a journey with disability and dance. 

Tahlia talks about misconceptions, a passion for dance and finding the confidence to do the things you love. 

same path, different guide

Mills, 20, (They/Them), Disabled artist & actor, witch 

I am very interested in taking part in the exhibition as a disabled student, having recently had only been able to do any kind of advocacy by dealing with ableist comments which can be very draining, art is a special interest of mine. I am autistic, have ADHD and diabetes so have been neurodivergent all my life, and diabetic/chronically ill for half of it.

i am afloat and barely breathing: 

the mask pickles the air i inhale 

i exhale and smoke appears under 

my eyes. deflate me. punctuate my  

starving lungs as i scrabble to   

concentrate. my smile is crowded. 

call me the worm in the basilisk 

dress. turn me back or turn me to 

ash in a therapist’s chair. my genes 

are ripped on the knee from falling 

over my own marching feet. i am not 

a medical death. i’m not going i’m 

not going not back to bed. i don’t  

care what the unholy spectre behind  

my eyes preaches - she is not him and  

he is not me and i am not my own god: 

he chants in chorus murder against 

vacant eyes. he begs for the plastic  

happiness mentioned by all but never  

swallowed. the sun is setting over the 

rainbow and my fingernails still tap. 

i do not sink until the chords snap. 

Ryan Bryce (they/them) is a BA (Hons) Creative Writing and English Literature graduate in their mid-twenties, currently training on the PGCE Further Education and Skills Sector course as an English and Creative Writing college lecturer. They live with depression, anxiety, ADHD, and dyspraxia. 

in space

Alumni student Deividas's illustrations bring you into another world. Like many other people speaking a second language with dyslexia he has found that communicating with images can be easier than grasping the right words.