When you see someone in a wheelchair or using a white cane, it is clear that they are living with some kind of disability or illness, and the public is usually quick to assist them when they need a little extra help, patience, or understanding. However, only around 20 percent of people with disabilities show obvious signs of their conditions. In the vast majority of cases, the symptoms and/or limitations associated with physical and mental disabilities or chronic illnesses are not apparent at first glance. Around 80 percent of people with a disability have what is known as an “invisible disability”. There are many different types of invisible disabilities, including deafness, diseases of the internal organs, multiple sclerosis, migraines, and Parkinson’s disease. People suffering from depression, anxiety disorders, ADHD, autism, and dementia, just to name just a few examples, often find travelling in unfamiliar environments, with large crowds and sensory overload, very stressful.

This is compounded by the fact that people with invisible disabilities are more likely to encounter questions and a lack of understanding than people whose disabilities are more obvious. If someone with an obvious mobility problem or visual impairment sits in a seat intended for people with disabilities, this rarely causes any issues with fellow travellers. Many passengers are also willing to give up their seat for people with obvious disabilities. People with hidden disabilities, on the other hand, are more likely to have to justify themselves.

In order to make “invisible disabilities” more visible, persons with such disabilities can wear a green lanyard with yellow sunflowers. The lanyard, which originated from the U.K.-based Hidden Disabilities Sunflower organization, is meant to signal that the wearer may need more patience, consideration, or support—for example, during ticket checks, at the shops, at work, or in public spaces. The so-called Sunflower Lanyard was initially used very successfully in the regions of Zürich, Lausanne, and Geneva starting in the summer of 2025. Thanks to the overwhelmingly positive response from this pilot phase, the Sunflower Lanyard has now been adopted nationwide and is available at all SBB travel centers, from SWISS at the Zürich Airport, the Basel Transport Authority (BVB), the Matterhorn Gotthard Railway, Aargau Transport, and the Technorama science center in Winterthur. 

However, only when fellow passengers and staff know what the sunflower symbolises and how they can support people with invisible disabilities in specific situations, will the initiative fulfil its purpose, so please help spread the word!

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