My 20-year-old daughter has a temporary handicapped-parking pass. Rachel gained this assistance because she went more than four years with undiagnosed Lyme disease resulting in a host of symptoms that include pain, extreme fatigue, swelling, numbness and weakness in her legs.
For those who know my daughter, they know she didn’t ask for this handicapped status easily. But there have been a lot of days when Rachel has trouble walking. Some days it’s just a matter of conserving energy throughout the day so she can still make it up the stairs to bed at night.
A couple of months ago, my husband had Rachel out of the house for a quick trip to the local big box store. She’d been cooped up for days, barely able to lift her head off the sofa due to pain and nausea, so a desire to run to the store was an encouraging sign.
Like many large retailers, our local store has lots of handicapped parking spaces, and on this day only one was occupied, so my husband parked and displayed Rachel’s pass on the rearview mirror. They did a little shopping, then returned to the car.
Just as they were about to back out, a woman in a spot across from them caught my daughter’s attention. She was scowling and shaking her head back and forth judgmentally. I can only speculate what she was thinking, but it made my daughter feel so badly she’s since been reluctant to use her handicapped parking pass.
It’s too easy to judge. I know I’ve been guilty of measuring people using handicapped spaces. I’ve checked to see if there is a handicapped symbol on their tag, or hanging on the mirror. I’ve seen people park and walk away from their cars with no walker, no cane, not even a limp. I’ll admit to even thinking a few times, “it might do that person good to walk an extra few feet.”
I’ve learned you don’t have to look sick to need a little extra help. A good friend’s son nearly died of aplastic anemia a few years ago. You’d never know his life is fragile by the looks of him. But he too has a handicapped parking pass and uses it on those days when he might not make it through the day’s tasks without a shorter walk.
I could note dozens more dangerous illnesses, but Lyme disease is an important one to note this month. Gov. Nathan Deal has declared May as Lyme and Tick-Borne Disease Awareness Month in Georgia. Some doctors will tell you there is no Lyme disease here. That’s misinformed.
Had even one of the dozens of doctors my daughter saw over four years considered Lyme Disease, we might have been able to avoid her illness progressing to the point where she needs handicapped assistance.
To learn more, visit the Georgia Lyme Disease Association website at georgialymedisease.org. If you know someone who needs the extra help a handicapped parking pass might provide, visit www.dds.ga.gov/drivers and look for the tab marked Disability Parking Permits.
Sometimes you can look simply stunning, like my beautiful daughter, yet still require so much help it hurts to even ask for what you need. I’m going to be a lot less quick to judge and I hope I’ll even remember to smile and offer assistance.
Karen Huppertz has lived in Gwinnett County for 13 years. Reach her at karenhuppertz@gmail.com.
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