www.incontinentsupport.org

I was reading an old thread here about "Helping others", which struck a chord. This led me to think of a crazy idea, which after further consideration, I've decided to delete.

It was never going to succeed at changing society's bias because it's a tough social problem.

My two cents worth...
I’m 41 so obviously a long way from retirement or a nursing home, which I plan to never live, but my mom started having leakage issues a few years ago, I learned only by seeing items in her trash. Keep in mind that she is the same person that shamed me and made my young life miserable for YEARS so I’m not super sympathetic. I did however bring the topic up and she shut me down immediately so I don’t know the cause or even if she’s visited a doctor. My sister was to try to speak with her, whom our mom is more open with, but I haven’t heard anything and honestly haven’t thought about it until this thread.
Kids are taught to control their bowels and urine as young children and society supports the basic assumption of continence for all. Uncontrolled voiding is personally and socially unacceptable and harmful to one’s dignity. I can’t see that changing throughout life. A program to get all nursing home residents to publicly wear and use a diaper, regardless of need, seems like a non-starter to me.
Personally, I wear “protection” because of uncontrollable urine release and have most of my life. I don’t however want to make my need to wear diapers public information because frankly I don’t believe it’s anyone’s concern. For me, being a business owner and operator, I have a need to be taken seriously and respected for my knowledge and abilities. I don’t want to go to a customer site with any telltale sign of diapers. I have made it a priority to conceal evidence of wearing “protection”. It’s a dignity thing, a good business decision, etc.
Obviously my family and very close friends know, the faceless contacts at the websites where I buy products, and all here. Beyond that, I guess no one, though I’m not going to overly worry about it.
The idea of “diaper party” with all my friends and neighbors is just freaky to me and has ABDL written all over it. I don’t believe our society is nearly ready for that.

I guess I'm with Ellen on this topic. Although my immediate famiy and neighbors know, I work hard to keep my incontinence to myself, to minimize its impact on folks around me. More difficult to conceal is the fact that I walk like a drunk, and sometimes I fall. If I were to wish that others understood my situation better, it would be that they would understand how I feel when my world begins spinning out of contro; my legs get rubbery, and not that I am wearing diapers. I have had my physicians threaten me that, if I broke a bone, most likely a hip, in a fall, I would spend my remaining years in a nursing home. They want me to use a wheelchair, full time. But I refuse to become a malingerer. I think the task of de-stigmatizing incontinence is progressing nicely, with manufacturers advertising their wares on television and in magazines for folks of all ages.

Let's consider this idea 'dead in the water' and move on, please.

@Elllyn: You response makes the point well. Thanks.


J.

All good points. I did say it was just a crazy idea. I agree that from a practical point of view, little is likely to change about society's acceptance. Ellyn, you do have some good reasons for how you feel about it.