Background

• There are a wide variety of impairments that can cause disability, and they also vary in severity and complexity.
  
  
• Some people are born with impairments, while others acquire them at a later stage either because of an accident or because of a medical or other condition.
  
  
• Some impairments will remain unchanged, while others will fluctuate and others will steadily deteriorate.
  
  
• Some people live with multiple impairments.
  
  
• Each person will have different perceptions about their impairment and how it affects their life.
  
  
• Not all impairments are obvious to other people; many impairments are hidden and/or intermittent.
  
  
• Not all disabled people are wheelchair users, or carry a white stick, or display an obvious sign that they have a particular impairment.
  
  
• People, particularly as they get older, may have more than one impairment or disability.
  
  
• The way in which people respond to and treat disabled people has a major effect.
  
  
• Attitudes influence the way we behave, and can either help to reduce the disabling effect of a person's impairment, or they can intensify it.

This section deals mainly with mobility problems. Sensory impairments are dealt with under separate sections:

Serious Sight Loss

Deaf and Hard of Hearing