AIBU to wonder whether some disability content rewards staying visibly unwell?

I don’t know about FND or content but over the summer I did notice a sharp rise in the number of young women using walking sticks when out and about.

And then I read an article somewhere which spoke about the rise in young women - usually with blue hair - who were suddenly using walking sticks, and how this could be damaging if they don’t actually need the sticks.

And then I was vindicated when a thread on Mumsnet was created where other posters were talking about seeing loads of young people with sticks.

So yeah, I think something is going on where physical disability seems to have been made attractive and something certain demographics wish to lean into.

You’re probably referring to the Times article by Kathleen Stock “Why are young women using walking sticks?”

She argues that the rapid increase in FNDs is in part due to social contagion - in the same way that bad backs among middle aged men were twenty or thirty years ago.

She also says that suggesting this often produces extremely angry reactions from people afflicted or those close to them. This thread is further evidence of that!

Ok so I was pissed off enough by this to actually subscribe to the times and read the article.

one. She doesn’t mention FND at any point in her article.

two she is very careful to say that “legitimate” physical illnesses give bad days and good days

three she manages to imply (quite well actually) that these girls are not really ill by saying that some words crop up in their medical explanations.

I mean that’s like saying that the word cancer crops up in people who have cancer. No shit.

four she actually says (technically she asks) whether these girls are over-analysing themselves into physical problems and the definite implication there is that it is anxiety that is causing an inability to walk.

five she doesn’t say anything about an increase in FND diagnoses. In fact she doesn’t mention it at all.

six half the fucking world uses walking sticks of one kind or another. I can’t go out into the countryside without meeting a Nordic walking group with their two walking sticks and the elderly population of my town all seem to have several mostly in wood (showing off obviously what’s wrong with an nhs grey crutch?)

It's disgusting, isn't it?
Why is ableism more acceptable than racism and sexism?
It's bad enough, as a Black woman, to suffer from people's nasty attitudes, but those with disabilities often suffer physical and financial pain, as well as from people's prejudice.

Not specifically talking about this scenario but there’s a whole community on reddit called illnessfakers - there is a whole group of people online who milk everything for money.

It is a shame because there are real sufferers of people with FND etc who may have people not believe how bad it is.

There is such little awareness of FND that I think it is brilliant that there are some individuals who are posting about it. As another poster has mentioned, when you are diagnosed you are simply given a link to a website. That is it. The website in question does not contain much information and it is not something that is particularly helpful. Disabilities can cause an awful lot of people to feel isolated. It is great that there is what could be classed as an online community for people for support. There needs to be much more awareness of FND. As for sticks, so what if someone decides to go for a funky type stick? It just might make someone feel that little bit better about having to have days where you need to depend upon one. Doesn't mean it is all in someone's head or that they are seeking attention. Terrible what some people come out with... anyone can become disabled at any point. Anyone's loved ones, friends etc. Empathy goes a long way.

This is like all the able-bodied people who say ' you are lucky to be allowed to sit and whizz around on your mobility scooter.' I don't feel bloody lucky, I would much rather be able to walk and not have to worry about whether i can fit in/get out of a lift or wonder if i can actually fit through a door and whizzing around is not an option in a busy shopping centre cos people on mobility scooters are invisible to other shoppers who will just walk right in front of you without a care on the world.

Oh yay, the 20th ignorant disability bashing thread to pop up this weekend

I don’t know anything about the content, but I’m quite skeptical of FND generally. I’ve read some of the research and have met a few young people who have been given that diagnosis. All 3 were autistic and/or had extremely traumatic backgrounds. It’s basically a group of symptoms that could be explained by something else.

Oh. Congrats. This is a new angle. Just when I thought we'd run out of ways to push the disability frauds agenda.

Gosh I can't imagine why it produces angry reactions. I'll have to rack my brain reallllllly hard to figure out why that would happen.

Happy to have coffee with you anytime you like.

I’m not young (I’m49) and I have this diagnosis after a major accident.

yes, it is a diagnosis of exclusion inasmuch as the symptoms can’t be caused by another neurological disorder (ms, etc) but a lot of people who have physical damage caused by accidents or similar have FND diagnoses.

edited to add I’m not autistic I’ve been assessed by a consultant psychiatrist and she should know.

I think it's good that they film the content to raise public awareness of disability. It teaches able bodied people without a chronic illness the sort of challenges and struggles they have to put up with. And if it helps them gain a few followers and gives them some much needed confidence and support, why not?

Another day, another thread criticising people with disabilities.

I am so sick of the ableism on this type of threads.

Don't people have better things to do that constantly obsess about other people's health issues?

I left a disability support group where the prevailing culture was about acquiring diagnoses. We all had a condition or two in common, but were being taught inadvertently how to claim other conditions. As in, if you get really tired as well then you’ve probably got CFS. It was like symptom bingo. And I could feel myself falling into it.

I was a bit taken aback at the woman who made content about the inadequate provision at a train station. She had a mobility scooter that didn’t fit their wheelchair system, and had staff wringing their hands about how to resolve it. She then announced that today wasn’t a particularly bad day so she’d walk up the stairs. Her feed also showed her at gymnastics, roller skating, and other very physical activities. It was hard to understand her condition.

I would imagine they post a lot about their disabilities on social media to raise awareness but then off camera they are just living their lives.

I have a disability and 2 of my sons are ambulatory wheelchair users. I'd much rather not have my disability and my sons feel the same.

FND is the new term for psychosomatic disorders. There are no physical causes for them, they're caused by the mind. They do cause real symptoms.

I've noticed the trend for young women with wheelchairs etc. They also have things like pots/eds/hypermobility/dysautonomia and neurodivergence. I actually have all these problems, but I've always just had to get on with it. These simply weren't recognised back in the day. I thought it was normal to constantly feel like shit, fall over, have a racing heart and be in constant pain. It wasn't very good, but I wouldn't have regarded them as a disability. I always worked, raised a family and just got on with it. I now take beta blockers for my tachycardia and orthotics for the physical aspects. Paracetamol for pain. I'm a tough person and glad to be so. I've never had any help.

Physical difficulties are a challenge, but it's worth fighting through and not adopting a sick role model of life.

It’s interesting to hear that my EDS is psychosomatic rather than a ‘rare inherited condition’ according to the NHS
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/ehlers-danlos-syndromes/
I’ve spent over 25 years trying to get medical professionals to connect up all my serious health issues and numerous tests, consultant appointments etc
Although there is no cure and it’s about symptom management - I was starting to feel listened to until some of the wildly ignorant posters on here

I didn't say eds was psychosomatic. I said that these young women often have things like eds as well as FND 🙄 read my words.

I also have eds and am waiting for GI surgery because of how it affects my stomach etc. My ds2 is badly affected as well.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/09/05/disability-became-cool/

When I was in nurse training we learned about the adoption of the sick role and how it can often hold people's rehabilitation back.