Intervenors for the DeafBlind

Dixie,
Thanks very very much for that. Now I know what the video is all about.

I've been deafblind since I was 18. I've had intervieners in the past but then pulled out and I'm now hoping to get intervieners again.

Since my guide dog retired I'm learning to do various routes. There are activities that I don't really need an intervienor for. Just going to the one earth shop and then on to the vegitarian restaurant next door.

One thing I think intervieners should be made aware of is for the newly deafblind their is often aditional mental health issues which might make them difficult. They want to go somewhere but then it's a differant experience then what it used to be before sight and hearing deteriated so deafblind end up feeling very frustrated. It's a phase that most newly deafblind people go through. Or even ones that weren't newly blind but their has been a change in my sight. I used to have a lot of useful sight but now I have severe light sensitivities and in a lot of lighting conditions I'm totally deafblind. Before that I didn't really need an intervienor so much since I had a monocular and could look around me with that. Me and Jilli could go almost anywhere alone together. We were still deafblind but I find their is a lot of differance between being deafblind like that and being deafblind like now. I'm not saying this as if it's something tragic or anything. I really don't want anyone to think it's something tragic. I try to make myself deafblindness positively.
 
Dixie said:
He needs a written transcript in text form so he can read it with screen reader device (sorry if I mis-named it, I can't think of what the official term is for the life of me.)
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Screen reader is the correct term.
 
Your welcome dreama, glad I could help.

Thanks Hear Again, I thought it was called screen reader but was second guessing myself.
 
If you reread my post, I've edited it.

I'm a she (or a screen reader) but any term will do (as long as it's not insulting) as I'm not really into over correct terminology. The point is Dixie took the trouble to sit down and transribe the text for me into something useful to me. Which is great.
 
:bowdown: Dixie!

Many thanks for transcribing the video for us.

I only did 28 seconds then I stopped because it was hard for me & took a break as I had to do errands for the day.

Kudos to you!!

dreama, I hope you do have intervenors again because they provide independence in all kinds of way.
 
Mrs Bucket said:
:bowdown: Dixie!

Many thanks for transcribing the video for us.

I only did 28 seconds then I stopped because it was hard for me & took a break as I had to do errands for the day.

Kudos to you!!

dreama, I hope you do have intervenors again because they provide independence in all kinds of way.
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Kudos to Dixie. I stopped at around 1 minute last nite because I passed out. I was going to resume this evening. SORRY! :Oops:
 
Mrs Bucket said:
dreama, I hope you do have intervenors again because they provide independence in all kinds of way.
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Thanks. I'll be having another meeting with them on the 5th, then hopefully something concrete can be arranged.
 
dreama said:
One thing I think intervieners should be made aware of is for the newly deafblind their is often aditional mental health issues which might make them difficult.
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I've been deafblind since age 3.

However, my hearing didn't interfere with my ability to travel or communicate until I was 23. At that time, I had severe-profound hearing loss and could no longer hear traffic or understand speech unless it was through a Comtek FM system using DAI connected to my hearing aids.

I had a *very* difficult time adjusting to the loss of my hearing.

In fact, I required weekly "therapy" meetings with the director of my local deafblind center (who was deafblind herself) because I was having such a difficult time coping. I had a great deal of anger and in her words "made her walk on eggshells" whenever she spoke to me.

The most frustrating aspect of my hearing loss were the never-ending fluctuations in my hearing. One month it would be severe-profound, the next profound and back to severe-profound again.

I live in a very busy neighborhood, so traveling without being able to hear traffic was frightening to me. Ironically enough, I developed severe paranoia in 1995 (which was diagnosed by the psychiatrist I had at the time) in which I developed 2 kinds of fears -- the fear of being followed and watched. Every time I went outside, I worried that people were watching me and following me from place to place. Since I couldn't hear, I was also afraid that they were talking about me.

It wasn't until I received training in O&M techniques and learned how to use the ground underneath my feet, scents, textures and route patterns/cardinal directions that I began to learn how to travel on my own despite being unable to see or hear. I used a guide dog at the time, but because of how frightened I was, my fear was transmitted through the harness which in turn gave a contradictory message to my voice and hand commands.

I learned how to travel using an endless loop tape (a recorded tape that plays a message over and over which says "I am deaf and blind. Please assist me across the street by tapping my shoulder when it is safe to cross."), a communication card (a card which indicates that I'm deafblind and requests that I be tapped on the shoulder when it is safe to cross) as well as dual identification of using my guide dog with the left hand and my white cane with the right (this allowed drivers who were not on the side of my guide dog to see my cane and recognize that I'm blind).

All of that took place between 1995 and 1996. I've been traveling independently ever since and have also traveled without any hearing or vision (I'm congenitally totally blind and am now 100% deaf without my CIs). Even if something were to go wrong with my CIs, I don't have any fears about traveling on my own because I have the alternative communication and travel skills necessary to do so.

I've used a myriad of SSPs and tactile terps since 1995. Many of them have been wonderful and very, very adept at describing my environment so that I'm able to "see" and "hear" what is happening around me.

My captionist who transcribes lecture notes for me does this as well.

For example, if my professor says "Good morning. I have a surprise for you. It's time for a pop quiz" and several students react, my captionist will indicate "female student gasps" or "male student sighs." She will also include visual details including the size/dimension of the room we are in or what my professor is wearing. I can still remember an amusing story in which one of my professors always came to class wearing clothes from the 1970s. Since I couldn't hear what was said by other students, my captionist indicated to me things like "female student: 'Do you see what he's wearing today? Plaid! <professor is wearing plaid suit with large yellow and black squares> Can you believe it?" or "male student: 'Check out his shirt! <professor is wearing blue shirt with a butterfly collar meaning that the collar is very wide> <male student laughs>

It is not typical for captionists to go into this much detail when captioning which is why I appreciate the captionist I work with so much. She clearly goes out of her way to describe my environment visually whenever possible. She also serves as a sighted guide if I'm in an unfamiliar place.

Without the SSPs, tactile terps and captionists I've used, I would have been unable to receive a college education, be evaluated for my CIs or attend medical appointments without having to worry about communication.

Long story short, SSPs and intervenors are imperative for the deafblind because they allow us to function as independently as possible without being limited by our inability to see and hear.
 
Hear Again - my captionist does same. I've had several different captionists in my life and only couple of them does not bother. Sometimes I instruct my captionist not to bother with unnecessary thing such as background conversation - just stick with lecture.
 
Hear again: I can relate to what you are saying, although I have never really had any councilling. Only once when I suffered from Anorexia, then that way dropped.

Sometimes I too feel paranoid about the world around me. I think people are discussing me. When Jilli started playing up I used to think that it was people who were leading her astray and this is not something you can do with a cane. Now I've moved to cane travel I find it easier then dog dravel with no sight or hearing at all.
 
dreama said:
Hear again: I can relate to what you are saying, although I have never really had any councilling. Only once when I suffered from Anorexia, then that way dropped.

Sometimes I too feel paranoid about the world around me. I think people are discussing me. When Jilli started playing up I used to think that it was people who were leading her astray and this is not something you can do with a cane. Now I've moved to cane travel I find it easier then dog dravel with no sight or hearing at all.
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I'm glad I'm not alone in my experiences regarding paranoia, but am sorry you've struggled with it as well since it can be a very uncomfortable feeling to have. I have 7 different types. 2 of them occurred after I lost my hearing and another 5 occurred after I had a manic/psychotic episode due to my bipolar. (I apologize for mentioning my bipolar, but it's relevant since this is part of the reason why I have severe paranoia.)

As far as counseling is concerned, I've been in therapy for severe depression since 1991.

However, I didn't talk to a therapist about my hearing loss until 1995 after I was hospitalized for severe depression and the attending psychiatrist advised me to share my anger and frustration with one. It also wasn't until the director of my local deafblind center encouraged me to do the same.
 
Jiro said:
Hear Again - my captionist does same. I've had several different captionists in my life and only couple of them does not bother. Sometimes I instruct my captionist not to bother with unnecessary thing such as background conversation - just stick with lecture.
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Jiro,

I do the same with my captionists.

For example, if I'm in a class that has a great deal of content, I ask her to only type the lecture notes and class discussion instead of including background sounds/conversations.

It's nice to have that kind of flexibility. :cool2:
 
Jiro,

Just curious -- does your captionist use Typewell/C-Print or do they transcribe verbatim like a court reporter? I've used both, but prefer C-Print when I'm in lectures that contain alot of information.
 
Hear Again said:
Jiro,

Just curious -- does your captionist use Typewell/C-Print or do they transcribe verbatim like a court reporter? I've used both, but prefer C-Print when I'm in lectures that contain alot of information.
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C-Print. love it. I had C-PRINT service in Seattle few weeks ago as well.
 
This sounds like a great program! We definitely need more of those!
 
I believe it is a good program. While the deafblind are having to depend on someone else to be their eyes and ears, the intervenors allow the deafblind to experience things they never would have otherwise, such as going to a family gathering and the deafblind can pick out a relative based on the description provided by the intervenor.
 
I wonder if deaf can be deafblind interventor? (I'd like to be one) but my ear isn't reliable enough for speech? And that I signs and not speaking with voices? If that's an issue and wouldn't work out that's fine just an thought
I met one deafblind man he was in wheelchair (reason I don't remember I was 7, maybe he's afraid to walk with cane or guide dog or doesn't have the skills or maybe other disability like CP?) and my school teacher showed me how to communicate with him and I was shy so I wasn't sure what to say but the guy was very nice and talked to me and his aide.
 
Wow!! From watching this video, I think Intervenors are great! It's just amazing being the most important person for that person.
 
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