Disability CHAT/HELP Thread

Hi guys,

I have received an offer for Physics from southampton UNI but it is subject to the statement in UCAS "This offer is conditional on the University assessing the specific needs of your declared disability to enable us to consider what adjustments would be reasonable to meet your needs". Which is strange as I thought offers were made purely on grades, not as well as disabilities. So I am wondering if anyone else has had the same offer condition as me? If so please could you post below or PM me as I want to see if it is a uni-wide "policy" or if I am an exception. I would be very grateful, as I am working out what to do next.

Thanks very much in advance,

Daniel

That is very dodgy and really shouldn't be a thing unless it's a course that's dangerous to do due to certain disabilities. May I ask what your disability is?

Mild Cerebral Palsy,
Aspergers
Profoundly deaf with Cochlear Implants
Which I disclosed in the ucas form voluntarily.

That's all hopefully adjustments they can make for you using DSA and not something that should stop you doing the course. I'd contact southampton and insist they clarify why they put that as a condition for your offer as you can't get any dsa funding until you have a confirmed course place so you won't have a needs assessment before then to know what the best support for you is. It really shouldn't have been on a conditional offer.

Yeah that what I did, and they the dept were having discussions at a central university level and they said they would get back to me. So I will let you know how it goes. Yes and only Southampton have done this out of my other offers so far.

Hi all, don’t think I’ve actually posted in here before, (been a lurker for a while though!) but finally had a hospital referral for my joint issues (college nurse suspect hEDs) and the result from the rheumatologist...”do yoga”... was not impressed. According to him I can’t have EDS cause I’m not hypermobile, not sure how he can tell that considering he didn’t test for 5 out of the 9 Breighton points, and it’s on my record I have a 5 in that anyway. He also didn’t check the vast majority of the criteria or for anything else really. He got me to bend my arm and that was about it.
So that’s the first 8 months of waiting for an appointment wasted, here’s to six months of Pilates (because he said that was ok and I’m not trying yoga in case it is eds) before being able to get another referral... then it will be another 8 months and hopefully not the other bad surgeon at the hospital who has been known to try and undiagnose people who already have a diagnosis...

I really don’t want to but I may have to look at the whole going private route just to be seen by someone who knows what they’re talking about and doesn’t think it’s normal for a 19 year old to be struggling to walk.

welcome to the thread

you've a right to a second opinion so i would fight for one. It must be very frustrating to be struggling to walk and you shouldn't have to suffer like that without at least a reason why it's happening.
It might not help as you can't use a private consultation to bump yourself up a waiting list technically, but i saw a private cardiologist in December after being told the wait on the nhs was till april ( that was an urgent referral). My gp literally called me a conundrum and took a bit of pushing to get a referral in the first place, then after my private appointment where the cardiologist agreed i'd probably do have postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (if i get it confirmed, my diagnoses names will make a very long sentence :P) , they suddenly offered me an appointment in january and i've now got tests for February and march, all before my initial appointment originally was. So if you can afford an initial private appointment if nothing else, it could help.

That’s what I’m thinking. If I can see one of the London people who actually specialise in Eds at least I would know if they can just rule it out so I can’t try and figure something else out.

sounds like a good idea, if you're going to go down the private route, try and ask online support groups and charites for recommendations for specialists, if you're paying you want the best doctor for you.

Hi all, don’t think I’ve actually posted in here before, (been a lurker for a while though!) but finally had a hospital referral for my joint issues (college nurse suspect hEDs) and the result from the rheumatologist...”do yoga”... was not impressed. According to him I can’t have EDS cause I’m not hypermobile, not sure how he can tell that considering he didn’t test for 5 out of the 9 Breighton points, and it’s on my record I have a 5 in that anyway. He also didn’t check the vast majority of the criteria or for anything else really. He got me to bend my arm and that was about it.
So that’s the first 8 months of waiting for an appointment wasted, here’s to six months of Pilates (because he said that was ok and I’m not trying yoga in case it is eds) before being able to get another referral... then it will be another 8 months and hopefully not the other bad surgeon at the hospital who has been known to try and undiagnose people who already have a diagnosis...

I really don’t want to but I may have to look at the whole going private route just to be seen by someone who knows what they’re talking about and doesn’t think it’s normal for a 19 year old to be struggling to walk.

Hi,
I had a Dyscalculia screener done at college but they have said I will need to have an assessment done now (I was under the impression that is what I was having done. Clearly not. ) as it came back as at risk/severe risk.
Is this something the University can sort out when I see the disability team or do I need to arrange to have this assessment prior to me starting University?
Thanks.

Ugh, the dreaded yoga, ha. Like obviously...EDS bodies need to be stretched more because...logic? I get told that a lot and I told my physiotherapist and he actually facepalmed.

I hope you're able to see someone who knows what they're doing. Something of note though, even if you don't meet the stricter criteria for hEDS (2017 criteria), there are other disorders that can cause hypermobility and then there are HSDs which, for the most part, are treated like hEDS and can have the same comorbid issues.

Signed, fellow EDS person.

Thanks.
Yeh I don’t think I’m quite going to meet the 2017 criteria, but yeh. We shall see. If it is Eds it will be borderline. But I just want to know! And yeh. It’s time to go physiotherapist hunting (and getting myself on my dads insurance to actually afford that!)

HSD might be worth looking in to? Providing other hypermobility related conditions have been ruled out, if you don't meet EDS criteria genetically or clinically then it could be HSD. Make sure when you see a physio they know what hypermobility is and how to manage it too. Might be worth bringing up the Muldowney protocol too if EDS or HSD is eventually diagnosed.

Thanks for this. HSD does seem like more of a possibility. Haven’t really had any progress in ruling out anything else yet though. So it’s a long path ahead!