My favorite travel destination, hands down, is London. I’ve had many wonderful holidays there with my hetero lifemate Sarah. But our last trip there was difficult. It was in 2015. Sarah spent a bunch of time looking for elevators and escalators for me. So much so, that I’ve had nightmares involving that mission.
Many times, I would tell Sarah to stop looking. I would try to make it up or down stairs. There were times when she would have to bring her luggage and my luggage up a flight of stairs. It was kind of a mad dash, hoping that someone wouldn’t grab the remaining luggage. The same thing happened during our last trip to NYC in 2017.
Navigating public transit is very difficult when you need to avoid stairs. But then, I also have the added difficulty of simply standing once I am on a bus or train. The combination of Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, asthma, and postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome make standing very difficult. I am a klutz. I trip and fall even when I am not in a moving vehicle.
This morning, I stumbled across Transport for London’s “Please offer me a seat” scheme. People in the London area can request a “Please offer me a seat” badge and cards. It seems helpful for people with invisible illnesses. The concept is that you wear this badge and have cards (like a business card) to give to people who have questions about the badge and invisible illnesses.
I’d like to echo Alaina Leary’s Boston Globe opinion piece. MBTA riders with invisible illnesses could benefit from a similar program. Heck, I feel like I want a “Please offer me a seat” button for daily life.
This Charming Amy 
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