Access All: Disability News and Mental Health

Kate Monaghan has been isolating with her wife Holly and daughter Scout since March. Kate has Ehlers Danlos Syndrome and endometriosis and Holly is the recipient of a kidney transplant and falls within the 'high risk' category. They shielded during lockdown and kept an audio diary for BBC Ouch. In this highlights episode, we hear why they suddenly disappeared from your podcast feeds, (Spoiler: It'...

Some people recovering from Covid-19 are experiencing chronic fatigue symptoms and struggling to manage their limited energy. Jade Gray-Christie tells her story and gets tips from two women who have lived with chronic conditions for years. Jade worked two jobs and attended the gym several times a week, yet after contracting coronavirus in March her life changed. The 32-year-old now sleeps up to 16...

Nathalie McGloin is the world's only female tetraplegic racing driver. But as a teenager she had no interest in cars or racing and had plans to become a lawyer. Then, two weeks into her A levels, a car crash changed everything. She broke her neck and lost the full use of her arms and legs. Nathalie spent 11 months in hospital, which she describes as similar to 2020's lockdown. Although it was far...

Keiligh Baker was diagnosed with chronic leukaemia three years ago and became single just before the pandemic hit - now she's decided to give internet dating a go, but how does that work when cancer's involved? Emily Frost and Kirsty Hopgood join her from their childhood bedrooms to discuss the anxieties around treatment and how that has changed their appearance, the surprising messages they’ve re...

Married couple Kiruna Stamell and Gareth Berliner haven’t been further than the local chemist since early March. That won’t change, they say, unless masks become mandatory in all public places or Gareth’s hospital deems it safe for him to attend appointments. Gareth’s nutrition has been delivered via a line in his chest for 20 years due to short gut syndrome. It keeps him alive but infections have...

Face coverings are compulsory in shops and on public transport at the moment (with a few exemptions) – but how will it impact your day-to-day lives? Maddie Molloy lip-reads so sometimes needs people to remove their mask while Drew Miller Hyndman is autistic and rule-breaking makes him anxious. He wants everyone to wear face coverings wherever possible. Emma Tracey is blind and has discovered that...

Only last year, 28-year-old Ben Robinson's alcohol dependency was so severe he was days away from death. Following a stint in rehab and months of hard work rebuilding his life, he felt his recovery had gone backwards when the world went into lockdown. With limited access to his support network and temptation growing by the day, Ben describes the mental and physical challenges he’s faced over the p...

Alex Brooker was born with impairments in all four limbs and has been cracking jokes about it on Channel Four’s The Last Leg since 2012. But becoming a dad and losing his own father has prompted Alex to take a more serious direction, and to ask some hard questions about his disability in a BBC Two documentary. How did his parents react when he was born with multiple limb impairments? Do his childr...

What happens when, as a high risk family, you've been shielding for months and your daughter needs to go to A&E? That’s the dilemma faced by Kate when three-year-old Scout falls over in the paddling pool. Kate has Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome and is isolating with her kidney transplant recipient wife Holly. Holly takes immunosuppressants, meaning the whole family must shield because she falls within...

Namel and Rick, aka American rap-duo 4 Wheel City, were shot and paralysed as teenagers 20 years ago. Since then, their Hip Hop tracks about gun violence and disability discrimination have taken them all over the world, from the White House to the 2012 London Paralympics. Now stuck at home due to coronavirus, the New Yorkers have turned their unique brand of protest to the Black Lives Matter movem...

Finally, a day out is on the cards as one of the family has to have a blood test. Kate, Holly and their three-year-old daughter Scout have been isolating for 12 weeks because Holly has to take immunosuppressants. Now she's been offered a test to see if she's built up resistance to Covid-19 - will it give the gift of freedom she's so desperately hoping for? In addition to Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, Ka...

Jamie Hale is a trans and disabled performer who uses ‘they’ and ‘them’ pronouns. They have been on stage at the Barbican, worked with Netflix and are currently writing a play about lockdown. In the second episode of Meet the Vulnerables, BBC journalist Octavia Woodward talks to them about the V-word (that’s ‘vulnerable’) and how widely it has been used during this pandemic. Jamie also explains ho...

Ten weeks into isolation and Kate's painful impairment, Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, is exhausting her. A virtual food lesson from her Mum on how to make toad-in-the-hole doesn't quite go to plan and three-year-old Scout has found a fascination with cleaning the house - now that the vacuum cleaner is a robot. Produced by Amy Elizabeth - email amy.elizabeth@bbc.co.uk to get a message to Kate and Holly....

Ouch favourites Mark Brown and Seaneen Molloy have dealt with mental health difficulties for a long time, but when the coronavirus pandemic hit, things changed. Seaneen felt liberated. After years of panic attacks she suddenly felt calm now a crisis had arrived and the rest of the world could finally see how scary the place could be. Mark felt unwell at the beginning and has had dilemmas to deal w...

In a new mini-series, Meet The ‘Vulnerables’, Octavia Woodward sets out to find the real people dubbed “vulnerable”during the coronavirus pandemic, and turn the V-word on its head. First up is Baroness Jane Campbell - who ranks as “the most influential disabled person in Britain” according to the Shaw Trust. She is considered a legendary figure within the disabled community for her ongoing fight f...

After eight long weeks of isolation with wife Holly and three-year-old daughter Scout, Kate is finding her patience being tested. She has Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome and is gaining a little bit of weight thanks to comfort eating. It's putting a strain on her already inflamed joints but should she start being disciplined or stop feeling guilty as we are in a pandemic after all! Worst of all, Holly, who...

Robyn Steward and Jamie Knight, presenters of the podcast 1800 Seconds on Autism, join the Cabin Fever team to reveal what’s been going on in their lives during lockdown. From the pasta dish Jamie has eaten every day for five years no longer being available at the supermarket, through to Robyn’s solo trip to hospital, a notoriously noisy and discombobulating place. What do you do if you need a sol...

Kate's Elhers-Danlos syndrome is causing her great pain this week, to the point she can't sleep or dress herself. Seven weeks in and she's finding her joints and mental health are suffering from the lack of movement due to isolating. Kate's wife Holly is on immunosuppressants and shielding for 12 weeks, but, together as a family, they make the decision to finally go for a social distanced walk. Wa...

Hannah McDonald was sectioned before starting a nursing shift in 2008, with her uniform in her bag. Diagnosed with borderline personality disorder, she believes she suppressed the grief she felt for three friends who died suddenly when she was a child. It caught up with her years later when she was working as a nurse - she stopped sleeping, eating, started to self -harm, and had suicidal thoughts....

Kate has spent over six weeks in isolation and is trying to manage the symptoms of Ehlers Danlos Syndrome and raise three-year-old daughter Scout. Her wife Holly is on immunosuppressants and has to shield for 12 weeks but is now going stir-crazy while Scout is becoming clingy and eating significantly less since lockdown started. Kate weighs up all their mental and physical needs. Produced by Amy E...

Award-winning screenwriter Charlie Swinbourne has plenty to keep him busy during lockdown as he develops storylines for deaf characters with EastEnders and Casualty. He reveals what it's like to be deaf at a time when everyone is social-distancing and where mouths are covered by masks, making lip-reading impossible. The writer and journalist also talks about the hashtag #WhereIsTheInterpreter whic...

Five weeks into isolation, Kate and Holly embark on something more daunting than tracking down a supermarket delivery slot - their first amateur home haircut. Kate's discomfort from Ehlers-Danlos syndrome intensifies due to her endometriosis, but any hope of alone time is impossible when isolating with a three-year-old. Holly is on immunosuppressants and admits she hasn't packed a hospital bag, as...

Coronavirus is making itself known globally, so Cabin Fever thought it too would hot-foot it around the world to see how disabled people are managing. Lee Kumatat left the UK on 2 January for a brand new life in San Francisco, USA. Three months later we find her trying to live in lockdown in an unfamiliar city with a guide dog....and Pip, the cat she adopted a week ago. Holly Lane in Perth, Austra...

Week four in isolation is proving frustrating for Kate and her family - Kate has Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome whilst wife Holly is on immunosuppressants, and so is classed as high risk. Kate is disappointed with a lack of empathy towards disabled people during the COVID-19 crisis. Mummy guilts are setting in with worries that three-year-old daughter Scout may be picking up on household anxiety, whilst H...

Beth and Ellen had been enjoying their moment in the spotlight as the Diabetic Duo when coronavirus came along. The type 1 diabetics had become known for their videos on the social media platform TikTok and dispelled myths around the condition, but the current pandemic and self-isolation has meant they’ve had to get creative with how they make their content. In this episode of Cabin Fever the duo...