I didn't shape up with my disability - 1985
1985
Trevor is disabled and uses a wheelchair.
“As an outsider back in the eighties, the gay scene was very frightening. I got the feeling that the scene was very body conscious and gay men in particular seemed obsessed with the body beautiful and the male form. With my disability I certainly don’t shape up, so it was quite difficult for me. I phoned Samaritans for information about gay support groups. They put me onto the Walsall Gay Men's Group and Switchboard. The group met monthly in a back room of the Crab Apple pub or The Oak. It was alright, just a chat and a few drinks. After about six months I didn’t feel I was mixing well. After a not very pleasant coach trip to Blackpool, it was clear that someone had pulled the short straw pushing my wheelchair around all day. I was still dealing with my sexuality and was shocked the first time I saw two men kiss. I came home thinking that maybe I should go back in the closet”.
Contributed by: Trevor Sword, 50