I am a theatre maker and playwright. I am
a storyteller who exists in the intersection
of multiple, vulnerable pockets of society.
Not by choice. First Nations/Burmese, Queer, Female and Disabled. I am autistic and I live with multiple co-morbid conditions that compound my disability. Autism, ADHD, CPTSD, OCD and Fibromyalgia. A lifetime of living with a disability and having no support to understand it has left me unable to work. Although I have achieved many things in life, it has been at the detriment of my health. Masking my disability to keep up with the neurotypical world is not sustainable for me, it broke my body. I had to stop. My world fell apart. For 2 years I was completely isolated from the vibrant, creative, academic life I had spent 30 years cultivating for myself. Finally, in March 2026, after I spent all my
- saving, borrowed money and feeling like I
- didn’t want to be on this earth anymore, I got my NDIS plan approved.
It was the only good news I’d had in months and it has taken me 3 months to fully understand what I can and can’t use it for. I have the most basic of packages it doesn’t fund all the things I need but it’s a life line for me.
Now I have redacted. A support worker for
two hours a week. She picks me up to go
to a local art group. Sometimes it’s the
only outing I have all week. I don’t have
family where I live. I don’t find it easy to
socialise and going to something simple
like an art group is hard for me but with
redacted, I can.
I can’t use technology the way I used to
and sometimes redacted helps me check
my email or draft a reply.
To someone who doesn’t know me that
- might sound ridiculous.
- For me its the
- difference between life in the most basic
- form or death, because anything less than
- the bare necessities I currently have, Is not
- a life anyone should have to endure. -Losing my NDIS access will cause
- irreversible harm to me. Its all I have to
- stay connected to this world.
- There must be amendments made to the
- NDIS cuts to safeguard people like me and
- so many others.