Exclusive:
Disability advocate Jay Howard has spoken out about one thing that changed her life amidst a devastating health battle seven years ago
Reality star Jay Howard has opened up about an especially ‘dark time’ in her life, after suffering a little-known injury. The 32-year-old, who was the first disabled cast member on E4’s Married At First Sight, said she couldn’t even feed herself during this period and feared she had multiple sclerosis (MS).
“I had to have an MRI scan and everything because they thought I had MS,” she recalled in an exclusive interview with the Mirror. “It was a big thing, it went on for over 12 months. I was in and out of work… it was a horrible time for me.
“[The doctors] kept coming back saying ‘this is fine and that’s fine’, and I was like, ‘well, it isn’t because I can’t move it’. I can’t even lift a brew up without dropping the cup.
“It took ages, I kept having to go to A&E. My mum had to take me all the time. My mum was really upset, [it was a] really dark time for her because my doctor basically put it into her head that I might have MS, so I needed an MRI.
“That made me think, ‘oh god, if it is, then what are we going to do?’, because my mum was like ‘I’m going to have to take care of you [24-hours-a-day]’. It was bad, but it came out that it wasn’t. So, I’m alright.”
Around seven years ago, it was finally confirmed that Jay was suffering from a repetitive strain injury – or RSI. Usually, this describes pain, throbbing, swelling or numbness in one part of the body caused by repeating the same movements over and over again.
For Jay, the main issue was severe cramping in her right arm. Given that she was born without part of her other arm, this injury made everyday tasks and her previous work in sales completely unmanageable.
She recounted: “I had a right nightmare with it because I kept getting repetitive strain. And my hand went completely for like three months and my mum was having to dress me and everything, feed me and all that kind of stuff.”
Despite countless hospital visits and uncomfortable procedures, such as nerve conduction, she eventually found a solution that ‘changed her life’. Surprisingly, this turned out to be a one-handed keyboard, specifically designed for individuals with one hand, like herself.
“All turned out it was because I was straining my fingers by using normal keyboards,” she said. “We got one, I’ve not had a problem since. It’s been brilliant and it’s actually changed my life, I’ve not had to go to any more hospital appointments, I’ve not had it ceasing up, it’s not been cramping.”
While Jay’s RSI continues to cramp up during the colder weather, it’s no longer a daily issue. In light of her experience, she’s keen to draw further attention to the often overlooked needs of people with limb differences and disabilities.
Last November, she led a first-of-its-kind chat show Unfiltered Women on ITV alongside Samantha Renke and Fats Timbo to openly discuss everything and anything about living in a ‘disabling world’.
She’s also become an ambassador for limb difference charity Reach and is now hosting public speaking events in various schools, workplaces and businesses. Beyond one-handed keyboards, she urges employers to consider numerous other simple adjustments for varying accessibility needs.
This could be anything from using coloured paper to accommodate for people with dyslexia, to elevators for individuals with mobility difficulties.
The star, from Accrington in Lancashire, continued: “It’s not like ‘what’s wrong with your office’, more of an open chat about it. It could be something as simple as, you’ve got two candidates wanting the job. One of them is a non-disabled person [and the other is] a disabled person, but the disabled person is more qualified.
“But you haven’t got a lift for them – and it could be something as simple as that. It’s just getting to the office to do the job effectively, it puts the disabled person at a disadvantage.
“…When I went into a business that I did a talk with, the HR department actually came up to me afterwards and they said… ‘You know what? I didn’t know half of the stuff you said, but I’m so glad that you mentioned it because we’re actually going to go away now and put that into effect’.”
Later, she added: “There’s not enough awareness on it.”
Have you got a story to share? Get in touch, at lauren.haughey@reachplc.com
