Disability Dialogue with Bill

Selecting an Artificial Christmas Tree as a Person Who is Blind

My wife and I enjoy celebrating Christmas and traditions such as putting up Christmas decorations during this enjoyable season. We also like to share our joy with others and create cherished memories with family and friends while we still have the opportunity to do so.

Real Christmas Trees

One part of our yearly celebration is putting up and decorating a Christmas tree. Prior to 1999 my wife and I would go to the local Christmas tree farms in the Santa Cruz mountains and cut down our live tree either by ourselves or with my wife's family. When we cut down Christmas trees with my wife’s family we would bring coffee, hot chocolate and doughnuts for breakfast and make a day of it. I enjoyed going through the Christmas tree farm looking for the perfect tree and appreciated this outdoor experience with family. We would drive a couple of vehicles to take us all to the mountains where the tree farms were. Plus, we needed to bring four trees home in our vehicles so we could have one in each one of our homes. As part of this family tradition, we would get together when we were done cutting down our trees and have a fun dinner celebrating the day and holding cheerful conversations.

When we stopped getting together as a family group to cut down our Christmas trees Kathy and I would still go on our own and cut down our tree. We always had an enjoyable time. Once it was very cold and a heavy mist/ rain was falling, however, the weather did not stop Kathy and I. Fortunately I had a four-wheel drive truck which made driving up and down the steep narrow muddy (when weather was bad) winding dirt roads easier to find a good spot to get out and walk around in search of our perfect tree.  Walking through a forest of trees and breathing fresh air with Kathy was always a pleasant experience for both of us. One rainy and cold day on our way home from the tree farm Kathy and I noticed a small school in the mountains near where we cut down our tree that was having a Christmas holiday boutique. Kathy and I stopped to check it out and get warm. We had some hot chocolate and hot apple cider as we looked around.  While looking around at all the beautiful things the vendors had we found an old-fashioned hand-made muslin cloth Christmas angel tree topper which  we still have and use to this day on our “Kitchen” Christmas tree.

 

Transition to Artificial Christmas Trees

Unfortunately, in May 1999 I suddenly went completely blind and cutting down a Christmas tree in the Santa Cruz mountains, and getting there, since I also was no longer able to drive anymore, was not possible.  Therefore my wife and I decided it was time to start decorating an artificial Christmas tree. At that time the artificial Christmas trees felt mor like a real tree and were more of a natural green color. We did find  a nice artificial Christmas tree relatively easy at our first store we went to which you can read about me decorating it at “Decorating a Christmas Tree with a Disability”.

We have had this artificial Christmas tree for many years and it was starting to show its age with most of the lights no longer working. Therefore, it was time to go out and select a new tree. Since my wife and I enjoy creating a special Christmas experience in our home with many decorations, we are particular about the artificial Christmas tree we select. Therefore, we went to eight different stores in our area this year that sold artificial Christmas trees in an attempt to find one we liked. Once we looked at our local stores we knew what was available to choose from. Now it was time to make a decision on a tree which involved going back to a select few of those eight stores. After revisiting those stores we finally selected our favorite one we both liked the best.

You might wonder how a person who is completely blind like me is able to pick out a Christmas tree? What I do is my wife sight guides me to where the Christmas trees are on display to allow me to feel the tree for the height, put my hands and fingers on the branches to feel the needles. As I feel all around the branches and needles I am trying to make sure they are not too plastic or stiff feeling since I like realistic looking and feeling artificial Christmas trees.

I take a branch and with my index fingertip move the needles back and forth between my thumb and finger to feel how stiff or soft the needles are looking for natural feeling needles. Although I know some people might like artificial Christmas trees with a variety of tree needles from a few species of tree needles on the same tree, Kathy and I personally do not care for this since trees in the wild do not have multiple species of tree needles on the same tree. We also both prefer an artificial Christmas tree with a more natural looking green color therefore we also looked for one that had natural green colors and not the ones that had an unnatural green color.

I also gauge how large the tree base is by stretching my arms out to feel the width and stretching one hand up to the top to see how tall it is. We have always purchased our artificial Christmas tree with the multi-colored mini lights already on the branches. These lights are small and difficult for me to find therefore, my wife guides my fingers to the individual light so I can feel the different sized lights on each tree since there are a variety of sizes of lights these days on the trees. From talking with the employees at the different stores we were told they have a micro light, standard mini light as well as other sized lights. They started this micro light prior to this year but since I had not been looking for a Christmas tree this was the first I heard about this kind of light on Christmas trees. After my wife told me how the micro light looked visually when lit and I felt them we decided to get a tree with the standard multi colored mini tree lights.

Since each store we visited had many Christmas trees this method of feeling each tree to select one took some time although my wife and I have been partnering with each other when we go shopping and strategizing how I can select things by touch for years. Therefore this technique of selecting things by touch wasn’t a problem at all. What was a little more difficult for us was being able to physically get me in between the trees, since some of the stores had them crowded together which made it difficult to get to each tree type and feel each one of them that were on display. Besides enjoying the experience of selecting a Christmas tree I like the atmosphere of listening to the joy in other peoples’ voices as they were selecting their Christmas trees. I do not think anybody noticed that I did not have any eyesight as I was using this method of shopping by feel to select my Christmas tree. I did not know this at first, but one of the employees at one of the stores was particularly helpful in answering our questions. Later, my wife told me this employee was in a wheelchair. Although I was not using my white canes to walk and navigate, he probably noticed I had a long white cane folded up in a pouch attached to my belt, and I was using my white support cane while feeling the trees. Therefore, he probably realized that I was blind. As he was answering my wife’s and my questions I let him know that I was blind and what I was looking for when feeling the Christmas tree. He was extremely helpful and patient with us. I was also happy that this store hired a person with a disability who used a wheelchair. This has nothing to do with the person being in a wheelchair although this person was more helpful and courteous and spent the extra time we needed to select a Christmas tree than some of the other employees. I believe that this employee with a disability was even more valuable to the store than the other employees in this department who did not have a disability.

I am happy to say that we did select a new artificial Christmas tree that we will decorate and add it to our Christmas wonderland for my wife and I to experience to bring us Christmas joy. Also, as part of the Christmas season, my wife and I will enjoy the visitors who visit our home as we hear their joy and happiness in their voices that our Christmas wonderland brings to them that Kathy has lovingly created for everyone.

These Christmas traditions I describe are an easy way to create positive memories with family and friends. Since we never know when one of our family or friends may unfortunately pass away or something may happen to us, we may never have the opportunity to create loving memories with them again. Because life is short and we never know what will happen like me suddenly going blind and sadly losing a few family members and friends, do not pass up on being a part of traditions when you can like my Christmas traditions I am describing here in this blog story.

Does anybody else enjoy picking out Christmas trees? Do you create a Christmas wonderland of your own including decorations and a Christmas tree? Does anybody have any comments about how I select a Christmas tree without eyesight? The easiest way to experience what I experienced is to imagine if the store you are shopping in lost electricity, and you need to find and select a Christmas tree in complete darkness. 

I look forward to hearing your thoughts and comments. If you have any comments or feedback, please send an email to Bill Tipton since unfortunately the comments are closed to my blog site.

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author,

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wdtipton

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Avoiding Health Consequences Related to Accessible Digital Technology

If you have been in the accessibility digital  profession for a while, I am assuming you have heard that  we are making positive progress in digital accessibility. Despite this encouraging news there is still a lot that needs to be accomplished  to increase accessibility and create an equitable experience for all without causing unneeded stress and medical issues for the people doing this valuable work. If a person attempts to do everything  to help increase this goal by themselves, they could work 24/7 which could lead to serious health conditions .

Some people may have even said directly that these practices of pursuing digital accessibility and equity may cause serious medical conditions or even worse death by  attempting to do everything themselves.

I have been told this by one person and have heard it from several others. Unfortunately, I have even witnessed a person dying from this work/life imbalance issue (although this cannot be proven).

I  will not give up educating others and pursuing digital accessibility for all. When a person thinks about it, changing technology to increase equity and inclusion in concept is much easier than changing people’s thoughts and feelings about it. However in the real world we live with little time and being pressured to do more with less people unfortunately the first thing that sometimes gets lowered on the list of priorities is accessibility for digital technology. Accessibility professionals like me understand that this only compounds the problem because digital accessibility was not planned. This causes accessibility issues which the owner of the technology has to resolve and are much more complicated, time consuming and costly than If properly planned and accessibility was baked into the design and development process.

When procuring accessibility services from vendors a well-documented statement of work with a list of requirements is needed. Without these procurement requirements, goals  and deliverables, whoever is managing the project of rolling out these services will more than likely have difficulty delivering services that will be beneficial to the stakeholders.  The upfront work of documenting what is required  needs to be done before talking with the vendor. If one does not find out what they are going to deliver, more than likely it will not turn out the way it is expected to solve the issue one is procuring the services for.

Tips To Assist at Reducing Stress and Promote Health:

• Get high level support for an accessibility program with enough resources and skilled people in it to allow it to be successful and not overwork the team.
• Avoid working 24/7 since this could lead to long term medical conditions. However, if you are like me and love your profession you might be tempted to do so.
• Do not skip the planning stages of any project when working with vendors that pertains to digital accessibility. It will compound the problem and take longer to implement and potentially result in something that is not effective and will add unneeded stress to the project team.
• Incorporate digital accessibility as early in the process as possible in the design and development phase. Include a diverse set of people in this process including people with a broad range of disabilities and those who use a variety of assistive technologies. This early planning will help avoid unpleasant user experience which can cause more stress for all involved.
• This process should also include evaluating and resolving accessibility issues with automated tools and manual evaluation using people with a broad range of disabilities using a mix of assistive technologies. This will reduce the workload than if left to just a few to do the accessibility evaluation without leveraging tools to assist.
• If giving a presentation to stakeholders or executives about goals for projects for digital accessibility  take time to prepare even though some might tell you just talk off the cuff. Do not do this. Spend time crafting your message to maximize the positive outcome from your presentation. Although this will take more time this step will help to reduce stress since you have planned in advance. You will be able to deliver the message succinctly and be more relaxed. In addition you may never get another chance to talk to a potential sponsor therefore give it your best.
• Take breaks from work and take time to visit with family and friends which will reduce stress.
• Read books, listen to music, go on walks and do other things to help relax from a stressful situation which can lead to a better night’s sleep.
• I smile when I can imagine the benefits of my work and I can make another person smile since they are able to use and interact with accessible digital technology effectively which reduces my stress.

I am  not a medical expert therefore my  recommendations are  from my own personal experience. I do, however, recommend seeing a professional if medical assistance is needed.

Does anyone have any tips to help us regarding this topic or any success stories to share? Do you have any other additional ideas regarding the critical project management skill I discussed in this area around procurement?

I look forward to hearing your thoughts and comments. If you do have any comments, please send an email to Bill Tipton since unfortunately the comments are closed to my blog site.

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author,

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wdtipton

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bill.tipton.39

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Be An Assertive Advocate; Assist Others

There are times when people may need an assertive advocate to assist them. Not every person you observe with challenges requires assistance, however you should ask politely if they do regarding any of the issues I note below. Do not think that the person experiencing issues, exclusions or difficulties has the time to advocate and resolve the issues themselves. For example, they may be experiencing other challenges in their professional or personal life such as taking care of friends or family and do not have time to prioritize or resolve issues. Therefore, to be a valued advocate, please take the time to help other people.

If you see people experiencing difficulties with any of the points below with recommended best practices to  a solution, be an advocate for them by taking action. However do not include their names unless you get their permission.

• If a person speaks with a stutter or difficult to understand allow the person time for equal participation to express their ideas in any conversation. Having opinions and recommendations from a diverse set of people always produces better results than just hearing from a few dominant people with like ideas resulting in the outcome that is only beneficial to one type of person.
• In telephone conversations, conference calls, or if you are presenting in public, speak slowly and clearly. This will allow participants with cognitive issues or other disabilities as well as temporary disabilities (noisy backgrounds due to taking care of young children) to effectively hear and understand what you are saying.
• If a person sounds or looks hesitant give them time to participate.  They may be experiencing anxiety or have a hidden disability. Give them a friendly  atmosphere to participate without fear.
• If you are in a virtual meeting with others and people are not introducing themselves before they speak ask the participants to say their names prior to speaking to allow people with visual disabilities who may be in the meeting to know who is speaking since they cannot see the person.
• If in a video conference call, a person is attempting to speak after unmuting themselves and they begin to move their mouth to speak  but  never gets a chance to jump into the conversation. You should say to all I believe so and so may have a question or a comment.
• If you are in a meeting, online seminar or other online event, and they are sharing slides and the presenter did not share the slides prior to the event politely let the person know that they should share the accessible slides prior to the event. This will allow assistive technology users such as those who use a screen reader read the contents of the slides prior to the event and read the contents without the distraction of listening to their screen reader read the slides and the participants at the same time.
• If you are in a conference call or in an email thread where you are sharing documents check them to ensure they are accessible. Use the built in accessibility checker tools in Microsoft Word, Excel, Power Point and Adobe Acrobat before sharing the documents., If you find someone who had accessibility issues with a document that was shared ask the person who shared the documents to check for accessibility and resolve any issues. This will allow assistive technology users to read and understand the documents to fully participate.
• If you are in an email thread, or in a virtual meeting or other communication where there is a video without closed or open captioning or an accessible transcript file ask the person who shared the video to please have it captioned and provide a transcript file. This is so people with hearing disabilities or people who are both blind and deaf can know what is being said in the video and to participate in any discussion.
• If you are in an email thread, in a virtual meeting or other communication where a video is being shared with no audio description ask the person who shared the video to please add audio description for that video if there are visuals in the video that aid in understanding the complete content. Adding audio description will  allow people who are blind or visually impaired to better understand the content of the video and to participate in any discussion.
• If you see a person in a wheelchair who cannot safely get up or down floors in a public building because there are only stairs and no ramps or elevators report this issue to the person who is in charge of the building to help remove this access barrier. This will help encourage safe and independent travel.
• If you see a person who is using a white cane to navigate, and they are feeling around on the restroom door with their fingers or on /in an elevator and seem like they cannot proceed they could be looking for markings in braille to determine if they are at a women’s or a men’s restroom or what floor they are on. This is because there isn’t any braille labeling on the restroom door or on the elevator. Report this to the owner or the person who is managing the public building to help encourage safe and independent travel without the fear of getting lost or making a mistake in navigation by getting off at an incorrect floor or going into an incorrect restroom.
• If you observe or hear about a person having challenges using digital technology such as software, web pages, documents, or anything you can access from a computer or mobile device with their assistive technology (AT), such as screen readers, screen magnification, voice control such as dragon naturally speaking, alternative keyboard devices such as sip and puff devices, braille displays and many other ATs they may be experiencing a digital accessibility issue. After verifying with the person you observed that this is true report this  issue to the company/owner of the tool.  Include enough specific information so the representative who receives the valuable feedback can reproduce the issue and take positive action to resolve and remove the issue.

This is only a partial list of things to consider when helping to create a more inclusive environment for all. These best practices will lead to success in one’s personal and professional life. All the bullet points I noted should be done by default and not just when you may think a person with a disability may be participating. If you  know someone who has not completed any disability etiquette and awareness or digital accessibility training, please educate them and share the two resources with them I have below.

Learn more at Disability Etiquette - A Starting Guide - Disability: IN and Introduction to Web Accessibility-Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI)-W3C. 

I have been working in the accessibility and inclusion area since 2000, and I have learned from my experiences that most things do not come to you. You need to be politely assertive and make positive changes yourself instead of waiting for others to make the changes.

Just think of the day when we will  not need to educate people of the benefits and the reasons for the bullet points above and there is no need to be an assertive advocate for others.

Let us all have the desire, discipline, and dedication to assist others to have a more joyful life.

Do you have any other suggestions or comments regarding this topic? Have you experienced challenges where you were grateful somebody had the courage to speak up and assist you? Were there any issues regarding digital accessibility, physical accessibility, inclusion or other issues that were resolved based on somebody taking positive action.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts and comments. If you have any comments or feedback, please send an email to Bill Tipton since unfortunately the comments are closed to my blog site.

Bill

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wdtipton

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bill.tipton.39

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Learning Reiki Without Eyesight

Healing technique of Reiki may reduce stress and anxiety, improve sleep, and lessen pain through light (or no) touch.

When I left O’Conner hospital in December 1999 after a seven-month hospitalization I was now   a person who is completely blind. In early 2000 during my rehabilitation, I talked with a few people researching different methods of healing, reskilling myself and reducing stress. Reiki was introduced to me as an option to help with some of my goals.

During my research I learned that the Center for Integrated Medicine which was directly across the street from O’Conner Hospital at the time offered Reiki level 1 and Reiki level 2 classes. I was not sure how I could learn Reiki as a person who is completely blind, although I was willing to try it. Therefore, I signed up for Reiki level 1 and Reiki level 2 classes and mailed in my enrollment fees.

After paying my fees and being enrolled in both Reiki classes I found a ride to and from the classes for each one of the days the classes were held.

Since I am completely blind and have mobility issues I walk with the aid of two canes. One long white cane and one support cane. After my driver brought me to the building the driver would site guide me inside since I was unfamiliar with the building. I remember no students questioning my being able to participate in the training. I was included just like everyone else.

When I started the class there was a small group of men and women who sat around listening to the Reiki Master instructor as she introduced the two courses to us. If you are not familiar with Reiki, and Reiki 1, there is one Reiki 1 symbol that you project when healing. The instructor was easily able to verbalize this symbol to me because it was relatively simple for me to imagine it in my mind’s eye. I could then project this symbol during my Reiki 1 training. For Reiki 2 the symbol is far more complicated and has different 3-dimensional levels to it. The instructor felt like she could not verbalize it well enough to me. She then thoughtfully built a 3D heavy cardboard model of the symbol for me. I could then feel all three dimensions of the symbol so I could project the Reiki 2 image during my training.

As you may or may not imagine performing Reiki on other people without eyesight is difficult. A Reiki practitioner (me) gently moves their hands just above the person’s body on which you are performing Reiki with the intention of reducing the person’s stress and promoting healing by encouraging a healthy flow of energy. Placing my hands in an appropriate location just above their body was challenging for me being completely blind. Fortunately, I did not have this challenge with level 3 which  is generally used for remote healing. Obviously some of the classes were challenging without any eyesight due to not being able to see any person or the instructor and following her directions.

Doing some of the Reiki training was a little bit difficult with my stability issues and holding my support cane with my long white cane folded up and in a holder attached to my belt. Nevertheless, I was able to complete every class lesson.

Unfortunately, a day prior to the Reiki 2 class I got a seriously painful sciatica attack. I could barely move because of the pain and definitely was difficult to get out of the car after arriving at my class. Since I had already paid registration fees for these two classes and had already completed Reiki 1, I was not going to skip my Reiki 2 class. During the class when I had the sciatica I fought through the pain and did everything I was supposed to do as instructed by my Reiki Master instructor.

I am very happy to say I was able to complete and pass both Reiki 1 and 2 classes and had an enjoyable time with everyone despite some pain from my sciatica in the second class. I was also happy to see that a few doctors, nurses, and other people who worked at O’ Conner hospital were attending these Reiki classes to put these valuable skills in their toolbox for alternative ways of healing their patients.

Learn more about Reiki at:  Reiki: How This Energy Healing Works and Its Health Benefits-Everyday Health

Have you ever heard of Reiki before? Have any of you ever taken Reiki classes and practiced it? If you are trained in Reiki, how does it work for you and the ones you are attempting to heal.

I look forward to hearing all of your valuable thoughts and comments.

If you have any comments or feedback, can you please send an email to Bill Tipton since unfortunately the comments are closed to my blog site.

Bill

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author,

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wdtipton

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bill.tipton.39

Twitter: http://twitter.com/wdtipton 

Achieving Mental Focus In Spite Of Multiple Audible Distractions

Does anybody have any difficulties concentrating on multiple things at once? What about when there are various distractions going on all at the same time including things flashing on the computer or mobile screen from applications or sound alerts from applications? These kinds of distractions might not only affect people with hidden or visible disabilities they could also affect people without a disability. I have learned to suppress audio alerts from chats by pressing the control key or any key while I am typing otherwise the alerts/messages will negatively affect me as described below.

I attended an excellent presentation, Microsoft Inclusive Design: The Cognitive Model at axe-con  2023 where the presenter played the video at the link below. This described some of what it is like for screen reader users who are blind or have low vision to try to remain focused on multiple sound sources at once. Example are people speaking in conference calls , the screen reader participant having  conversations, listening to their screen reader read parts of chats automatically , listening to their screen reader read the notes from the meeting as they review them, their screen reader reading to them as they type notes, and other sounds all at the same time. As you might realize this could be challenging to focus on all of these sounds coming from a variety of sources all at once.

A feature in JAWS screen reader which could either help or hurt in this experience is anytime the user presses a keystroke when typing it silences the external chats and alerts. By silencing alerts it allows JAWS to  echo back the pressed keystroke for that moment therefore depending on how much the user is typing the user might miss a lot of chats and alerts. In addition to the concept of keeping focused this video also has other valuable inclusive design techniques and learning opportunities.

How do you achieve focus? | Microsoft Inclusive Design – YouTube

Does anybody have any related stories or examples to share? Do you have any suggestions to help alleviate these distractions? Any other thoughts or ideas to add to this discussion? I look forward to hearing from you.

If you have any comments or feedback, can you please send an email to Bill Tipton since unfortunately the comments are closed to my blog site.

Bill

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author,

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wdtipton

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bill.tipton.39

Twitter: http://twitter.com/wdtipton 

Music in My Life and How It Reduces Stress

My Early Days of Music

Since I was young I have always enjoyed listening to music and the enjoyment and relaxation good music gives me. This could be because I was brought up with music around me since I was 5 or 6 years old. I would often  listen to music at my parents’ house, at my cousins or my aunts and uncles usually  with the volume turned up very loud on quality speakers. Sometimes if we stayed late at my relatives house while they were listening to music I would fall asleep to that music somewhere in their house.

Listening to albums in my bedroom on my plastic record player that  my parents gave me as a present  growing up also allowed me to spend many hours listening to music. After getting a job as soon as I was old enough I was then able to afford a better stereo system which enhanced my musical experiences listening to musicians perform their music with better sound quality. Also, enjoying music on my portable transistor battery powered AM/FM radio was a nice convenience in those days.

Growing up when visiting friends at their homes there was always music involved as we sat around and talked while listening to music in the background.  I would try to have quality audio systems in my vehicles growing up to allow me to enjoy my music while traveling.

My Early Days of Working

In one of my early jobs I worked at Gemco department store in many departments including the automotive department.  This job allowed me to continue my music enjoyment. After the store would close for the day we would turn up the best quality car stereo we had as loud as we could and played it through the best equalizer and speakers. This allowed the side of the store I worked in to enjoy the music while we all worked after hours.

How Music Can Reduce Stress and Possibly Heal

Like most people I am extremely busy with my professional career and my personal life and taking a break to listen to music dissolves the stress from my body. I can actually feel the stress leaving my body instantly as I am listening to music. When I am listening my eyes open wider and my perpetual darkness (black) from my blindness turns to a light shade of gray. My smile grows with joy as well. This occurs when I am listening to recorded or live music. When I am able to experience live music this stress reduction is amplified. However these days I do not get the chance to listen to live music much due to the traveling obstacles I have and my busy work schedule. Even though experiencing live music does not happen often I am grateful I was able to attend a few excellent free concerts with my wife that were relatively close to where we live. I was also happy to attend a concert with one of my friends. Attending live concerts while completely blind is as joyful as when when I could see, although it is nice to see the performers on stage. At one of the free concerts I attended the female singer from the band came out and was walking around the crowd with a wireless microphone and was directly in front of me singing to me. Since her voice was coming from the amplifiers on the stage in another location from where she was, I had no idea she was directly in front of me singing to me until after she went back to join the band on stage and my wife told me about her singing in front of me. When we got home from the concert that evening I felt bad and looked up the singer on the Internet. I then sent her  a message to explain why I had no reaction to her standing directly in front of me singing to me since I am completely blind and I could not see her.

Fortunately, before I went completely blind and lost my eyesight I was able to drive and had more time so I was able to attend  many live concerts by well-known bands at numerous venues in the Bay Area. To ensure I can take advantage of the positive effects of music in our home I have a few sources of music available so I can listen to music wherever I might be.

Music could even possibly have healing properties. For example, when I was in the hospital for seven months occasionally musicians would come in and play musical instruments for the patients or sing  to us which I always enjoyed. I longed with joy for the next chance to listen to their relaxing and healing music.

How Music Could possibly Help A Person’s Professional Career

I enjoy listening to a broad range of music, especially on the weekends and before starting work each weekday.

When I have time before critical meetings at my place of employment I listen to music to refocus and drain some stress from my body  so I can be more focused in the meetings. Depending on the type of energy I am looking for when going into a meeting, I would adjust my music style. For instance, if I need high energy, I would listen to loud high energy music. If I want to be more relaxed, I would  listen to music with lower level energy at a lower volume level.

If you have not already tried listening to music to reduce stress and add to your enjoyment I highly recommend it.

If you have any comments or feedback, can you please send an email to Bill Tipton since unfortunately the comments are closed to my blog site.

Bill

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author,

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wdtipton

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bill.tipton.39

Twitter: http://twitter.com/wdtipton 

Happy Holidays; Value of Companionship and Relationships

As one year comes to closure and another is about to blossom into new opportunities and experiences it provides me reason to reflect on what I have.,  Unfortunately there are less fortunate and others who may have to deal with serious medical conditions.  I also think about the people who may not have friends or family to be with to help start  the new year with companionship and gratitude.

Our global world has many unique people with a broad range of cultural differences and a variety of visible and invisible disabilities. Our unique differences  enhance the enjoyment and educational opportunities  of every interaction we have if one is observant. Because of the large variety of differences one may observe some people have different opportunities than others. To keep ones focus on goals you should not be discouraged if you are not getting the same assistance or opportunities other people may appear to have. Just try to stay positive, healthy, and do what is under your own control and do not rely  on others to accomplish ones goals and happiness.

Do not let what seems like unsurmountable challenges or set backs stop one from pursuing ones  goals. Since with perseverance and determination one can accomplish almost anything.

I am grateful for many things during the holidays some of which I have listed below.

• I am grateful for my loving wife, Kathy, who without her I would’ve died for sure in 1999. One reason out of many was due to Kathy’s dedication in keeping watch on the medical staff when I was in the hospital for seven months. She provided her medical advice and did not let the doctors take me off of life support when they suggested I had no hope to live a fulfilling life.
• I am blessed to find a volunteer to help me with things around the house I cannot do with no eyesight from a local nonprofit agency who has turned into a good friend of mine, since we have been seeing each other for over twelve years now.
• I am grateful that I have been employed at my current employer for over 25 years in a roll that leverages my many years of technical skills to help create more accessible and usable digital technology to assist people with disabilities to use  the technology more effectively.
• I am thankful that due to my accessibility and disability skills the work I do has positive impact for many employees around the world at my place of employment.
• As a person who is completely blind I am grateful I took the time required to study and become certified in accessibility, multiple disabilities and assistive technologies to better assist my customers.
• Although I get frustrated and upset when there are things that my wife and I cannot accomplish around our home and other places, I am grateful that eventually we find a way to get what we need accomplished with just the two of us by partnering and combining our abilities.
• Usually Kathy and I are way too busy to think about being alone. Although we are fortunate to have each other some people are truly alone all the time.
• I enjoy the holidays because some people reach out a little more which helps with companionship and sense of isolation.
• Some people exchange gifts during the holidays, which is perfectly fine, although I have learned that the most precious gifts are family, friends, and human companionship over material items.
• Since I unfortunately was in the hospital for seven months (3 of which I was in a coma) I spent many hours passing the time by listening to other patients in nearby beds. Some of the patients did not have the option to survive and leave the hospital like I was able to do on December 28, 1999.
• I do have some friends and family although none are close by therefore I seldom see them. Kathy fortunately has a few family members nearby that we do see on occasion. Thankfully we were able to see a few of our family members from Kathy’s side  of the family at a wedding in November 2022 and on Thanksgiving day in 2022. Having the covid pandemic occurring around April 2020 in our area added to the obstacles of seeing people in person which unfortunately kept us isolated for sometime even more so than we are usually.
• I also enjoy December since my wife Kathy and I have birthdays in December which  we usually celebrate by ourselves enjoying each other’s company as our treasured gifts to each other.

Does anybody want to share any comments about what makes the holidays special for you? Do you have examples of how people have made you feel less lonely during the holidays?  How can you assist the disabled, people who are alone  or others who need extra help? Any other thoughts about what I have written? I look forward to hearing from you and I wish you an enjoyable holiday season.

If you have any comments or feedback can you please send an email to Bill Tipton since unfortunately the comments are closed to my blog site.

Bill

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author,

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wdtipton

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bill.tipton.39

Twitter: http://twitter.com/wdtipton 

Human Exclusions for People with Disabilities is More Difficult than Digital Technology Accessibility

As a person who is blind I am grateful I have the ability to leverage assistive technology to access and interact with digital technology (software, webpages& documents). When I experience digital technology that is accessible to people who are disabled including those who use assistive technology following the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 it makes me very happy.

It is encouraging that some organizations have realized in order to compete successfully in the competitive global marketplace, accessibility for digital technology is becoming more critical as just one of many components in creating an equitable and inclusive environment for everyone.

 

Impact of Digital Technology with Accessibility Issues

Digital technology with accessibility issues not only creates barriers to equal participation for some users it also causes added stress and frustration. Accessibility issues also have these same effects on everyone who is in contact with the person who experiences these barriers such as co-workers, spouses, family, friends and others.

To heighten these accessibility issues not everyone may believe the user when they say that the issue they experience is a technical accessibility issue. One misunderstanding for example is when someone who is not knowledgeable in the technical aspects of accessibility and not knowing any better may tell a user who is experiencing an accessibility issue that their issue is not a technical accessibility issue. They may believe the issue is due to lack of training. They may also tell the same user that they are not experiencing a technical accessibility issue since they may be able to get past the issue by counting keystrokes. For example the user is told to attempt to get to a particular location in the digital technology and type or interact with it with little or no awareness of where they are. Or someone might say the user should attempt to activate hyperlinks on words or sentences that are not coded correctly for assistive technology users to know that they are hyperlinks until the user finds an active hyperlink that works.

This extremely challenging experience of hunting around and interacting with user interactions that do not work is like using a computer or mobile device with a shattered display or one that is extremely dim preventing someone from seeing the complete screen. Also it is like using a keyboard with some of the keys broken causing errors in typing.

No Time for Improvements

Fortunately I have been working in the accessibility field for many years and have been using assistive technology for over 20 years. I am also a Certified Professional in Accessibility Core Competencies  by IAAP. I can explain and demonstrate the technical accessibility issues with the application or web page owner. However for those who have similar skills as I do certain application or web page owners might think it is too time consuming and not worth the effort to make a needed accessibility enhancement .

When someone is being excluded due to accessibility issues because no one has the time or wants to prioritize resolving the issues, it makes the person feel like they have two disabilities.

1. For example a disability which requires assistive technology and the issue is caused by the digital technology not being accessible to the users of assistive technology causes a barrier. This is also true for people who do not use assistive technology and experience accessibility issues.
2. Several people not understanding the broad range of disabilities people have and not taking any action to remove the inclusive or misunderstood barriers could be the second disability. This exponentially compounds the problem of just the initial accessibility exclusion and makes these people feel like they are not worth the effort to be equitably included.

 

Solving Human Exclusions for People with Disabilities is Difficult

Creating an equitable environment for all requires passion, empathy and a willingness to take the time needed  to learn and understand everyone’s unique and beautiful differences .

This is just one reason why solving one aspect of inequalities  of people in the world is more difficult than creating accessible digital technology. This reason is because we  cannot force people to change attitudes or influence people to take needed time to understand people with disabilities using technology like we can do for solving the digital technology accessibility issues.

When we think about disabilities we need to be sure to include people with a broad range of visible disabilities as well as hidden disabilities.

This attitude or lack of knowledge regarding the people side of how and why to create equitable environments may be a result of the times we live in today such as the need to complete things more quickly with fewer people and less support. Also, another issue in today’s world there is very little or a complete lack of verbal communication between real people and doing more online without any verbal communication. However I know that on-line communication is extremely beneficial for people who may have voice disabilities, hearing disabilities, other disabilities or challenges.

Also unfortunately to save time I’ve noticed that people do not take as much time to talk on the phone and prefer to send instant messages.  Not holding personal two way conversations does not have the same person to person interaction requiring interpersonal communication skills which can lead to solid friendships, partnerships or productive collaboration.

Fortunately  These Exclusions  Can Easily be Overcome

These exclusions can easily be overcome with consideration. I feel if everybody had the option to slow down, listen to others and care about what might be preventing every person from participating and having a happy and fulfilling life we would all be better off. I believe this kind of attitude would go further for making  positive progress in this fast-paced world we live in today when peoples’ first thoughts are of how to cut corners, which can exclude certain people.

Although there could be many solutions to some of the equity issues one thought that comes to mind to help would be to get a Chief Accessibility Officer to oversee everything regarding accessibility if these issues were within a organization or company. Also if these issues were within an organization or company people would need to be trained on the technical aspects of digital accessibility so people experiencing accessibility barriers would not be falsely accused of doing something wrong when in reality the issue is actually a technical accessibility issue. Also if this is in a controlled environment such as an organization or a company providing detailed training on a broad range of disabilities and empathy is another solution to some of these equity issues.

If you are experiencing any of these obstacles in your career aspirations or personal life  try to stay positive and assist where you can with improving equality issues for the disabled.

Does anybody have any thoughts or comments about how we can slow down and not exclude people because of time constraints or misunderstandings? Has anyone experienced similar interactions? Any recommendations on how to resolve exclusions for people  with disabilities which is a problem that I believe goes far beyond accessibility issues with digital technology.

Thank you and stay positive, keep a smile on your face, slow down, talk to others, leverage accessible digital technology and most important utilize all peoples’ unique skills. Together we will spread happiness and understanding.

If you have any comments or feedback can you please send an email to Bill Tipton since unfortunately the comments are closed to my blog site.

Bill

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author,

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wdtipton

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bill.tipton.39

Twitter: http://twitter.com/wdtipton 

Mental Health: Lack of Accessibility, Inclusion and External Challenges May Create or Compound Mental Health

Since October 10 was World Mental Health Day I hope this blog post can bring some awareness to the seriousness of those who are affected with any mental health condition.

Although I am no expert in mental health I feel people with mental health issues experience unique challenges. I have some thoughts that in my opinion may negatively impact mental health below that in some cases can be reduced or removed to help promote a healthier life.

I believe that experiencing digital technology usability/accessibility issues and inclusion barriers  in general can contribute to mental health issues. The usability/accessibility issues regarding accessing digital technology could be if a person has a disability and they use a form of assistive technology such as a screen reader and the application they are attempting to use does not conform to Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1. Therefore, the application may have accessibility issues preventing people with disabilities or other unique challenges from using the application at all, effectively or efficiently causing stress and exclusions. If this happens frequently in my opinion it would lead to mental health issues. If these inclusion barriers occur over an extended period such as years, the negative impact on mental health I feel would be even greater. This would not only impact the person who is directly being excluded due to usability and accessibility issues it would also affect the family who lives with the person. This is because the added stress would be carried over to family life thus expanding the scope of the mental health issues to family members.  

Since we are in a unique time in the world today where we are coping/fighting a global pandemic (Covid - 19) which could also cause additional stress perpetuating mental health issues that would compound these issues caused by lack of usability/accessibility and inclusion in the world.

In addition to those two challenges that could lead to mental health issues just by themselves if someone already has a mental health issue caused by a medical condition their mental health issue would be even worse.

Besides those three stressful situations if someone added an additional stressful situation such  as a family member experiencing a long-term medical condition it can compound the stress level and could lead to a mental health issue.

On top of these challenges if someone has a disability and during normal times they are able to function without limitations although with the four other challenges I mentioned I feel most people may  be overwhelmed with added stress. They may even feel the loss of control of the situation especially if they are alone trying to navigate through the maze of challenges which can lead to mental health issues .

Although others have more challenging experiences of mental health issues to get us thinking and raise awareness I have noted some challenges my wife and I have experienced over the past year or so that could possibly lead to mental health issues.

• My wife has not been feeling well since March/April 2020 and her issues are growing in numbers and getting worse although fortunately none seem to be life-threatening .
• Observing my wife being sent to many urgent care visits , having many tests, given many types of medication for over a year without providing any relief to her uncomfortable issues all of it made for a stressful situation.
• In August 2021 fortunately we were able to see a primary care doctor in person then my wife was sent to many other doctors, had many other tests and was even sent to the emergency room without any relief. There were long delays in-between doctor appointments for which she experienced little improvement.
• Since the pandemic hit and attempting to be safe ordering everything online including food to be delivered added to the stress of wondering how we would eat.
• Although things are just starting to get better in regards to the pandemic due to a relapse in her health issues  she had to revert to ordering everything online again for she is not able to drive even to the doctors.
• My being completely blind and relying on assistive technology to access digital technology and at times experiencing usability/accessibility issues which prevents me from having an equitable experience and causes sadness. Although not a happy comment I sometimes jokingly tell others that it happens so frequently it’s like I might have post-traumatic stress syndrome/disorder due to these exclusions.
• At times have others think I am making a mistake in using an application or providing technical explanations simply because I am blind thus causes me to be frustrated.
• My wife and I living by ourselves and having to track down help when we are not able to do something with just the two of us causes stress.

Some questions to consider and think about when it comes to your own experience and others:

Do you have a mental health issue brought on by a medical condition or brought on by external sources like I mentioned above? How do you help your mental health issue either get better, be stable or not get worse? Have any ideas/suggestions on how to avoid causing mental health issues for others?

Although as I mentioned I am no expert one goal for family and friends affected  with mental health issues I feel should be feeling included, happiness, love , well-being and practicing resilience.

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author,

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wdtipton

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bill.tipton.39

Twitter: http://intercoms/wdtipton

Enjoy Nature by Combining Different Abilities to Enhance Experiences for All

When we were not experiencing a Covid-19 pandemic and did not have certain restrictions in place to help keep us safe I used to enjoy going on hikes with a friend. I am completely blind and walk with the aid of one long white cane and one white support cane. Depending on the trail I am on there may be dangerous obstacles I need to maneuver around such as large branches crossing the trail, large rocks on the trail, very steep drop offs on the side of the trail or deep ruts crossing the trail. If I tripped on a large rock or branch, stepped in one of the ruts or fell off a ledge next to the trail this could cause serious injuries. There could be a low hanging branch I may hit my head on. Since I cannot see I may also not be able to move out of the way in time if a mountain biker comes up too fast and collides with me which could possibly cause injury. These are just a variety of some of the obstacles I have to maneuver around in order to experience fun and relaxation while hiking/walking in nature.

 

If you are a person who is deaf or hard of hearing you may not be able to hear any wildlife that may be nearby on your hike preventing you from enjoying the full experience of nature. For example the sounds of birds chirping, hawks screeching in the sky above and deer leaping as they scurry to hide as you approach them. Or you would not be able to hear a mountain biker as they approached from behind allowing you to move to the side to avoid being hit and injured. You may not even know you are passing a nice bubbling creek because it is mostly hidden by trees and bushes and you cannot hear it.

 

This combination of a person who is blind and a person who is hard of hearing like one of my friends is an excellent example of how someone can enjoy nature by combining different abilities to enhance the experience for all.

 

There are many ways we complement our abilities. If I hear a mountain biker coming up from behind us I can warn my friend by turning my head to face him so he can read my lips while attempting to hear me with his specialized hearing aids. This lets him know to move to the left or right based on where I hear the sound of where the bicycle is coming from. After I alert him he can turn his head to get the exact location of the bicycle and then verbally guide me on where I should move to and be sure I do not get hit by the bicyclist. If I hear a bird chirping in a nearby bush or tree or hawks screeching above I can alert my friend and point in the direction of the sound from the bird allowing him to locate it. After he does he can then describe the bird to me and let me know the species if he knows it. If I hear some rustling in the bushes as we pass them on the trail I can point in the location I hear the sound so he is able to see what kind of wildlife maybe near us. This sound could be a deer running away from us, a ground squirrel searching for food or a lizard maneuvering through grass. If the trail has a dangerous steep drop off on one side my friend will guide me to the other side so I stay on the safe side of the trail to prevent me from stepping off the side. If there is a steep rut crossing the trail my friend will guide me away from it so I can bypass the rut safely without stepping into it and getting injured. Also if my friend feels the trail is too hazardous I can reach out and hold his arm so he can sight guide me safely.

If I hear the sound of babbling running water possibly from a creek I can point to the area where I hear the sound coming from. My friend can then locate the creek he may have missed since he cannot hear it. Also without my assistance he might miss the creek because he would not have seen it since most of the view of it could be covered by bushes and trees.

 

These are just a few of many examples of how partnering equally can assist all involved to enhance the joy and experience for everyone.

 

Do you have any examples of how partnering can increase the enjoyment for all? Can you share any examples of people with different challenges like I describe assisting each other to help make activities such as the hiking experience I described more enjoyable and safer? Do you have any additional tips for us to leverage partnerships to achieve more than we can on our own? Lastly can you share any stories regarding this topic of using your senses to enhance the other person’s experience who may be lacking an ability you may have?

 

We all look forward to hearing your valuable comments.

 

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author,

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wdtipton

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bill.tipton.39

Twitter: http://intercoms/wdtipton