Short answer: yes.
The decision whether or not to self-identify as disabled can be difficult. When I first joined online communities for people with IBD, I found many other people who felt that ‘disabled’ was only for blind people or wheelchair users. Some people thought we were not even allowed to use ‘disabled’ restrooms.
It makes sense that some people refuse to let the disease take anything from them. For many people, the stigma of ‘disabled’ is something they do not wish to bear. For a long time, I saw myself as a very able person who happened to have a health issue.
But when I finally accepted I was disabled — my disease got too bad to pretend otherwise — I discovered that I was not, in fact, legally disabled. At least, not according to U.S. law.
When Congress passed the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990, ‘disability’ was defined narrowly. Court decisions made the definition even more narrow. When I began to self-identify as disabled, those court decisions meant I was still not covered by the ADA.
But in 2008, Congress changed the law. The Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act took effect in 2009, expanded ‘disability’ in ways that clearly protect people with IBD. According to that definition, disability is