The eclecticist of eclectic book club discussion

Do you have thoughts about representation? Whether it's lgbtq+, bipoc, disability, religion, neurodiversity, mental health, class, etc.

Discuss your thoughts below!

Representation is important to me personally as i'm multiply physically disabled, have chronic pain, am bisexual and nonbinary transmasc, am neurodivergent (autistic and suspected adhd), and have mental health issues (anxiety, depression, ptsd - for multiple reasons).

Growing up I didn't see myself in media. I was born with rare medical issues (vacterl association) and had doctors telling me "never heard of that" constantly growing up while looking at me like I have 3 heads. At 13 I realized i'm bi (and also had gender confusion my whole life because I didn't have the words) but was raised to believe that was bad so I felt shamed.

Without words, without peers, without representation, I felt all alone. It's a truly awful feeling. I was 30 before I had words like nonbinary for my gender. Having words to describe how I feel, how i've always felt, means the world to me. It also means i'm not alone and that others can relate.

Thankfully representation is better now (i'm not saying we don't have more progress to make, I know we do) and I can actually find representation now.

Hopefully that explains a little bit why rep is important to me personally and why having the words also means a lot to me.

In terms of other representation I do want to learn about others pov's and see the wide world of diverse stories. There are wonderful stories everywhere and I know how important rep can be, so I want to make sure i'm getting other voices to. I hope to continue making progress and it's a never ending journey.

Those are my thoughts.