Understanding disability – types of disability

**Collaborative post**

There are many reasons that people should seek to learn more about the physical and physiological impairments that are a part of everyday society. 

First, learning more about disabilities can make us more aware of the challenges facing our friends, families, neighbours, and colleagues, which in turn can lead to conversations that break down any barriers in understanding things like what are the limitations of certain disabilities? What factors determine long term disability? And, ultimately, how we can all support each other.

Now, let’s look at a description of some of the major types of disability, to get us all started on our journey of deeper learning about this topic.  

Physical disability

Physical disabilities impact on a person’s mobility and/or dexterity. This means that mobility aids are likely an everyday requirement. What is important to remember about physical disabilities is that these conditions do not necessarily mean that there is any cognitive impairment. 

Physical disabilities include:

• Dystrophy
• Paraplegia
• Hemiplegia
• Quadriplegia
• Cerebral palsy
• Multiple sclerosis (MS)
• Amputated limb
• Reduced limb function

Learning disability 

Learning disabilities are estimated to affect between 3% – 10% of the population. While students with learning disabilities may show increased levels of deductive reasoning and creativity in certain areas of schooling (e.g. English, math’s, science), there is generally a wider issue with understanding and retaining all types of information, as well as with communicating ideas as effectively as possible (which can lead to frustration in the student).

Psychiatric disability 

Psychiatric disabilities are also known as mental illness, and conditions can range from mild cases of stress or anxiety to debilitating states of psychosis associated with being out of touch with reality. 

Due to the stigma attached to psychiatric conditions such as schizophrenia, mental illness is widely misunderstood and generalised as a singular condition that could mean the individual is violent and should be avoided – these attitudes are slowly starting to change. 

Visual impairment 

Visual impairment and blindness are two different things. Despite total blindness affecting only around 5% of the population, anybody with a visual impairment tends to be thought of as being blind. 

The condition can be congenital or may be the result of an accident or disease. In any case, the likelihood is that the person will retain some vision, and may be able to make out shapes, colours, and even faces to a certain degree. 

Hearing disability