Please Don’t Feel Guilty For Taking A Break Or Giving Yourself Some Time Off. Sometimes You Need To

i know this won't be available everywhere, but especially if you live in a larger city where a lot of folks are affected by opioid use/addiction, it's a really good idea to ask local pharmacies, and even food banks if they are giving out free narcan (naloxone). this can also be found at certain behavioral health offices as well, my case manager is able to get them for me for free. narcan is a life saving medication that can temporarily halt an opioid (oxycodone, hydrocodone, heroin, fentanyl, codeine, morphine, etc.) overdose while you wait for emergency medical services to arrive.

opioid overdose is distress of the respiratory system, meaning that the person overdosing likely is struggling to, or can't breathe at all. it's very important to watch to see if the person is dealing with labored or shallow breathing.

here the official use guide:

[Image ID start: Two screenshots from the FDA's Narcan (Naloxone HCl) Quick Start Guide infographic. It reads:

"Narcan (Naloxone HCl) Nasal spray quick start guide. Opioid Overdose Response Instructions.

Use NARCAN Nasal Spray (naloxone hydrochloride) for known or suspected opioid overdose in adults and children.

Important: For use in the nose only.

Do not remove or test the NARCAN Nasal Spray until ready to use.

1.) Identify Opioid Overdose and Check for Response Ask the person if they are okay and shout name.

Shake shoulders firmly and rub the middle of their chest.

Check for signs of Opioid Overdose:

Will not wake up or respond to your voice or touch

Breathing is very slow, irregular, or has stopped

Center part of their eye is very small, sometimes called "pinpoint pupils".

Lay the person on their back to receive a dose of NARCAN nasal spray.

2.) Give NARCAN nasal spray

Remove NARCAN nasal spray from the box. Peel back the tab with the circle to open the NARCAN nasal spray.

Hold the NARCAN nasal spray with your thumb at the bottom of the plunger and your first and middle fingers on either side of the nozzle.

Gently insert the tip of the nozzle into either nostril.

Tilt the person's head back and provide support under the neck with your hand. Gently insert the tip of the nozzel into one nostril, until your fingers on either side of the nozzle are against the bottom of the person's nose.

Press the plunger firmly to give the dose of NARCAN nasal spray.

Remove the NARCAN Nasal Spray from the nostril after giving the dose.

3.) Call for emergency medical help, Evaluate, and Support

Get emergency medical help right away.

Move the person on their side (recovery position) after giving NARCAN Nasal Spray

Watch the person closely.

If the person does not respond by waking up, to voice or touch, or breathing normally another dose may be given. NARCAN Nasal Spray may be dosed every 2 - 3 minutes, if available.

Repeat Step 2 using a new NARCAN Nasal Spray to give another dose in the other nostril. If additional NARCAN Nasal Sprays are available, repeat step 2 every 2 to 3 minutes until he person responds or emergency medical help is received.

For more information about NARCAN Nasal Spray go to www.narcannasalspray.com, or call 1-844-4NARCAN (1-844-462-7226)."

End image ID.]

This makes me really happy. I hope I can be that for someone.

oh by the way!! yesterday morning i saw someone my age walking with a cane while i was going to school. it was the first time and it was really quite exciting!

i haven't really needed my cane in a while now but seeing other young people using one really makes me feel less alone <3

this is your reminder that if you are young and going out in public with a mobility aid there probably will be some seemingly able-bodied kid watching you and feeling less alone. and just maybe they might try taking their aid outside, someday.

I finally got the tattoo I've wanted for years😁 so I always have an extra spoon for bad days🥄

“I don’t want to be a burden” you’re more like a relief, a gift, a blessing actually

View from the balcony

non binary, gnc and trans butch lesbians are a blessing. non binary, gnc, and trans femme lesbians are a blessing. the lesbian community is way too full of people who are ready and welcome to exclude every trans person they can. it's been a mad dash for lesbians to gladly regurgitate rad feminism in order to create a "safe" lesbian community. this creates a hostile unsafe environment that benefits no one

where are the trans, genderqueer, intersex and non conforming lesbians supposed to go? why out of any queer identity should the lesbian community be so hostile and unaccepting of genderqueer and trans people? there are trans gay people, trans bisexual people, trans pansexual people, trans asexual people, trans polyamorous people, and so on. why should lesbians specifically be "protected from" trans people? nonbinary people? intersex people?

we cannot allow this to continue. diversity in lesbian, dyke and sapphic spaces is what makes them beautiful and powerful. we must celebrate all lesbians and dykes no matter how much their identities differ from our own. there's no good reason to throw transfem & transmasc butches out for somehow being a "threat". there's no reason to throw out non binary lesbians for not being women. there's no reason to deny trans men a place in the community when we've been here all along

there's no reason to allow people to gladly repeat rad feminist rhetoric for the sake of keeping the lesbian community "safe" (read: pure). this behavior has very dangerous roots. the lesbian community doesn't need to be "protected" (read: cleansed). lesbians are NOT in any danger being around other types of queer people. lesbians do not need to be protected from the world. lesbians are not in danger the second they're around a different type of queer person (or even cishet people).

encourage and embrace lesbian diversity. our community is built off the backs of genderqueer, genderfluid, gnc, transfeminine, transmasculine, non binary, intersex, two-spirit, transsexual, and ftm butch lesbians. all the lesbians that came before us were just as diverse as the ones we find now. we are stronger the more diverse we are. more lesbians is always a good thing. celebrate the fact that there are even more dykes than you initially realized. more dykes is always a good thing

@ all the people unfollowing me during eurovision

I've used a wheelchair for about a week now and I was soo nervous about it. But it's honestly been great, despite the minor accidents. I've gotten both thumbs stuck between the tire and the fender sideguard.. and I've tipped backwards onto the ground. But the worst part about that was that my open drink spilled everywhere:(

It feels easy, natural, amazing to just be able to move so freely with a lot less pain than before. I'm gonna be really sad, when I have to give it back.