Royale with Cheese (7,4) Aries is represented by it (3) Shakespearean lead who smothers his wife (7) Fictional diarist Jones (7) Princess Anne, to Prince Harry (4) Michael Keaton, Gary Oldman and John Travolta are part of it... or, another way, so are their roles here (4,6)

Occupation Station

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

7.

8.

9.

14.

16.

18.

19.

20.

23.

Adjective to describe some gardens just up the hill from the Kelburn campus (7) 'Gravity's Rainbow' author (6,7) An apple, for Apple, and an android, for Android (5) Fill your piehole with pie, maybe (3) Arouse, as tastebuds (9) Pink Floyd guitarist who shares his name with the author of 'Black Boy' (7,6) Photography firm which is a type of bear if you put 'i' in the middle (5) Safe to 4-Down, say (6) You put it in when doing the hokey pokey (5,4) Things to aspire to; perfect examples (6) Part of an illness's presentation that only the patient might be aware of (7) Actress Davis of 'Fences'; string instrument (5) Island setting for 'Jaws'; good rapport (5) Exam in the future of those doing Law? (3)

Word of the Week: ‘accessibility’

Te Reo Māori

Sudoku

NZSL

Taea

Working Uni Elevator

Yeah The Girl's Solution

Broken Uni Elevator

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36

Horoscopes Maddi Rowe | She/Her This week I want you to take a minute each day to consider how your behaviours and conversations can be more accessible. Your horoscopes this week are based on planetary transits in September.

ARIES

TAURUS

Keep your conversations mindful and constructive in the coming weeks.

Uranus is in your solar transit, Taurus. Don’t take the bait. Stay humble.

CANCER

LEO

Your hard work is not going unnoticed. Continue to give yourself the validation you need.

Lean into the romance of it all. There’s beauty in openhearted love.

LIBRA It’s in your best interest to stay away from those who add salt to the wound.

SCORPIO It is not practical to read into your dreams or nightmares.

Let them go.

GEMINI Work on the ways you communicate. It might be blocking you from seeing the bigger picture.

VIRGO Your ambitions will bloom.

Keep going.references no one notices.

SAGITTARIUS You are not being irrational.

Trust your instincts.

CAPRICORN

AQUARIUS

PISCES

Stick to your guns, but learn when to allow different opinions in.

Remove your head from the sand and remember your purpose. Is this worth the internal battle?

The home you’ve created within yourself is ready for renovation. Dig out the dead weight.

Horoscopes

37

Same old to Something new.

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The Team Editors Kirsty Frame & Rachel Trow

Guest Editor Alice Mander

Design & Illustration Rowena Chow News Editor Te Aorewa Rolleston & Finn Blackwell

Chief Reporter Annabel McCarthy

Sub Editor Alfred Dennis Social Media & Web Manager Kane Bassett Podcast Manager Matthew Casey

Feature Editor Janhavi Gosavi

Staff Writers Lofa Totua Sally Ward Shanti Mathias

Feature Writers Janhavi Gosavi Grace Maguire Hannah Pym Tara Ó Súilleabháin

COLUMNISTS Niva Chittock Will Eland Frankie Dale

Contributors Maddi Rowe Keana Virmani Connor Adamson Taylah Shuker Puck

Poetry Editor Janhavi Gosavi poetry@salient.org.nz

Poetry Lachlan Ewing Maisie Chilton Tressler

Centrefold Rora Blue @rorablue www.rorablue.com

Contact us editor@salient.org.nz designer@salient.org.nz (centrefold artwork) news@salient.org.nz socialmedia@salient.org.nz Find us fb.com/salientmagazine instagram.com/salientgram twitter.com/salientmagazine salient.org.nz

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