Introduction

The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), adopted by the United Nations (UN) General Assembly on December 13, 2006 [1], declared that: “States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to ensure the full development, advancement and empowerment of women, for the purpose of guaranteeing them the exercise and enjoyment of the human rights and fundamental freedoms set out in the present Convention” (Article 6).

Globally, it is estimated that around 700 million women and girls live with disabilities. According to the UN Women, the average rate of disability among females is 19.2%, compared to 12% among males, indicating that approximately one in five women is affected by disability. Women with disabilities face unique challenges and are subject to double discrimination stemming from both their gender and their disability [2].

Despite their substantial numbers, women and girls with disabilities are often rendered invisible and excluded from the decision-making processes that shape their lives [3]. Matin et al. [4] found that women with disabilities encounter multiple barriers when attempting to access healthcare. These barriers include negative attitudes, low health literacy, inadequate insurance coverage, inaccessible medical equipment, and communication barriers. Women with disabilities also face an exceptionally high risk of physical, sexual, and emotional abuse, specifically related to their disability [5]. Monedero et al. [6] highlighted that women and girls with disabilities continue to face significant barriers to education, despite progress toward inclusive social models. Many are excluded from educational systems and vocational training and often lack basic literacy opportunities. These and other factors contribute to the poverty and social exclusion experienced by women with disabilities.

Given their reliance on services and caregivers to meet specific needs, along with their potential for increased susceptibility to illness, people with disabilities are considered particularly vulnerable to nature disasters [7–10] and during public health crises [11,12] (hereafter: crisis). Such crises often exacerbate long-standing inequities and intensify existing structural disadvantages faced by people with disabilities. Research further demonstrates that these barriers are socially and systemically constructed, rather than inherent to disability itself [13,14]. The COVID-19 pandemic drastically impacted the physical, social, and emotional condition of people with disabilities [11,15,16]. The pandemic significantly disrupted social support and inclusion for people with disabilities [17], who already experienced generally higher levels of social isolation and loneliness compared to those with no disability [11,12,18,19].

Women with disabilities are more vulnerable than men, particularly in crisis, due to the intersection of gender-based and disability-based discrimination. They may encounter significant barriers in accessing information, mobility, and support systems, which increase their dependence on others [20,21]. Comparative international assessments demonstrate reduced access to healthcare, increased exposure to violence, and the weakening of support networks across diverse socio-cultural contexts [22,23]. In a study from the United States [24], fourteen women with disabilities reported that following the COVID-19 pandemic, they experienced worsening or newly developed mental health symptoms, along with limited access to healthcare and shopping services. A study from South Africa [25] found that young women with disabilities experienced compounded livelihood disruptions during the pandemic, illustrating how gender and disability intersect to shape crisis experiences. Evidence from Canada shows that even within high-income welfare states, women with disabilities experienced intensified caregiving responsibilities, economic precarity, and social isolation, revealing the persistence of systemic inequities [26,27]. Likewise, findings from Turkey emphasize the continuing health challenges and gendered inequalities faced by women with disabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic [28]. Collectively, these cross-regional findings underscore the need to examine how women with disabilities actively navigate and adapt to changing conditions during and after crises.

Materials and methods

Characteristics of the participants

The study included 56 women with disabilities. All the participants were Jewish women, aged 26–69 years (M = 43.06, SD = 12.90), who lived in Israel. Most of them identified themselves as religious. As seen in Table 1, Most participants (66.1%, n = 37) reported physical-motor impairment (hereafter: physical-motor); some of the participants reported sensory impairments (visual: 19.6%, n = 11 and/or hearing: 23.2%, n = 13). Most of them reported having professional or academic degrees (67.9%, n = 38). A majority expressed satisfaction with their health (71.4%, n = 40). Approximately half of the sample (53.6%, n = 30) reported having children, with nearly one-third of them (28.6%, n = 16) indicating that they had between four and seven children.

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Table 1. Socio-demographic characteristics of the participants (n = 56).

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0342900.t001

Results

In the analysis we integrated four main themes and six sub-themes describing the lived experiences of women with disabilities in COVID-19 pandemic and afterwards:

Discussion

The absence of up-to-date, gender-specific data on women with disabilities, both in periods of stability and in crisis, implies that expanding research efforts in this area could offer important insights. The present study aimed to address this issue by examining the challenges and circumstances faced by women with motor, hearing, and visual disabilities through their personal experiences and perspectives during COVID-19 and afterwards.

According to the ICF [29], participation involves integrating individuals with disabilities into the community, supporting their engagement in daily activities, and facilitating their interaction with physical and social environments [43,44].

The participants in the current study identified their bodily impairment as a central and enduring dimension of their live experience. One that shaped their sense of identity, daily functioning and interaction with the world around them. Yet, consistent with the ICF model, the study findings indicated that disability cannot be understood solely in relation to impairment. Instead, intersecting environmental, social, attitudinal, and gendered contexts played a decisive role in shaping participants’ opportunities for participation and well-being, both in times of stability and during periods of crisis. Our study shows that the pandemic magnified the interaction between environmental constraints and personal resources, illuminating how these dynamics shaped participants’ experiences of vulnerability and resilience.

Despite these intersecting challenges, participants described an overarching sense of satisfaction, agency, and resilience in their daily lives. Fulfilling employment that ensured financial independence, close-knit family relationships, and supportive community networks emerged as key protective factors. These sources of strength coexisted with and at times mitigated the ongoing challenges of living as women with disabilities, enabling participants to sustain a meaningful and engaged life.

Notably, most participants in this study identified as religious. They reported that their faith in God gave them emotional strength to cope with the challenges in daily life with a positive outlook, especially in times of crisis. This finding was consistent with Koenig et al. [45] regarding the important link between spirituality and health. A review by Zhang et al. [46] related specifically to the overall role of spiritual fortitude in mental health outcomes during crisis such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Studies show that religion and spirituality play an essential role in the lives of people with disabilities as a source of strength and support. Treloar [47] found that adults with disabilities and family members spiritual beliefs served as a stabilizing force in their lives, offering meaning to their experience of disability and supporting their coping efforts. Studies indicate that religion plays a key role in how individuals interpret and cope with chronic pain. Faith in God often provides strength and resilience in managing pain, though interpretations of suffering and its meaning tend to vary across different religious traditions [48,49]. In O’Hanlon [50] study, family members of children with special needs noted that involvement in religious activities and support from clergy and community members were meaningful, and they expressed high levels of satisfaction with both.

In line with Hansen and Philo’s proposal [51] to explore the intersection of disability and space, our findings indicated that the drastic pandemic restriction on outdoor activities increased the participants’ experience of vulnerability and threatened their independence; but it also offered advantages. The latter included less physical strain and better management of daily routines. Similar to Lindsey et al. [19], some of the participants in our study also reported that they benefitted from the disruption of their routine, by learning to appreciate life. Some participants utilized the time to implement previous plans and make significant life changes, such as pursuing further education, writing a book, or changing their profession. In these ways, the new circumstances appeared to diminish their experience of disability.

Our study showed that a variety of online technologies and services had a positive impact on women with motor, hearing, and visual disabilities experiences during and after the pandemic. In daily life, the technologies helped them overcome barriers caused by inaccessible environments. At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, ensuring accessible information was recognized as essential to preventing discrimination against people with disabilities in society’s response to the crisis [52].

Nonetheless, part of our study participants described the intensive use of digital technologies as enforcing strong feelings of loneliness. Although they acknowledged the advantages of these technologies, they deeply missed face-to-face interactions. Studies indicate that individuals with disabilities often feel excluded from full participation in the digital society [53]. Stough and Kang [10] showed that the decline in perceived quality of life of individuals with disabilities in the aftermath of a disaster was primarily attributed to the loss of social networks and of a sense of belonging, rather than a reduction in perceived instrumental support.

Masana and Vidal [54] revealed that individuals with “locked-in syndrome” were accustomed to a life of confinement, which enabled them to adapt more effectively to the pandemic. This was also evident in our study. The use of online technologies offered a few of our participants the potential to challenge public attitudes about disability. Specifically, women with paraplegia viewed staying at home as an opportunity to offer individuals without disabilities a glimpse into their everyday lives, potentially changing stigmas about individuals with disabilities. They mentioned that digital communication presented an opportunity to encourage more positive attitudes toward them, as only their upper body, and sometimes only above the shoulders, was visible on the screen. This finding was mentioned by others [55].

The participants in our study emphasized their independence as a central aspect of their lives, whether in making decisions, navigating public spaces, or achieving financial self-sufficiency. At the same time, they warmly described their relations with others in their community. They described the care they received daily, for example, from neighbors, relatives, and others, also during the pandemic. This included visits, phone calls, assistance with shopping and various tasks, and more. However, they also discussed their overlapping caregiving roles and responsibilities, which extended beyond personal care to include support for others both with and without disabilities. Edwards and Loughnane [56] underscored the need to reassess our understanding of care practices among individuals with disabilities. The concept of relational autonomy criticizes the independent living movement, arguing that independence and self-determination are grounded in networks of care [57]. Ignoring disabled people’s caregiving and reciprocal relationships not only undermines their agency and citizenship, but also overlooks the relational ways in which they build and sustain their lives [56].

In our study, about half of the participants were mothers, and among these mothers, about half had between four and seven children. Israel is a pro-natalist culture with a social expectation to have children. Studies show that motherhood and starting a family are among the top priorities for women in Israel [58]. Bloom et al.‘s [59] study showed that women with disabilities were just as likely as women without disabilities to express a desire to have a baby (61% vs. 60%). However, only 43% of women with disabilities intended to have a child in the future, compared to 50% of women without disabilities. This reveals a greater gap among women with disabilities between the desire for children and the intention to have them.

The participants in our study did not articulate specific concerns related to parenting in the context of their disability. They embraced parenting as a natural and meaningful part of their lives and spoke of their children as a central source of pride. However, a few mentioned the burden of finding daily activities to keep their children busy during lockdowns. Studies of the impact of COVID-19 on women confirmed that their unpaid workload increased with children being out of school [60]. In our sample, a small number also mentioned financial difficulties related to the intensive care of children who were at home during the pandemic. At the same time, they highlighted this period as quality family time.

Participants without children who returned to live with their parents during this period also appreciated this time for its emotional and often financial support, as found in Lindsay et al. [19].

Conclusions and policy implications

In keeping with the recommendation of Snæfríðar-og Gunnarsdóttir and Löve [64], integrating lived disability experiences into policy is crucial for inclusive disaster planning and crisis management. Studies have noted the need for tailored approaches to support the diverse needs of people with different disabilities during crisis, including their health care and mental health conditions [7,18,65,66]. Similarly, the UN Policy Brief on a Disability-Inclusive Response to COVID-19 [67] urges governments to embed the participation of people with disabilities at every stage of crisis planning and recovery, especially in resource limited settings. Pearce et al. [68] and Hunt et al. [69] further demonstrate that inclusive approaches grounded in community participation and local capacity building are essential for effective, equitable responses in both low- and high-income contexts.

Examining the disaster risks faced by people with disabilities also offers insights that policymakers can apply to understanding the risks faced by other groups in society [70,71]. We support Jalali et al.‘s [15] recommendation to maintain written records of the medical and rehabilitation needs of persons with disabilities, in order to ensure continuity of care during crisis. Also, proactive planning and training are essential to guarantee accessible information in future crises [72].

UN Women [22] highlights that women with disabilities are disproportionately affected in emergencies and calls for gender-responsive and disability-inclusive disaster management strategies. We recommend that policymakers adopt gender mainstreaming policies [73] in emergency programs for people with disabilities. There are issues specifically affecting women with disabilities in extreme risk situations, which also resonate significantly among women without disabilities. These include concerns about the economic situation, the increased burden in domestic workload, and worries about family members’ health [24,74,75]. We also endorse the recommendation of Aydemir-Döke et al. [24] that during extended crisis, government policymakers should enhance informal support systems for women, and specifically for women with disabilities, by increasing their access to respite care and by expanding family services.

Building on multidisciplinary rehabilitation research, our findings underscore the need for integrated psychosocial and physical support models tailored to women with disabilities during crises. Consistent with Nosek and Hughes [76], gender-specific approaches in rehabilitation are critical to addressing the compounded psychosocial vulnerabilities and structural inequities that women experience. Evidence from Óladóttir et al. [77] further highlights that rehabilitation practices often remain insufficiently gender-sensitive, with women reporting less person-centered care and fewer opportunities for family involvement, gaps that can widen during emergencies. Similarly, Abou-Abbas et al. [78] demonstrate that women and girls with disabilities in humanitarian settings face intertwined physical, psychological, and social barriers that require coordinated, community-based rehabilitation frameworks. Finally, the findings of Isiko et al. [79] emphasize the importance of embedding women lived experiences into intervention design to ensure culturally responsive psychosocial and advocacy support in resource-limited contexts.

In addition to psychosocial and physical support, attention to long-term economic recovery is essential. Crises often intensify pre-existing employment inequalities for women with disabilities, undermining their financial stability and limiting future opportunities. Feminist rehabilitation scholarship highlights that meaningful employment is central to women’s empowerment, safety, and independence, and that gender responsive vocational rehabilitation is critical for sustaining job prospects and enabling fuller participation in community life [80].

Together, these insights highlight the need for emergency preparedness and recovery strategies that combine physical rehabilitation, psychosocial support, gender responsive empowerment, and accessible employment services. Such integrated approaches are essential for strengthening economic resilience and enabling the sustained societal reintegration of women with disabilities after crises.

Acknowledgments

We gratefully acknowledge Hanna Weiss for her English proofreading and editing.