🦒 October 2025 – Week 1 Blog Post
Theme: Mental Health Access – Trauma, Therapy, Healing
Date: 6 October 2025
Quote:
“Disability is not inability. My body may be different, but my rights are the same.” – Loise Wanjiku
Mental health is not a luxury. It is part of every person’s right to health and well-being, protected by South Africa’s Constitution and echoed in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD).
For persons with disabilities — including DeafBlind South Africans — mental health is often shaped by the world’s response to difference. Stigma, exclusion, and misunderstanding can deepen emotional wounds and create barriers to care. When mental health services are not accessible or inclusive, the right to health itself is compromised.
Access begins with listening. It begins with acknowledging that healing looks different for everyone. For some, it is through therapy or counselling; for others, it is through community support, self-expression, or spiritual connection. What matters is that the right to care is recognised and made available to all, regardless of ability.
Mental health awareness reminds us that our scars do not define us. They are lessons — showing where we have been and guiding how we can grow. Healing happens when compassion and rights meet, when we replace shame with understanding and silence with inclusion.
DeafBlind South Africa’s Closing Message:
Mental health is a shared human experience. For the DeafBlind community, access to care, understanding, and respect is not an act of charity — it is a right. By recognising our shared humanity, we build a future where inclusion and healing walk hand in hand.
#DisabilityRightsAreHumanRights
#MentalHealthAwarenessMonth
#DeafBlindSA
#InclusiveCare
#HealingIsARight
#EndTheStigma
#LeaveNoOneBehind