Following on from the last 2 blogs reminded me (Vicky) of 2 recent train encounters and how you just never know!! I guess it also relates to the RNIB’s campaign mentioned last week #HowISee, as well as bringing to mind that Awareness raising should be a full time job!!
 
Back in April, 3 of us were travelling up to Naidex, Europe’s largest exhibition for disability equipment held at the NEC in Birmingham, in relation to the other service Dave and I own/manage called the Disability Equipment Service (www.disabilityequipmentservice.co.uk). The other person with Dave and I also has a vision impairment. The three of us were all sat at a table on the train and, at some point along the journey, another passenger asked if he could sit with us. After a short while we got chatting about what he did and where he was going and as his job involved the train services, one of us asked him whether he’d ever driven a train. To which he replied, ‘No my vision’s s*** [not very good!!]’ to which our colleague replied, ‘I bet it’s not as bad as ours’. We then got chatting more about this to find that the man has RP (Retinitis Pigmentosa) the same sight condition as Dave. However, his sight hasn’t deteriorated to the same level as Dave’s and he did not require any additional aids or support (aside from screen magnification). If we hadn’t have got chatting to him, we never would have known, as wouldn’t any other passenger on that train. It also highlights that although both Dave and he have the same sight condition, the effects on their day to day life are at the present time, very different.
 
I was then on another train a few weeks later (again sitting at a table) with another colleague from a completely separate organisation, who also has a vision impairment. She and I were chatting about the potential impact vision impairment can have on your enjoyment of holidays and the gentleman beside me said ‘I’m sorry, I wasn’t meaning to listen but I couldn’t help overhearing your conversation about sight loss. I have Macular Degeneration myself’. We then got chatting about that, as well as where he was travelling to/from. After my colleague had left the train, we carried on chatting and he mentioned that his daughter also has a vision impairment and that she was concerned that she might have to give up work. I asked if they had heard about Access to Work (not surprisingly, as it is DWP’s best kept secret, he hadn’t) so I gave details about it and the various ways his daughter (and her employer) might be able to receive support. I also gave him a VIDA Training card in case he needed to get in touch in the future.
 
Although I’m tempted to say it’s a small world, I don’t think it’s that, it just highlights that you never know until you talk to people (and therefore shouldn’t make assumptions!!).
 
We’re always interested to know about other people’s experiences and thoughts. Please share these by commenting…
 
Interested to learn more about VIDA Training? Read about our Training and Consultancy packages, specialising in Vision Impairment and Disability Awareness, Communication and Team Building or contact us for further information.

Following on from Dave’s blog last week, I (Vicky) thought it would be good to mention again the RNIB’s set of mini films called #HowISee – available on Social Media, YouTube and also on their website - https://www.rnib.org.uk/rnibconnect/how-i-see. These are short films by people with vision impairments talking about the way their vision impairment specifically affects them. It also attempts to change some of the misperceptions people have about vision impairments.
 
Whilst reading Dave’s blog prior to posting, I was reminded of Jen Pearlstein’s article on The Mighty - https://themighty.com/2017/06/when-people-say-they-forget-about-my-disability/#_=_desribes which details how she now doesn’t find it a compliment when people forget she has a vision impairment and actually finds it offensive when they could assume it is. It’s a really interesting article and well worth a read. It also outlines to me 2 important things:
 
Firstly, a very common theme from our training about how everyone is different. Get to know someone or ask them rather than making assumptions. So, as in the case of this article, as a sighted person, don’t assume that a vision impaired person would want to be thought of as sighted – that may be your viewpoint but one they don’t share.
 
And secondly, that it can be a fine line between supporting someone appropriately who has a vision impairment versus only registering that person as someone with a vision impairment or ignoring their vision impairment completely. As Jen says in the article, ‘although it is flattering that [her colleague] does not see me as defined by my disability, my vision loss is a core piece of my identity that impacts how I live my life.’
 
So, to highlight this within our own VIDA training partnership and our other working roles, I couldn’t ‘forget’ that Dave is blind and walk off not sight guiding him in an unfamiliar place. However, I also acknowledge that he is taller than me and so can reach things for me and is also stronger and therefore better at, for example, lifting our training suitcases out of the car. I might need to give directional prompts for these things to be achieved successfully but although Dave’s vision impairment is an important element of his life and impacts how we work together, there are other factors about both of us that we need to take into account too. If you’re interested to read about this further, we recently published a post entitled ‘Playing to our strengths’, which was our Insight at the beginning of this month - No. 70.
 
We’re always interested to know about other people’s experiences and thoughts. Please share these by commenting…
 
Interested to learn more about VIDA Training? Read about our Training and Consultancy packages, specialising in Vision Impairment and Disability Awareness, Communication and Team Building or contact us for further information.
 

Back in September last year, I wrote an Insight called What can you see for Eye Week - http://vidatraining.weebly.com/blog/22-what-can-you-see-eyeweek that tries to explain what I can see (although it’s very hard to give an explain – think about how you would describe what you can see). I wanted to follow up that Insight with something similar but this one is more about how people perceive me and my blindness.
 
It doesn’t happen quite as much nowadays probably due to me being a bit more ‘obviously’ blind. I get sight guided or use a white cane to get around, usually have my sunglasses on and regularly bump in to things or need extra help to complete tasks. However, I still sometimes surprise people by what I can do or still can see.
 
Being registered blind doesn’t mean that you can’t see anything; in fact statistics state that only about 4% of people have no sight with these people usually having their eyes removed and/or having prosthetic eyes. In fact, even if you have no light perception, often you still see something. A BBC Ouch blog about David Rose, a blind journalist entitled “Do blind people really experience complete darkness?” (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-ouch-31487662) helps explain this and, although 3 years old, is still very relevant.
 
David Rose describes the flashes and fireworks as ‘Visual Tinnitus’ which I think is a great description. I am in this camp, I still can see when it is light and dark; I can see lights in the ceiling and I can see flickering images if I look closely at the TV. However, this is all very blurred and behind a load of rapidly flashing white dots and green swirls. As with David, these don’t go away when I close my eyes or bury my head under the duvet, they’re always there.
 
So, it still surprises people that I can bend down and pick up a coin that I’ve dropped, do the ironing or wash the car. I can do these things but I do them differently than a sighted person would. I use my other senses more, so for example, I feel the paintwork when washing the car and use my ears to listen to wear something has dropped so that I have an idea of where to start feeling to find it. Ironing is slightly different, obviously I don’t touch the iron as that would be stupid, but I do feel where I have ironed and work in a methodical way so that I don’t iron in creases (well I don’t think I do anyway).
 
An advantage to using my other senses to do tasks is that I don’t need the light on to do it. I can wash the car in the dark and regularly end up ironing in the dark without even noticing that the room has gone dark due to the sun going down. I rarely put lights on in the house so shower, shave and dress in the dark and I’ve even made breakfast for the children in the dark forgetting that they can see and would probably prefer the lights on!
 
I’m not saying that life is easy without sight, it isn’t. However, it doesn’t stop me from doing normal things; it just means that I might do them differently and am usually much slower at doing them. Obviously there are things that I can’t do or find really difficult such as driving, painting and decorating and knowing whether something is stained following a spillage. I also find dusting and window cleaning difficult due to not seeing whether I’ve removed the dust or just moved it around (I also tend to knock things over or have to remove everything from the shelf before I dust so it takes ages!) or have left smeary windows.
 
My life is about finding new strategies or solutions to achieving everyday tasks. Perhaps you can take some time to think about how you might do things if you couldn’t see… try it, and see how your other senses take over.
 
We’re always interested to know about other people’s experiences and thoughts. Please share these by commenting…
 
Interested to learn more about VIDA Training? Read about our Training and Consultancy packages, specialising in Vision Impairment and Disability Awareness, Communication and Team Building or contact us for further information.

A question that I’m (Dave) fortunately not asked that often, however, I am aware that people, when discussing or asking me about a TV programme that they think I may have watched, are cautious about the language they use or sometimes change it; “Did you, urrr, listen to the football match on the TV?” for example.
 
Usually I don’t even comment on this and just reply saying that I did or didn’t watch the TV and we discuss the programme in question. I have noticed that even my dad will now say “Did you listen to the Grand Prix on TV?”.
 
Watching TV is what people do. TVs are ‘visual’ so why wouldn’t we watch TV? This is a subject that Vicky and I discuss on our training lots. Not just watching TV, but the colloquial phrases that we use that have visual connotations ‘see you tomorrow’, ‘oh I see what you mean’ and ‘looking forward to meeting you’ are all examples as we mentioned in our previous blog about communication - 11. See you tomorrow…(Communication Part 1) - http://vidatraining.weebly.com/blog/11-see-you-tomorrowcommunication-part-1.
 
Getting back to TV though, I do watch TV but I do like to have and rely on the Audio description (AD) being turned on. AD is spoken commentary that runs alongside the dialog describing the important visual things happening on the programme such as body language, expressions, movements and explanations of scenery and colours where necessary. This additional dialog enables me to build a better picture of what is going on and fills in the gaps from unspoken elements of the programme that I would miss out on if I didn’t have AD.
 
AD is available on most new digital TVs or set-top  boxes nowadays and usually there is a dedicated AD button on the remote control (or plonker as it’s known in our house) that turns AD on and off. Alternatively, you can access AD by changing your TV settings.
 
Broadcasters such as the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Sky must ensure that AD is available on 20% of their programmes. AD is also available on some Freeview channels/programmes and on the majority of films released on DVD.
 
In the past couple of years, streaming providers such as NetFlix and Amazon TV are now also making programmes and films available with AD and making these easy to find by adding them to a dedicated ‘AD’ menu/list.
 
If you’re interested to find out more about Audio Description, then the RNIB has a webpage that has further information as well as links to downloadable factsheets. A direct link to the AD page is: https://www.rnib.org.uk/information-everyday-living-home-and-leisure-television-radio-and-film/audio-description
 
Unfortunately, copyright laws mean we can't show you a video of how AD works, but turn it on on your TV and listen to the audio description to find out how it works.
 
We’re always interested to know about other people’s experiences and thoughts. Please share these by commenting…
 
Interested to learn more about VIDA Training? Read about our Training and Consultancy packages, specialising in Vision Impairment and Disability Awareness, Communication and Team Building or contact us for further information. 

Vicky: In previous blogs we’ve mentioned independence (No.49 Stirred not Shaken - http://vidatraining.weebly.com/blog/49 and No. 50 Help, hindrance or interference - http://vidatraining.weebly.com/blog/50-help-hindrance-or-interference although it is a common theme 😊), I think there’s a good case to be made for working to each other’s strengths. This could be in any situation. As an example, I’ll use our training sessions.
 
We plan these together before the day and always have an idea of the topics we want to cover and will have agreed what equipment to bring.
Usually, I will have collected Dave en route to the training venue so we arrive together.
 
Assuming we’re in unfamiliar surroundings, we’ll start with a quick recce of the room so Dave can orientate himself for the day and then we’ll agree the best way to face and the room layout etc. I’ll check the fire evacuation procedures (usually a poster on the wall) and double check where toilets are. When setting up, we’ll both get tables ready and then I’ll deal with the paperwork and getting refreshments ready whilst Dave decides and lays out which equipment is appropriate for that session and usually gets the chairs ready. Dave is also better at dealing with any technical equipment required, so if that’s needed, that also generally falls to him 😊
 
During the training, as those of you who have taken part will know, we have a relaxed style and both chip in throughout the day. However, we do have different elements we lead on and I’ll often do the more factual information as its easier for me to read specific facts. We also try to be flexible to the needs of the group and Dave is more comfortable at ad libbing than I am. He also brings all of his personal experiences to the day and is happy to share personal examples with the group, although we often both share relevant anecdotes. I will usually be the time keeper for the session trying to keep us on track 😊 as again its easier for me to glance at our timetable and gauge how we are doing, but again we try to strike a happy medium between getting through the information we need to and going off piste a bit if the group are interested in a particular topic.
 
We must be doing something right as our recent feedback from a training session included:
 
"Fantastic chemistry between the two trainers. Not dry deliverance at all, kept their audience engaged, informed and involved as they rolled out the day"
 
"Great to see the working relationship you both have, makes for a very friendly, inclusive training session"
 
At the end of the day, we’ll usually have a brief breather before we start to pack up. Again, I’ll tend to deal with any paperwork as I can see what needs keeping and what can be discarded, Dave will put away equipment, chairs etc. On the way home we’ll discuss how the day went and any changes we want to make for next time.
 
It’s taken us a while to get this routine established, but we both know and accept that each of us are better at different tasks. We have both also adapted and been flexible enough to allow this to happen.
 
Dave: Vicky has clearly demonstrated how we work to our strengths but it wasn’t as easy as it sounds to get to this stage. We were lucky in that we worked together on projects before we started VIDA Training and therefore knew quite well what or where our strengths were. However, we did have to work at this work balance which involved communicating both our needs with each other. I’m better now at time keeping (due to having a smart ‘Bradley’ watch) but still rely on Vicky to be chief timekeeper mainly due to her having the planned timings on a sheet in front of her rather than me having to remember this info. What Vicky did forget to mention is that I usually switch off during the car journey home, not because we’ve heard enough of each other’s voices, but due to being fatigued from delivering the training. (Vicky – luckily I don’t switch off as I’m the one driving but Dave is right to mention his fatigue levels as this is an impact often forgotten about with any impairment. On the other hand, I think that’s why I’m usually quite keen to have a bit of a breather after the session and before packing up, whereas Dave is usually keen to pack up and get going. Interestingly, I hadn’t even thought that this was why we react differently at the end of a training session. Whilst I was aware of Dave’s fatigue I hadn’t really considered that my need for a break before the drive home was opposed to Dave just wanting to get to the car so he can have a break!!! It just proves that however well you know each other, there’s always more to learn and plenty of compromises to be made 😊)
 
We’re always interested to know about other people’s experiences and thoughts. Please share these by commenting…
 
Interested to learn more about VIDA Training? Read about our Training and Consultancy packages, specialising in Vision Impairment and Disability Awareness, Communication and Team Building or contact us for further information.​