Disability advocate and self-advocate Cameron Bloomfield shares what it’s like to be a gay man with an intellectual disability. He talks about self-advocacy, pride, and challenging the misconception that people with disability aren’t sexual or part of the LGBTIQ+ community.

Connect:
Peta Hooke
Instagram: @petahooke
Website: www.icantstandpodcast.com
Email: icantstandpodcast@gmail.com

Episode Transcript: www.icantstandpodcast.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, Clare Stewart, CEO of Youngcare and former Mayor of Noosa, joins Peta to share her powerful story of resilience, disability, and purpose.

At just 23 years old, Clare was struck by a garbage truck while out for a morning run. She spent six months in hospital and underwent 37 surgeries to save her legs. Twenty-five years on, she’s leading one of Australia’s most respected disability organisations, advocating for accessible housing, dignity, and choice for young people with high care needs.

Clare and Peta discuss how lived experience shapes authentic leadership, the reality of accessibility in everyday life, and the urgent need to rethink how Australia houses and supports disabled people.

Connect:
Youngcare:
Website: youngcare.com.au
Instagram: @youngcareoz
LinkedIn: Youngcare Australia
YouTube: YoungcareOz

Peta Hooke:
Instagram: @petahooke
Website: www.icantstandpodcast.com
Email: icantstandpodcast@gmail.com

Episode Transcript: www.icantstandpodcast.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, neurodivergent advocate, educator, and founder of My Spirited Child and the National PEKE Centre, Rebecca Challoner, joins Peta to explore what it really means to live and parent, with ADHD.

Rebecca shares her journey from discovering her own diagnosis after her children’s, to founding two groundbreaking organisations built on neurodivergent-affirming principles. She unpacks the myths surrounding ADHD, how stigma still shapes everyday experiences, and why traditional “discipline” doesn’t work for neurodivergent kids.

Connect:

Rebecca Challoner:

Facebook: facebook.com/rebeccalchalloner

Instagram: instagram.com/rebeccalchalloner

Peta Hooke:

Instagram: @petahooke

Website: www.icantstandpodcast.com

Email: icantstandpodcast@gmail.com

Episode Transcript: https://www.icantstandpodcast.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Trans artist Oliver Ayres and his partner, producer Kaite Head, join Peta Hooke to discuss their new Melbourne Fringe show No Seasons. The performance explores Oliver’s experience freezing his eggs at nineteen, living with disability and chronic illness, and the couple’s ongoing conversations about parenthood, love, and choice.

Together, they share how turning such a personal story into theatre has helped them reflect on identity, access, and inclusion. Peta connects with their journey through her own experience of IVF, as they discuss what it means to make art that’s emotionally honest, authentic, and accessible.

No Seasons runs at the Melbourne Fringe Festival from 7–18 October.

Find out more and book tickets:

https://www.melbournefringe.com.au/whats-on/events/no-seasons

Connect with Ollie and Kaite:

Website: https://www.skintproducing.com/no-seasons

Instagram: @ogcayres @skint.producing

Connect with Peta:

Instagram: @petahooke

Website: www.icantstandpodcast.com

Email: icantstandpodcast@gmail.com

Episode Transcript:https://www.icantstandpodcast.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of The I Can’t Stand Podcast, Peta Hooke speaks with disability advocate, entrepreneur, and author Tiffany Yu. Tiffany is the founder of Diversability and the author of The Anti-Ableist Manifesto, a powerful guide that evolved from her viral TikTok series. Together, they explore how social media can be a gateway to deeper conversations, how to confront internalised ableism, and why disability pride and disabled joy are essential in the fight for inclusion.

Episode Highlights:

• Why Tiffany started her advocacy on TikTok

• The power and persistence of microaggressions

• How guilt and shame can both hinder and help allyship

• Disability pride, disabled joy, and unlearning internalised ableism

• The challenges of representation and inspiration tropes

Listen now to hear how Tiffany is using art, storytelling, and social media to change how we talk about disability, one mind at a time.
Buy the The Anti-Ableist Manifesto: https://www.tiffanyyu.com/book

Connect with Peta:

Instagram: @petahooke

Website: www.icantstandpodcast.com

Email: icantstandpodcast@gmail.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, disability advocate and Steptember ambassador Sophie Geeves shares her journey from early intervention with the Cerebral Palsy Alliance to presenting evidence in Parliament.

She opens up about the role of CPA in her life, what Steptember means to her, why inclusion in education is still a fight, and how she navigates belonging in both disability culture and mainstream society.

Key Moments:

[7:26] Why Steptember is about “movement in all forms” and how funds support babies and families.

[10:12] Transitioning from child to adult services with CPA.

[12:30] Sophie’s experience giving evidence to the NSW Upper House inquiry on education.

[23:31] Her advice for young disabled people finding their voice.

Connect with Peta:

Instagram: @petahooke

Website: www.icantstandpodcast.com

Email: icantstandpodcast@gmail.com

Episode Transcript: https://www.icantstandpodcast.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, lifelong AFL fan Shaun Keath shares how groundbreaking technology is transforming the way blind and vision-impaired people experience footy. He opens up about the isolation of attending games in the past, the excitement and challenges of testing the new Touch and Track device, and why inclusion in sport matters so deeply.

Key Moments:

• [1:09] Shaun introduces himself and his lifelong passion for AFL.

• [1:16] How the Touch and Track device works, from cameras to vibrations.

• [2:24] The isolating experience of attending games before this technology.

• [6:51] How the device originated in the UK and was adapted for AFL.

• [13:15] The future of Touch and Track in other stadiums and sports.

• [14:19] Inside the Victorian Blind Football League.

• [17:17] What still needs improving for the device to reach its potential.

Connect with Peta:

Instagram: @petahooke
Website: www.icantstandpodcast.com
Email: icantstandpodcast@gmail.com

Episode Transcript:
https://www.icantstandpodcast.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, disabled comedian Gem Turner shares an empowering perspective on living with disability. She talks about using humour to challenge preconceived notions, finding confidence through posting viral videos, and getting real about the daily realities for many disabled people.

Key Moments:

- [1:23] Gem explains how she started posting videos to "fight back" against being patronised and infantilised.

- [4:56] The exhausting expectation to be an "angelic, funny disabled person."

- [8:34] Phones are our safety.

- [10:45] Dealing with hateful comments from trolls on TikTok.

- [13:23] On internalized ableism and feeling conflicted sharing "negative" experiences.

- [16:12] Living with constant chronic pain from disabilities.

- [18:34] Gem's #1 most hated question strangers ask about her wheelchair.

Connect with Gem Turner:

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@gem_turner_

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gem_turner/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@gem_turner

Website: https://www.gemturner.com/about

Connect with Peta:

Instagram: @petahooke

Website: www.icantstandpodcast.com

Email: icantstandpodcast@gmail.com

Episode Transcript:https://www.icantstandpodcast.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.