Winnipegger's viral TikTok videos show challenges of living with a disability
A Winnipegger is giving an inside look at the realities of day-to-day life when living with both a visible and invisible disability.
Christen Roos was born with Thrombocytopenia Absent Radius syndrome, a condition that results in short arms. She was also born with low platelets, which required 56 blood transfusions to save her life.
She said her disabilities affect nearly every facet of her daily life.
“It’s pretty basic, down to cooking and how I do my makeup,” she told CTV News Winnipeg.
“Everybody asks me how I do my nails, and when I tell them I do them myself, they’re like ‘oh wow.’ I just got to keep going and figuring out ways to make things accessible to my disability, to my short arms.”
This curiosity from able-bodied people is part of the inspiration behind Roos’ popular TikTok account @lifewithshortarms.
She launched the account in April with a video about buying a jean jacket with short arms. Slowly but surely, her videos picked up thousands of views, showing everything from cooking to shopping to doing laundry.
“By making videos on TikTok, I’m just trying to normalize having a disability, and I’m just living my life every day. I do it a bit differently, but we still continue on and figure out ways to make it short arm-friendly and easy for me to be independent,” she said.
Roos also wants to use her platform to advocate to make the city more accessible for all. She said she hopes to meet with the City of Winnipeg to discuss the importance of sidewalk snow removal.
“Snow is a big part to living in Winnipeg,” said Roos, who has lived downtown for 13 years.
“I’m hoping to move forward with the City of Winnipeg and chat more about making sure that the sidewalks are cleared off, that we have access to the skywalks downtown and just understanding where those barriers impact us so greatly when essential services are cut off to access doctors, pharmacy, and even fun things like Jets games at Canada Life Centre.”
In the meantime, Roos said TikTok is a great platform to spread awareness and promote positive conversations about disabilities.
“The more that we have these conversations and talk about how disabilities affect our everyday lives, the better that we can move forward together,” she said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.