The Disabled Gamer Thread

[Jwrigh7784]

Thought I would start a thread where fellow disabled gamers could post and get to know each other. So, Hello, my (ingame) name is Methius. I've been disabled pretty much my whole adult life and I am, obviously, a gamer. I've been diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, ADHD, Generalized Anxiety Disorder and Panic Disorder. I also have a pinched nerve at C8 a bulging disc at L4-L5 a degenerated disc at L5-S1 and early onset spinal arthritis (I'm only 32 so it is VERY early onset). I am in a great deal of pain pretty much 24/7 but gaming takes my mind off the pain. You don't have to talk about your disability if you don't want to but I'm hoping this thread will allow fellow disabled gamers to make some new friends.

[Seoulstar]

I'm not disabled but I just want to say I want to hug you. That sounds sooooo terrible..

[Texa]

Nice to meet you Methius!

I'm Texa, friends just call me Tex. I have severe endometriosis and a as of now undiagnosed spinal disorder that makes it extremely difficult for me to stand for more than a few minutes. I'm just 26 but I have to use a walker to do things like shop at the grocery store or to make it from the parking lot to my doctor's office.

My endometriosis has spread to my digestive organs and my navel and it can be very difficult for me to sit for long periods to play my game. Because of that I've made my HUD easy to read from bed and use a wireless xbox one controller so that I can keep playing even when it's too painful for me to sit up. Anyone who's spent a sizeable amount of time with me in FF XIV has also seen

this at one time or another before because it's how I let friends know I'm not physically able to sit up but can keep playing.

[Arutan]

Not sure if this thread is made to get attention by exposing his problems
or a real thread to meet people

[DreameR7g]

Major Depressive Disorder with Anxiety here. While I don't have the wide range of disabilities that you do, I'm in that typical foxhole with you. Pleasure to meet you all~ If you guys ever are on Balmung or come to Balmung, you got a friend in me. ^_^

[Serilda]

This is one of the best ideas for a thread in ages, I don't think there's any need to question the motivations of the original poster.

Texa, I really like your idea of using a macro to alert people so they know that you're there and watching. It's a really good communication workaround that keeps everyone informed.

I don't suffer from any severe disabilities at this time (for which I'm very grateful) but maybe another good idea that can come out of this thread is people talking about which interface options help or hinder them - with as much or as little detail about the reasons as people feel comfortable with? I think that would be really helpful for the dev team as a reference, since recent UI improvements have shown they're serious about trying to help more people enjoy the game fully.

[Kerii]

I'm totally blind in the right eye, and have very poor vision in my left. My left eye's visual acuity is about 20/500 (as compared to say 20/20). I have a number of things wrong with my eyes, but it's such a list that I honestly don't remember them all. I have been like this my entire life. Because I'm legally disabled, can't work, am homebound, and really don't have a lot of things to do with my time XIV, and gaming in general, has helped me fill time and interact with others socially.

In general, I don't mention my vision among randoms because it really isn't a problem most of the time. My reaction times aren't perfect, so I tend to tank the floor a lot while learning fights. However, once I've memorized the script I can execute it precisely every iteration. Because of that mindset, I play black mage and love it. It fits my playstyle like a glove. I'm Kiran Astra on Sargatanas.

[Culfinrandir]

Hi!

I'm a disabled gamer too. I became disabled almost ten years ago in an accident but the actual disablement was/is progressive so I didn't have all the issues straight away.

I have a plethora of problems but the ones that affect me most in the realm of gaming are my spinal damage, Fibromyalgia & Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. I need to take breaks & can't commit to a schedule (as I don't know if my body will cope at any particular time) so raiding is out. I also don't do well with excessive pressure nowadays (I used to *thrive* off of it) so I am reluctant to do things like HW EX Primals as, even if successful, the hormone changes will affect me for days afterwards.

I find that many people are reluctant to accept any errors or delays in content so I only do what I'm confident I can handle. I've been told by many people in game that I'm good enough to need not worry but I find it easier to avoid stress now than actively seek it. It's a shame really.

[Lozza]

This is one of the best ideas for a thread in ages, I don't think there's any need to question the motivations of the original poster.

Agreed. Between potential UI/game improvements and general information sharing as to how others cope with similar issues this thread could be really valuable to some players. Even leaving aside the practical concerns a friend of mine who suffers from severe depression tells me at times it's easier for her to speak to other sufferers than people like me who while sympathetic can't truly understand her problem. The devs have been talking about data centre (cross server) linkshells happening at some stage, I see no reason why a support network can't exist in game for those that need it.

[ShinMetsu]

Not disabled, but just wanted to show my love for this thread. Absolutely love it.
Y'all are my fellow Eorzean baes. ♥