What are the invisible costs and systemic roadblocks that make living with a disability a constant battle? In this episode, author and disability coach Alison Hayes provides a crucial "user's manual" for navigating a world not built for everyone. Drawing from her own journey with Functional Neurological Disorder (FND), a stress-responsive condition causing unpredictable neurological symptoms, Alison shares the inspiration behind her two books, Thriving While Disabled: Recognizing Bias and Thriving While Disabled: Navigating Disability Finances, released in May 2025.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Recognizing Systemic Bias: We unpack the deep-seated ableism and classism in society, exploring the historical link between disability and poverty that began with the Industrial Revolution. Alison explains why disability is a minority identity and confronts rarely-discussed topics like forced sterilization and the eugenics-like implications of some "medical assistance in dying" laws.
• Navigating Finances & Bureaucracy: Alison offers a practical "cheat sheet" for managing the financial, energetic, and emotional costs of disability. We explore discriminatory banking practices that target the poor and disabled, the immense challenges of finding accessible housing, and how mass transit consistently deprioritizes disabled needs.

Alison’s core message is one of hope: the struggles faced by disabled people are "not your fault" but the result of societal decision-making.

This conversation is a guide to understanding the systems, finding resources, and moving from a state of just surviving to truly thriving.

Find Alison's books on Amazon and Barnes & Noble (1 and 2), and learn more about her work at ThrivingWhileDisabled.com

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