Disabled woman was about to exit her car when a stranger double-parked and blocked her — her ‘20-second’ excuse left the wheelchair user stunned
For people with disabilities, even a simple errand can take extra time and planning. Unfortunately, some people lack basic manners and choose to act entitled. Katharine Evaul, who shares posts on Instagram as @life_illness_family, experienced this when a woman parked so close to her car that she couldn't get her wheelchair ramp out. In a video shared on May 28, 2026, Katharine explained that when she pointed out the problem, the woman brushed it off and said something that frustrated her.
Katharine explained that getting out of her car isn't as simple as opening the door and stepping out. She needs to lower her wheelchair ramp and unhook it first, but as she was about to do that, another woman pulled in so close that she couldn't get out. When Katharine tried to point out that she'd been double-parked, the woman brushed it off, saying, "Oh, I'm just dropping off a packet. I'll be right back. Just 20 seconds." That response really got to Katharine. She got frustrated and said, "This is me, real life," and pointed out that the woman seemed to think her quick stop mattered more than Katharine's ability to get on with her day.
Katharine went on to explain how easily people overlook the impact of their actions. The other woman could quickly drop off her package, but Katharine couldn't even get out of her car without enough space to lower her wheelchair ramp. Trying to squeeze out in her wheelchair wasn't an option either, as she risked scratching the other woman's car. "My errands are deemed less important than her quote-unquote 20-second stop at the UPS store," she said. For Katharine, it wasn't just about being kept waiting.
Running errands already takes extra time and effort in a wheelchair, and she wanted to be able to go about her day independently. As she explained in the text on her video, "It is incredibly difficult for me to run errands; what may take a person 20 seconds will take me significantly more time." She also called out the gap between talking about inclusion and actually showing consideration for people with disabilities. To her, it comes down to remembering that disabled people have places to be and things to do, just like everyone else.
Many viewers in the comments empathized with her. Instagram user @racso53vgr suggested, "People with disabilities should have a call button for tow trucks for people like this." Another viewer, @the_liberal_aggregator, wrote, “I would've called the police. I'm getting less and less tolerant of crap like this.” Meanwhile, @mightymissmaya vented about people, commenting, "Scratch it! Over these ‘just for a second’ people." People with disabilities often have to go through unreasonable comments and behaviors.
A similar situation happened to athlete and presenter Milly Pickles, who was questioned by a man for using a reserved parking space because she "didn't exactly look disabled." Milly, who uses a prosthetic leg, quietly lifted her pant leg to show him why she was entitled to park there. He was visibly taken aback. She said she was tired of facing the same assumptions and hoped the encounter would make him think twice before judging someone by their appearance. It is frustrating for people like Katharine and Milly when people fail to consider the challenges someone might be dealing with.
For more of her content, you can follow @life_illness_family on Instagram.