People with disabilities are people like any other. This statement, which seems obvious, is not always clear when it comes to dealing with them.

Our first reaction to observe that a person has a disability, with the limitations that this entails, is to give our help, in this way we associate the disability with the need for reliance on others when it is desirable for the person with a disability to achieve the highest possible independence.

The positive thing would be to consult each one if he needs help or not and if so, how we could lend it. We will see some specific recommendations on how to act before people with particular disabilities. In all cases, a series of general recommendations can be followed:

The Basic Rule is to Act Naturally

The help that we must push the wheelchair for a disabled must be similar to that which we give to any other person, even though a wheelchair lift can help the disabled when traveling, it is essential to avoid the following attitudes:

Paternalism and Excessive Protectionism

Peeps with disabilities don’t need us to be on top of them, except for specific needs that we will already be informed about or that they can indicate to us.

Grief or Pity

Nobody likes that they’re feeling sympathetic for him continuously. Folks with disabilities want to live in normalized situations and that what they do is valued for the merit they have and not for the fact that they’re people with disabilities.

Fear of Rejection

This is amongst the most challenging parts. We often don’t know how to treat a person with speech difficulties or with cognitive limitation or mental illness. These stereotypes provoke situations of rejection that should be avoided.

Impatience

Many individuals with disabilities who don’t understand the instructions we give them or communicate with them can be difficult or slow (for example, issues with hearing, speech, cognitive). If these situations occur it is imperative to act calmly, be patient since it isn’t something that the person does on purpose.