Disability Dialogue with Bill

I Do Not Have The Time

Hello everyone,

I wish that everything you are trying to achieve is going the way you hope for. I hope you are finding the time and energy needed to accomplish all of your goals.

This thought brings up something interesting I hear over and over again. Maybe you hear the same; or maybe you have similar thoughts?

I hear “I do not have the time”, quite a lot when I ask someone were you able to accomplish... like you had planned. I hear “I did not have enough time and never had the chance.”

I sometimes think to myself I do not have the time to accomplish certain tasks either. Then I think to myself that this mind-set is the easy way out. We cannot do all we want to do all the time, and should be selective to make sure we accomplish the tasks that truly make a difference in our life, other life’s or the company we work for. We shouldn’t tackle just the simple tasks. We need to learn to make time by adjusting and prioritizing our busy schedules between the important and not so important or non-beneficial tasks if we really want to accomplish our major goals.

Some examples of typical time constraints could be- If you have a child some can make the time to raise their child and continue to go to work or do their other duties at home. Maybe on top of that you need to go back to school to further your education. Maybe you need to care for an elderly parent or friend or a person who is sick. There are many reasons for time constraints that might cause you to think you do not have enough time.

Having a disability adds to time constraints for sure. When you cannot drive and it takes you 3 hours to make a round trip using paratransit to a short appointment instead of the 30 minutes it would take if you could drive yourself. If you have diabetes keeping your diabetes under control takes extra time. The time it takes to prepare for any trips outside of the house if you have medical conditions adds to the time constraints you may have. Just preparing meals without eyesight takes longer – at least for me it does.

Once you take the time to start the task you have been putting off that will really make a difference, is the first and most difficult step towards success. Little by little you will find you have made great progress. Very soon you will find you have accomplished your task you thought you had no time for. When you do these extra tasks you thought you had no time for it is like you are performing magic and have created more time in the day to accomplish more then you ever imagined was possible.

How can we say at times we do not have enough time to accomplish what we want when we can do what we really want if we choose to? Maybe a better choice of words might be “I chose not to do that. Maybe the phrase “I do not have the time” is just an attitude or frame of mind?

Does anyone have any suggestions to help us fit into our busy schedules the tasks that really make a difference in our professional or personal lives? Any ideas to help us to postpone the not so important easy task and tackle the more complex tasks that will produce superior benefits? Does anyone have any real stories that describe how you were able to accomplish more than you thought you could within your given time constraints?

I hope you can adjust your schedule to accomplish the more difficult and time consuming goals you have that will make true positive Differences in your life

Thanks a lot for your thoughts and ideas to help us all

Bill Tipton
Contributing Author,
Global Dialogue Center
http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

Elder Care by the Disabled

Hello all,

I want to bring up a topic that is at times uncomfortable to talk about for me. Maybe others might feel the same way?

I think elder care in the US is spiraling downward at a drastic rate from my perception. Maybe it is the same in other countries; I would love to hear your opinions and thoughts.

Being disabled or having other challenges might add complexity or other difficulties to an already complicated situation when trying to be the caregiver. Working and trying to take care of other family members adds even more stress when trying to care for your elderly family members or friends. I also think that being a caretaker with certain types of disabilities adds another level of challenges to overcome, depending on the person doing the care giving. In my case I have only been completely blind a few years and I do not know how to do everything yet the best I can as a blind person. This is why I am looking for help, conversation, and opinions to help us all.

Some of my observations and challenges
• Since I cannot look into the eyes of the person being blind I am caring for too see how alert the person might be, I might misinterpret understanding. If that person is deaf it adds to the complexity of trying to evaluate the situation.

• When the patient might be in a hospital and have many tubes and wires connected to them I am afraid I will unplug something if I get too close to patient since I cannot see being blind what is attached to the patient or where.

• If you have a disability which limits your ability to get around this might prevent you from being with the patient or person you are trying to give care to as much as you or the person you are caring for would like

• When faced with difficult decisions it is hard to pick what will be best for the elderly person to allow them to live on with the quality of life they would want; if they could choose for themselves. At times we can endure surgeries or drastic procedures that might prolong life; but may substantially compromise the person’s quality and awareness of life.

• If you are fortunate enough to have medical insurance there are even challenges with this. Insurance companies in most cases try to do just the bare minimum. They will try to get you out of hospital before you are ready. They will allow you the bare minimum of physical and occupational rehabilitation.

•While in hospital if you are not alert and checking in with doctors and others the patient might not get the best of care. These days it takes a person doing the advocating on what is best for the patient which takes a lot of time, energy and knowledge.

•Having a job and other family members at home might also impede on how much and when you can give care.

•If the spouse of the person you are giving care to is elderly and might need extra help on top of the person you are already caring for could add to the challenges.

Not all people around the world have medical insurance, or even access to doctors or hospitals to go to. Some do not even have homes or places to live. Every person’s situation is unique and different in the way we care for our elderly. Even different cultures and religious beliefs might play a part in the way we care for our elderly.

As you can see from my observations care giving can be stressful and difficult. Having a disability and being the caregiver might add extra challenges. Do you have any experience to share with us to help? Any advice or organizations that can help us? Any people in other countries who can share what it is like in your country being a caregiver with a disability, or not.

Bill Tipton
Contributing Author
Global Dialogue Center
http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/