Denise Sherer Jacobson, a writer and disability educator, lives in Oakland, California. She has cerebral palsy and uses a motorized wheelchair. She is married and has an adult son who is 25.
“The new doctor really didn’t take me seriously, which I kind of expected because I know that in the medical profession…doctors don’t have a lot of experience with people with disabilities and also people with speech impairments…”
“He started asking me questions…I would get out a word or two and then he would cut me off and go on to the next question. “He treated me like I was a dog or a cat, you know, [like] I wasn’t a human being.”
“Here’s the letter from the specialist of endocrinology…” “We saw this unfortunate 57 year old woman in our office on March 10…My impression is she is far more intelligent than she looks to me.”