Let's get one thing straight before you decide if you want to continue reading:

It's not youI have a problem with (yes, you the player of the game), it's the gameI have a huge problem with and I don't see it getting better any time soon.

The app in itself, from what I've learned, because I refuse to play, is that it's interactive. This new game requires the user to actually get up and move around a certain distance. And yes, there are ways you can lure certain creatures to you, but to level up and move forward, you must get up out of bed and go take over a gym.

Have I lost you yet?

Good.

Here's the thing though, I am so happy and so PROUD of those who have overcome their social anxiety by going out and finding a group of people to play this game with, believe me. I'm also so happy that studies have shown that this game has led to lowered levels of depression in teenagers and young adults. It's also helped people with PTSD and anxiety. Which is amazing! I suffer from a myriad of things, and to think that people are finally getting out and about, is an amazing thought. This game as well as being local to your location, has gotten elderly people to exercise, and those hospital ridden, finally out of their hospital beds. GO YOU! I hope you find yourself happier, healthier, and more at peace with yourself. I really do.

But, that still leaves a vast majority of people out, a whole community if you will.

THE PHYSICALLY DISABLED COMMUNITY.

Now, before you get your panties in a twist, I am also proud of those who are physically disabled, who HAVE THE ABILITY to be mobile, getting out of their dark bedrooms and interacting with people they never thought they could be friends with in the first place. I am proud of those who are overcoming their fears and doubts about themselves, because they are physically handicapped. Again, go you, I am so proud of you. There will never be a day where I am not proud of you.

But again, people like myself are left out once more.

Let me elaborate... I am physically disabled. I have a prosthetic leg and while I am able to be mobile, I apparently am not mobile enough for this app. My disability was not deemed worthy enough to get an accessibility feature for this game. For all my other friends with prosthetics, who are wheelchair-confined, etc., they too are not disabled enough to be able to participate in this game with their friends. So again, it's us against the entirety of the able bodied community. And I almost never say this, but how is that fair? It is not.

It all boils down to me not being disabled enough for the able-bodied community.

Here's a little personal thing (as if I haven't already gotten personal): I love my boyfriend of almost nine months so much, more than anything in this entire world, but when he leaves for an hour (sometimes more) to go on a hunt or to take over a gym that's two miles away, it breaks my heart. I am left at home, to sit all alone because this game has taken the attention of someone who is able-bodied. Sure, he's tried to get me to play, but it's not the same. Sitting in my house, throwing Pokéballs is not the same experience as going out with friends and seeing them for yourself in the environment they were created for catching. Outside.

Now, you're probably thinking about that thing you saw where you can email the company who heads this game and ask them for special features. But again, keep this in mind: Approximately 21 million users (Morrow) are interacting with this new game... And for argument's sake, let's say that half of that amount are physically disabled... Do you think the company that created and run this game are going to be able to reach out to 10 million something people, personally?

Think about it. Really think about it.

Okay, I'm not a mean person. I'm open to a lot of things. I love having discussions and learning new things. And certainly, I have my opinions and you have yours, right?

But when it comes to feeling good enough, that isn't an opinion. My self worth is not an opinion. It is not something that can be valued by a gaming app. It is not something that can be determined by another person, by money, sex, education, or anything you're thinking of right now.

My self worth is not equal to my physical disability.

Physically disabled kids are already targets for bullying, lesser known access to public events, and to top it off: being left out of any given situation. Growing up, I was left out of a lot of things. I was chosen last in sports, I was deemed not worthy enough or pretty enough to date because of my disability. I was even told I was a "liability" issue when it came to high school cheerleading.

Pokémon Go is just reminding us again, how left out we really are.

The next time you participate in a hunt for a Squirtle, please be courteous to your physically disabled friends. We are doing our best with what we are given. Don't exclude us, just because we aren't as able-bodied as you. We deserve to be included and we shouldn't have to tell the able-bodied community that.

We're people too. Don't forget that. Please.