You Are Not Your Output: Disability Pride & Letting Go of Hustle Culture

July is Disability Pride Month — and this year, I’m thinking a lot about the lie that tells us we have to be productive to be worthy.

It’s a lie I swallowed young.

That value is measured in output.

That rest is laziness.

That I have to prove I’m working hard enough to deserve basic care, compassion, or belonging.

But disability disrupts all of that.

Chronic illness, neurodivergence, mental health struggles — they force us to slow down, or stop, or adapt in ways the world doesn’t always understand.

And in a culture that worships hustle, that disruption feels like failure.

But it’s not.

I am still worthy when I need help.

I am still worthy when I cancel plans.

I am still worthy when my body says no more and my brain shuts down.

Disability pride means I don’t have to perform wellness.

It means I don’t owe anyone an explanation.

It means I honor my body’s limits, and I stop measuring my value in how much I can “push through.”

Because I am not a machine.

I am not a productivity robot.

I am a whole person.

And I don’t need to earn my existence.

If you’re reading this and struggling to believe that rest is allowed — that stillness is sacred — let this be your reminder:

✨ Your worth is not tied to your output.

✨ You do not need to be productive to be enough.

✨ Your softness, your slowness, your survival — they matter.

You’re not falling behind.

You’re not failing.

You’re living in a body that’s telling the truth — and that’s brave.

This Disability Pride Month, I’m not trying to prove I’m valuable.

I’m simply claiming what’s already mine.