Disability Dialogue with Bill

Nurture and Value Partnerships

In today’s world it seems some people may be focused on themselves acting alone or attempting to impatiently drive quick fixes through brute force to overcome complex issues.

I believe to successfully enjoy the benefits of sustainable relationships or deliver successful programs or projects one needs to work as a team and nurture partnerships. The ability to nurture partnerships could be practiced in your family, among friends, in your own business or the company you work for.

Quick accomplishments could provide a sense of satisfaction however if achieved by bullying people into submission the damages may not be worth the perceived short-term gains. Acting unethically, excluding some individuals based on their differences, attempting to make progress without adequate knowledge of the subject, or considering the impact on relationships the long-term damages caused by these negative behaviours may also prove negative. Some of the collateral damages could take a long time to overcome if they can be resolved at all. 

Skilled ethical leaders, compassionate friends or family members can move quickly to accomplish shared goals all while nurturing and valuing partnerships.  When common goals are achieved by nurturing and valuing partnerships it is far more likely to produce positive lasting results with a win – win outcome. 

• Does anyone have any examples of when nurturing and valuing partnerships did not work?
• Do you have examples of when nurturing and valuing partnerships did provide the outcome you had hoped for? 
• Any tips to educate us on how we can better leverage the benefits of nurturing and valuing partnerships? 
• How can we leverage and value the differences in people to enhance the benefits of valuing partnerships? 
• Lastly does anyone have any suggestions to persuade others who believe the brute force non-partnering option works best? 

We all look forward to hearing your valuable thoughts and 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://twitter.com/wdtipton

Celebrating 30th Wedding Anniversary with Gratitude

When I wrote my blog post, Anniversaries - What They Mean to You I was celebrating my 20^th wedding anniversary.  Now I am happy and grateful to be celebrating my 30^th anniversary this month on June 14, 2017.

If you have not had the opportunity to read any of my other blog posts to get to know me here is a short background describing what happened to me. I went completely blind in 1999 during a seven month hospitalization three of which I was in a coma. Now I also require two canes to walk, one support cane and one long white cane for navigation.  

As I wrote about in “Anniversaries - What They Mean to You” I will always remember my 11th wedding anniversary among all others except for my 12^th which I describe in my blog post above. I will never forget my 11th wedding anniversary because it was the last anniversary I could hold my wife and look into her bright caring eyes and see her loving expression on her beautiful face looking back at me. Thinking about the length of time that passed since that wonderful occasion brings up the thought of Kathy and me reaching another milestone. Our new milestone is over half of our married life I have not been able to see my loving wife Kathy or assist her the way I could or want to if I was not blind and did not require two canes to walk. Although I am working many hours a week in my profession, most other activities around the home are left up to Kathy to complete by herself which is very stressful and difficult.

Below are additional reasons I am celebrating and am grateful for to add to the ones I noted in Anniversaries - What They Mean to You.

• I am grateful Kathy did not accept the advice of the hospital personnel to send me off to a rehabilitation facility far away from family and friends. She instead decided to take me home to perform some rehabilitation herself which also enabled me to connect with local organizations to assist me locally instead of my being isolated in some far off location.
• I am grateful to have my dad build me a standing frame from plans he got from one of our local hospitals. This enabled my wife Kathy to work with me daily using it along with the other required therapy. This therapy eventually enabled me to walk again which I describe in Learning to Walk Again.
• I am grateful after having a total hip replacement that Kathy again took me home to help with the required rehabilitation which enabled me to recover and heal at home. I wrote about this in Accepting the Inevitable Total Hip Replacement , instead of sending me to a rehabilitation center.
• I am grateful Kathy did not take the advice of others and leave me when I was in the hospital. This enabled us to continue on our journey through life together, although now with additional obstacles and bumps in this road of life.
• I am grateful I have Kathy to maintain our home, our yard, our car and finances among all of the other things she does daily from sunrise to well past sunset, occasionally taking some time off for herself. 
• I am grateful Kathy brings light into my darkened eyes as we continue on our life’s’ journey to reach another wonderful milestone together, and dream and plan for many more in the future.

Since my 20^th wedding anniversary blog post, like some other people, we have endured financial difficulties, challenging living situations and experienced many other obstacles in our life which tests our health, marriage and friendship.  We understand we are not unique and these circumstances are all part of life that we accept and will continue to do the best we can together as partners in life.

Does anyone want to share any reasons why they feel anniversaries are special? Are you celebrating an anniversary of any type in which you would like to include all of us in your celebration? Do you have any additional thoughts to help us all not lose track of what is important in life? Lastly, any comments on how we can maintain gratitude and love through challenges?  

We all look forward to hearing from you.

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 

Let’s Have a Wonderful New Year: Graciously Accepting Guidance

I hope last year was filled with all the joy and happiness you deserved and I also hope this year will be just as wonderful in spite of challenges, barriers or obstacles you may have had. I anticipate that some of you may have set goals to help increase your chances of having an even better new year. Also, I recognize that some of you were struggling to overcome obstacles and barriers, due to no fault of your own.

When it feels like you are making slow to no progress towards your goals on your own, do what is right and consider asking for and accepting help when needed.  Believing in yourself, the goodness of others and having faith can cause assistance to come unexpectedly without even asking from unseen sources, as I talk about in my two blog posts below.

Please read Pay Attention to Signals - Path of Life and Thankful for Unexplainable Guidance which I wrote to help you understand what I meant in my previous statements.

Let’s all maintain a positive frame of mind and outlook on life as we  strive to make this year even better than last year despite the obstacles and barriers some of us are facing. As we pursue our goals it is critical not to allow negativity to sneak into our thoughts thus draining our flexibility and creativity which is critical for success. One last point to help us start this year in the best possible position to achieve our goals and reach our destiny is simply this: we cannot forget that anything worth striving for and achieving requires a lot of hard work, discipline and determination. 

Does anyone have any stories to share about how you plan to increase your personal and professional success this year? Do you have examples to share that may help others learn the value of accepting and offering assistance? Any stories of unexplainable guidance you received and how this help benefited you?

I look forward to hearing your valuable thoughts and comments.

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author,

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

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

Facebook: http://profile.to/wdtipton

Twitter: http://twitter.com/wdtipton 

 

Mental Therapy: Requires Discipline and a Conscientious Effort

I feel therapy is very important and essential for some people. Just a few types of therapies you might be familiar with are physical, occupational, respiratory, muscular strengthening and flexibility among other types which I refer to as the visible or physical therapies. I call these types of therapies visible or physical therapies because if a person does not have a visual impairment they can visibly see the therapist performing some action or if they do not have a hearing impairment they can listen to them perform these types of therapies.

I feel that we should not overlook the importance of mental therapy. When I describe mental therapy, although mental disorders are a very important topic, my version of mental therapy does not relate directly to mental disorders. My non-medical opinion of what mental therapy includes is one’s spiritual and mental clarity. I sometimes call this my inner barometer.  Without mental peace and contentment, none of the many visible or physical therapies could accomplish as much as they could if a person’s body and mind was not in a healthy state.

For me it is far easier to do the physical therapies. This is because for me physical therapies do not require as much mental discipline and conscientious effort to maintain a steady and persistent mindful inner peace. However, I know from experience the physical therapies I noted above can be very strenuous, grueling and extremely painful at times. I know this first hand from having the experience of re-learning all over again how to sit up in bed, sit on a chair, talk, walk and feed myself among other typical life tasks.

I feel my inner senses around my physical well being have been enhanced since I lost all of my eyesight and I temporarily lost the abilities I mention above. One thought I have for the perceived extra bandwidth in my mind for additional sensory abilities is because I do not need to waste energy on actually seeing with my physical eyes. This extra sensory energy can be focused inwardly. Maybe others with other permanent or temporary disabilities have their own unique skills for sensing well being.

When I am in a good frame of mind mentally my mind is clear and the blackness I perceive to see is not so pitch black. I would describe what I see when I am experiencing inner peace and well being as like seeing a light grey color.  In the foreground of the light grey color I am imagining images of the tasks I am doing or other thoughts as I move my eyes while I am concentrating on my tasks. When I am in this state of well being I am able to be my most productive in my personal and professional life. 

Occasionally I might experience consecutive days where my perceived vision is dark therefore I know I need to take action. Over the last few weeks I have made a conscientious effort to dedicate time to occasionally take a short break to check in with my inner self and pay attention to my inner barometer (attitude) and the color of my perceived vision. If I notice my attitude is not positive or my perceived vision is dark I conscientiously focus inward and take some deep breaths, think positively and re-ground myself. I am diabetic and as a benefit of practicing my version of mental therapy it helps maintain a steady and correct blood glucose level.

If you have read some of my other blog posts, you might have noticed in my opinion I am extremely driven, relentless to overcome any obstacles and continually learning new skills to deliver positive and quality results. This attitude at times can be harmful if I forget to check in with my inner barometer and over look the importance of practicing my version of mental therapy. Since I love my profession, get pleasure from assisting others and enjoy being productive it is extremely easy for me to fully engulf my time and effort to complete my deliverables and thus neglect my mental therapy. I can easily get distracted and neglect my mental therapy while I am improving my business skills, working on the five operating systems and working on the many different types and versions of software with many user interface designs. All of these learning opportunities are compounded with teaching myself how to use over six different types of assistive technologies, solving interoperability complexities that come with such a changing environment, and many other skills that allow me to be effective and productive.

My recent practice of increasing the importance of my version of mental therapy has helped me to be more productive all while working through daily obstacles. As part of my mental therapy I have started to try to work less on the weekends if there are not any critical projects pending and thereby help me re-ground and re-energize. In addition I have recently taken up learning to play the Ukulele as part of my mental therapy which is an extreme diversion from all of the technical tasks I normally do.

I have found that practicing mental therapy recalibrates my inner barometer for sensing well being which allows me to work smarter, quicker and more efficiently all the while keeping my family life as the priority it should be.

I am sure others are far busier and have a more complicated life with more responsibilities than I do and thus might be able to benefit from my version of mental therapy to enhance their life.

Does anyone else practice mental therapy? If yes, how do you accomplish your mental therapy and what sense (internal or external) triggers you to do a recalibration check in? What benefits have you gained from it? If you sense your well-being is not positive, what techniques do you use to recalibrate your inner barometer? If you have a temporary or permanent disability, does your mental therapy aid in your ability to sense your inner well being? 

I  look forward to hearing your valuable thoughts and comments.

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author,

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

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

Facebook: http://profile.to/wdtipton

Twitter: http://twitter.com/wdtipton 

 

 

Disabilities: Fading Memories of Previous Abilities

Has anyone who became disabled ever almost forget what it was like to experience any aspects of life before becoming disabled? For example I experienced a critical medical issue in 1999 that required me to spend seven months in the hospital where I became completely blind. After leaving the hospital I immediately plunged myself into physical rehabilitation. I embraced many blindness related skills as I rushed through my personal and professional life seldom thinking that I can’t see anything. This is the case generally unless I have artificial barriers like accessibility or usability obstacles which reinforce the fact that I am completely blind and all I see is pitch blackness.

It seems like it may be possible to forget what the environment I live in looks like since I can no longer see anything. For example the other day I was talking with a group of people and one person mentioned seeing an enormous rainbow that stretched across the entire blue sky. This rainbow I was told was clear and full of brilliant colors. As the person was describing the beautiful sight I recalled an image of a rainbow from my memory and replayed it for my mind’s eye. Needing to think for a bit to recall the image made me think, wow, I had almost forgotten what a rainbow looked like. It also made me stop and think, am I also forgetting about other visual aspects of the environment. For example what colors are such as the color purple in the rainbow? I also would not want to forget what the moon, stars, clouds, the many colors of the sky depending on the weather, mountains, trees, rivers, oceans and all the beauty of our earth’s environment look like. For me it was an uncomfortable feeling that I might lose some memories of things I can no longer see with my physical eyes preventing me from imagining such scenes when I want to replay those images in my mind’s eye. That thought made me think I had better take time out of my busy life from time to time to remember what I had once been able to see so as not to forget these wonderful images. I also believe that some people with eyesight might take for granted that these visions will always be there to enjoy forever.

Others who have different disabilities than I might experience the same kind of memories of things they previously were able to experience. Maybe a person with a mobility impairment remembers what it was like when they could walk, stand or even hold things in their own hands. People with hearing impairments might remember what it was like when they could hear clearly.  Maybe a person with a speech disability remembers what it was like when they could talk without obstacles or the use of assistive technology. Many others with invisible disabilities, or temporary challenges might remember what it used to be like. Also others who have been disabled since birth may have different thoughts, perspectives and experiences regarding this subject because they have never experienced what they may have never had.

One of my most feared thoughts is that I will forget what my wife Kathy looks like. Forgetting what my other family members, friends and co-workers look like is also uncomfortable. One positive in their favor is that all people whom I remember what they looked like are forever young in my mind’s eye since their images will never age. I also realize physical appearance does not matter like one’s inner beauty although I would still like to never forget what others look like. One amusing observation is my memory of what I look like is fading. 

Does anyone else feel they are starting to lose memories of how some aspects or sensations of life were prior to your disability or your short term challenges? Does anyone have any tips to share to assist us who are experiencing what I have described? Any more stories to share about this subject?

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: http://profile.to/wdtipton

Twitter: http://twitter.com/wdtipton 

Perceived Light: Your Compass Towards Happiness & Productivity

Following up on a blog post I did called Tranquility and Acceptance through Alternate Senses I want to describe how senses can be a prelude to happiness and productivity.

Do you ever experience senses that alert you to how your physical well being is? One of my most reliable ways for me to sense how productive my day will be is how dark my perceived vision is on a clear sunny day with my eyes wide open. I say perceived, because I am completely blind and always in complete darkness due to severe optic nerve atrophy in both eyes. The darkness I experience can be compared to placing your hands over your eyes and pressing hard enough so no light can reach your eyes.

When I am stressed, overly tired or not feeling my best physically my perceived vision is on the darker side of my light scale.  My perceived vision gets darker or lighter depending on the intensity of any one of the previous attributes. A combination of getting enough sleep, increased exercising and eating well balanced nutritious meals enhances the chances that my perceived vision will be on the lighter side of the brightness scale.

When I see brightness compared to darkness in my mind’s eye I can think clearer, react quicker and work more productively. With additional perceived light I also have an increased positive outlook on life. This increased positivity touches all aspects of happiness which includes self-control, courage, generosity, unselfishness, compassion and well being.

My perceived vision never has colors, just a range from bright white/grey to dark black with all levels of grey light in-between. This range of perceived brightness corresponds directly to my productivity, sense of well being and gives me a forecast of how my day will go and acts as my compass towards happiness and productivity.

Another interesting aspect of how my perceived light affects me is how wide I open my eyes. The brighter I can see in my minds-eye, the more I keep my eyes wide open. The darker my perceived vision is corresponds to how closed my eyes are when I perform my daily tasks.

The ability to perform daily work/tasks with my eyes closed is a side benefit of being completely blind and having learned the skills to be productive without eyesight.

Do you have examples of experiencing senses that alert you as to how your physical well being is? If you do experience such senses, how do you maximize the times you see light over darkness in your particular sense that acts as your guiding compass towards happiness and productivity? If you are blind do you also experience these senses of perceived light? Does anyone have any other tips or experiences to share regarding the topic of perceived light versus dark?

Let’s all keep our eyes wide open, enjoy life, and be as productive and healthy as we can be, even if some of us don’t have the ability to see physical light like myself.

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: http://profile.to/wdtipton

Twitter: http://twitter.com/wdtipton

Accepting the Inevitable: Total Hip Replacement

Have you ever had to make a crucial decision that would cause you to experience pain, discomfort and challenges requiring you to adjust your way of life to possibly benefit you in the long term?  As I briefly talk about in my blog post, Succeeding in the New Year: Don’t be Afraid to Walk a Tight Rope, I recently had to make that crucial decision to have total hip replacement surgery.

I am grateful to have had the opportunity to have my right hip totally replaced on March 4th using a surgical procedure that is referred to as the anterior method. After a short hospital stay I came home on March 7th. I was home quickly due to the fact I had an excellent surgeon and had very few post surgical complications. Also after careful consideration I elected to do my recovery/rehabilitation at home with my wife Kathy’s assistance instead of a Skilled Nursing Home/Rehabilitation Facility. If you have read some of my other blog posts you might have noticed my wife and I are experienced at overcoming challenges, difficult times and leveraging assistance as required.

CONTEMPLATION

I have been apprehensive over the past years and months considering the best time to have surgery to replace my deteriorating hip. I considered the time I would be away from work, lost wages, medical expenses and professional and personal commitments. I compared these priorities to my long term medical health and how well I could tolerate the pain to assist me in selecting the best time to have my surgery. I also took into consideration that the X-Rays and MRI consistently showed that my hip bones were crumbling away and the pain and my ability to walk was getting considerably worse the longer I postponed the inevitable. The pain had been so terrible for so long my blood sugars were being adversely affected. My last X-Ray also showed that I had a crack across the head of my right femur which confirmed that I could not put off the inevitable any longer. I finally decided to take action and scheduled my surgery.

In preparation for surgery I planned and anticipated extra challenges to overcome since I am completely blind, have diabetes, neuropathy and nerve damage in my legs caused by the critical medical condition which took my eyesight away in 1999. I also expected I would not be able to do many of my normal activities without assistance for some time while my bones, muscles and tendons healed after such a major surgery. As part of my preparation I learned that recovery and rehabilitation is critical in helping prevent a dislocation of my new hip which would require doing the surgery all over again. Recovery and rehabilitation is also critical in this type of surgery. I had to allow my new artificial hip to bond naturally with my existing bones in my leg and hip to help insure the new artificial joint is stable, strong and will last.

DAY ONE IN THE HOSPITAL:

After checking into the hospital I met the anesthesiologist and talked with my surgeon to cover last minute questions as I was being prepared for surgery. I remember holding conversations with everyone.  The next thing I remember was the sensation of the gurney I was lying on being rolled on the smooth hospital floor producing very little sound from the wheels. Soon I heard voices which sounded like my wife Kathy and my mom. I asked them if the surgery was over. When I heard them respond “yes” I said in astonishment “I cannot believe the surgery is over”. At this point I was not experiencing any pain or discomfort probably due to the medication. Just after I briefly talked with my wife and mom I fell asleep due to the pain medication and any remaining general anesthetic which I was given for the surgery.

After I woke up I heard voices around me. When they identified themselves I learned these were the nurses and rehabilitation therapists - physical therapist (PT) and occupational therapist (OT). They were preparing me to stand for the first time on my new right hip. This group tested my blood pressure and oxygen level. My blood pressure was low although with the suggestion of the therapists I started to stand with the assistance of a walker. Before I was completely standing I felt very faint and felt like I was going to pass out. I was told I looked very pale. After this unsatisfactory reaction the nurse and therapists said I should wait for my blood pressure to come up before I attempted to stand and they helped me back into bed.

I was told I had lost one-third of my blood during the surgery which was normal and could be the reason for my low blood pressure. Now that I was awake I was aware that my right leg was experiencing moderate pain and my leg muscles felt very tight which was uncomfortable. These sensations were due to the fact my surgeon was required to cut many muscles and tendons.  He also dislocated my old hip to remove it and replace it with the new artificial hip.

After the surgery my right leg was swollen and looked like one large multicolor bruise that covered three-quarters of my leg and continued partially up my back.

DAY TWO IN THE HOSPITAL:

To assist my hip healing properly and to help prevent the dislocation of my new hip I was required to sleep with mobility restrictions. These included having to sleep on my back with my legs straight out and my legs surrounded by pillows to help prevent me from turning over in the night. Another option I had while I slept was to lie directly on my side with pillows between my knees, ankles and other pillows surrounding my legs to help insure I did not turn over or cross one leg over the other. My nights were restless with these mobility restraints. The nights were also uncomfortable with sporadic sensations of pain and muscle stiffness. Luckily I was provided enough pain medicine which allowed me to get some needed sleep to facilitate healing and helped me be rested during the day so I could concentrate on my therapy. Although I would experience an uncomfortable night I was willing to accept any challenges to expedite my recovery.

Following breakfast it was time for therapy and my chance to practice walking. My nurse tested my blood pressure and found it was high. After consideration of high blood pressure my nurse and therapists decided to proceed and allow me to attempt to stand. With determination and some struggling I pulled myself up to the standing position with assistance from a walker. I stood for a few minutes before I was told to get back into the bed.

After rest and lunch it was time to work with my therapists and continue to learn how to walk with a walker. On my next attempt to stand I pulled myself out of bed and stood with much more confidence and energy. Since I am completely blind my therapists were required to improvise and verbalize any instructions instead of actually demonstrating the techniques. After listening to the instructions on the basic techniques to walk with a walker I simultaneously visualized the technique my therapists were describing in my minds-eye and was soon walking with my new artificial hip. While walking my therapists verbally instructed me in which direction I was to walk to help avoid obstacles, including other patients who were also walking as part of their rehabilitation. I required verbal assistance to help guide me because a walker provides minimal orientation to a completely blind user compared to using a long white cane. A white cane is used by rhythmically swinging the cane back and forth in front of me very close to the ground while tapping the cane tip on the ground when the cane reaches the end of each swing as it assists me in locating and avoiding obstacles.  Since I am used to walking with one long white cane and one support cane walking with a walker made me feel very unsafe if I attempted to walk without verbal guidance. I truly would feel as if I was walking blind.

DAY THREE IN THE HOSPITAL:

I continued to eat my three meals a day, walk twice a day and rest to help me recover. Each time I walked with my walker I was getting more proficient, confident and stronger. In preparation to leave the hospital I practiced walking up and down steps with my walker. This was so I could navigate the steps required to get into and out of my house.

DAY FOUR IN THE HOSPITAL:

On my last day in the hospital I practiced getting in and out of our car safely with the therapist's help to prevent injuring myself or my new artificial hip. The last thing I requested before I left the hospital was to be bathed which included washing my hair. I had no idea of how I would get to the shower at home to do these things because of the obstacles and my new mobility restrictions. Therefore I took advantage of the extra assistance I currently had at the hospital. 

RECOVERY AND REHABILITATION AT HOME

On March 8th I started my at home physical therapy (PT), occupational therapy (OT) plus had a nurse visit me a couple of times. In addition to receiving therapy and health monitoring services from these agencies during the first two weeks of recovery my loving wife was my full time caregiver and therapist. After the first two weeks of professional therapy these visits stopped and it was up to my determination, commitment and my wife’s tireless assistance to continue with my daily rehabilitation therapy and recovery.  I completed the recommended stretching and muscle strengthening exercises daily as prescribed by my therapists. With Kathy’s assistance I walked outside with my walker to further strengthen my legs, bones and increase cardiovascular endurance. Also these exercises assist with restoring my balance after such a traumatic experience.

This initial recovery and rehabilitation process took re-prioritizing our life’s activities since these tasks took many hours each day to accomplish. This is especially true with the mobility restrictions which required Kathy’s help to perform many of my daily activities.  This dedication took a complete commitment for success.

A FEW SUGGESTIONS TO ASSIST IN PLANNING

• Medical Insurance Preparation

If you have medical insurance, be sure to cover all insurance questions with your provider prior to your surgery/procedure. If your insurance agency verbally tells you a service or medical supply is covered get the answers to your questions in writing if possible.

• Rest

Get plenty of rest and try to be in the best possible physical condition prior to the surgery/procedure.

• Diabetes Preparation

If you are diabetic attempt to get your blood sugars under control prior to the surgery/procedure.

• Get References

Select a surgeon you know or can get references to follow up with the surgeon or patients who have had the same surgery or medical procedure from the doctor you plan to use. 

• Accommodations / Accessibility

If you are disabled or require special needs visit the hospital/medical facility and explain any specific needs you may require. If you need accommodations explain your request with suggestions on how the staff can assist. 

• Be Prepared To Be Your Own Advocate

The medical staff is usually very busy and if you are not able to fully understand and participate in all communications regarding your medical needs someone needs to look after your requirements, communicate the requirements and follow up with all hospital staff to help insure you get the best possible care.

• Be Patient

Understand you are not the only patient in the hospital/ facility and you will have to wait to receive assistance at times.

• Balance Recovery Enthusiasm

Balance your recovery enthusiasm with the recovery/therapy requirements provided by your physician. Exercise patience in returning to your normal daily activities to assist in maximizing your long term benefits over taking short cuts in recovery and rehabilitation to accomplish short term advances that may not last.

• Plan For Your Unique Situation

I understand that everyone is different and my surgery, recovery process and recovery/rehabilitation length will be different than yours. Understand what I have described is my own unique situation. Please consult your own physician for assistance with your own unique requirements.

Now that my mobility restrictions have been removed I will continue to do physical therapy and orientation and mobility training as I transition back to my support cane and long white cane for independent safe navigation.  Now that I have the ability to start walking with my long cane this added exercise will strengthen my muscles and tendons. This exercise is also vital to aid in hip and leg bone growth and bonding around and through my new artificial hip allowing for a strong joint.

I know it is still early in my recovery but I am very pleased with the results of my total hip replacement. My minimal discomfort is mostly at night and in the mornings and is typically stiffness and muscle pain while I am continuing to heal and strengthen my leg. My blood sugar levels have been consistently getting better than prior to the surgery allowing me to be in better health, think more clearly and make better decisions to assist with enhancing my life. I was also very satisfied with the care I received by all the doctors, nurses, therapists and staff at the hospital. All of the staff made appropriate accommodations when possible to enhance my stay.

The last several weeks of exercise, stretching and walking with a walker multiple times a day have been well worth the time I dedicated to help insure a successful transition to my next phase of recovery. I am also thankful I followed my doctor’s recovery/rehabilitation plan and did not give into my own temptation and do more activities than I was supposed to do risking injury thus causing a longer recovery period.

Do you have any tips you want to share that might help prepare one for surgery or medical procedures? Do you have suggestions about maximizing the benefits of any required rehabilitation? Do you have suggestions for people with disabilities or special needs to assist with recovery and any required rehabilitation?

We all look forward to hearing your comments.

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author,

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

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

Facebook: http://profile.to/wdtipton

Twitter: http://twitter.com/wdtipton

Succeeding in the New Year: Don’t be Afraid to Walk a Tight Rope

Hello all,

I hope you will be prepared to experience the New Year with all the exciting emotions and possibilities including fear, uncertainty, challenges, joy and wonderful surprises.

As each of us takes a unique path in our life experiencing this year we are privileged to have many choices that will affect us. Our decisions not only affect us they affect the people around us that our life touches.

Some choices we have on any action we take are easy and mundane. Others are difficult and may take considerable planning to accomplish our goals with success. Some opportunities we have require taking planned risks to achieve the fruitful benefits. Other responsibilities that some people need to prioritize into goals are to assist family members and friends who may require additional assistance. It is best to understand some people we attempt to help do not realize they need help or even more perplexing some people do not want to accept any assistance due to a variety of reasons. In my opinion the most difficult thing to do when faced with the heartbreaking experience of attempting to assist people who do not realize they need assistance or do not want it is to let go and stop attempting to assist within reason, no matter how difficult it is to see these people in need. This letting go is critical to preserve energy and limited time for the many other goals you want to successfully accomplish.

With the abundance of choices available I realize prioritizing my time to worry about what I can and want to have an effect on is a balancing act.  What I want to accomplish and what may help me and my family, friends, colleagues and employer for goals is also a part of the balancing act. I can compare this balancing of priorities and goals to walking on a tight rope under a colorful big top tent in a circus while balancing on a rope far above the ground even though I have never attempted walking a tight rope. One false step or incorrect choice and I can lose my balance and fall to the ground thus completely failing at my attempt to achieve my goal. Without proper preparation, concentration and a sense of confidence I could slip off the rope however with luck quickly grab the rope and pull myself backup into the standing position thus wasting precious energy and time completing the goal. With the proper tenacity, attitude and skills I can successfully accomplish my goal of balancing and walking across the tight rope with ease and grace. I understand that not all people have the ability to physically walk on the tight rope I describe just like I can’t physically see the colorful big top tent I am walking under (I am completely blind). In my example I hope you can imagine my analogy no matter what your ability is. 

Like many others I plan to complete goals this year that include balancing priorities, taking calculated risks, learning new skills and accepting new challenges/opportunities to improve my positioning for success and happiness. One of my goals I plan to complete shortly is to have surgery on my right hip and have a total hip replacement due to Avascular Necrosis.

After my surgery and recovery my goal is to get relief from continuous pain and enjoy my family without the distraction of the pain or the inability to be as mobile as I need to be. I intend to participate in activities such as enjoying hiking blind and concentrate on my professional and personal life without the distraction of constant pain. I also plan to accept and complete the rehabilitation needed to give me the best possibility of walking again with minimum of limitation. For those who are not aware of my history I have had the opportunity to learn to walk again after a critical medical condition took my ability to walk for approximately one year. That previous challenge was much different than the reasons I will need this time to relearn how to walk again. Hopefully I will be able to leverage the lessons learned. 

Let’s all climb up a ladder under a large, brightly colored big top tent and walk across the tight rope with confidence and a perfect balance of priorities in order to make it safely across to our rewarding and gratifying goals in this new year.

Does anyone have any goals you plan to accomplish and want to share along with the reasons why they are important to you? We all look forward to hearing from you to start our new year together.

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

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

Facebook: http://profile.to/wdtipton

Twitter: http://twitter.com/wdtipton  

Helen Keller Achievement Awards & Exploring NYC Without Eyesight

In June, I was grateful to be invited by my employer to attend a Helen Keller Achievement Awards Ceremony / Dinner presented by the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB) in New York City, NY (NYC), with my wife Kathy, colleagues and other attendees. This trip was my second opportunity to travel on a commercial airline since losing all of my eyesight. After I received the invitation to attend the event, I immediately started my planning and preparation to facilitate a successful trip that would hopefully be as trouble free as possible. I describe my trip preparation in a past blog post I wrote entitled Employee of the Year.

At the Helen Keller Achievement Awards Ceremony / Dinner I truly enjoyed listening to the people who introduced the award recipients, describing the work the recipients do to assist the visually impaired or blind by improving the quality of life, enhancing job opportunities by reducing barriers by increasing accessibility. I also enjoyed listening to the recipients humbly accept their awards and explain some of what they did to achieve this meaningful recognition.

The following day I was invited to go to AFB’s corporate headquarters and take a tour through the Helen Keller archives museum and meet with AFB. Being completely blind myself and belonging to some blind / low vision organizations in my local area, I have heard a few things about Helen Keller. During the tour I was pleased to learn many new things about Helen Keller. Now I have a better understanding of what a wonderful and remarkable person she was, and how she has helped change the world to assist blind, visually impaired, deaf, and hard of hearing, as well as many other people.

SIGHTSEEING with My Wife: The Art of Using All My Senses
This was my first trip to NYC, therefore I wanted to take advantage of my short time in-between meetings and award ceremonies to see (sense) some sights. With my wife Kathy’s assistance we walked on foot paths next to the Hudson River near the 911 Memorial towards Battery Park. Kathy described many wonderful statues, memorials, flowers, trees, old iron fences, old fashion street lamps, and other beautiful and distinctive old style architecture built with many bricks. I took the time to touch some of these objects so I could sense their texture and physical size. This enabled me to more accurately imagine what these objects looked like in my minds-eye. She also described the color and perceived depth and width of the river, as she also described the Statue of Liberty at a distance across the river. She also described the many ferries and boats on the river, and helicopters flying above the river. The same day after our AFB meeting and tour we walked from Madison Square Garden and Pennsylvania (PENN) Station to 26th Street then towards 51st Street, Madison Avenue, Broadway Avenue and many streets in-between. On 34th Street Kathy described Macy’s department store (the largest in the world we were told). She also described the Empire State Building, Time square, Rockefeller Center and St. Patrick’s Cathedral. We went into St. Patrick’s Cathedral and since it was a warm day the cool temperature in the Cathedral was an exhilarating and pleasant treat. We walked throughout this remarkable large old Cathedral as Kathy described the many carvings, statues and stained glass windows. To help me visualize how large this Cathedral is in my minds-eye I felt one of the very large columns that held up a portion of the large roof. The column was so large I could not wrap my arms around it, and it felt like it was made of stone, or a concrete material. I took this opportunity to sit down on one of the many pews in the Cathedral and prayed. After we left the Cathedral we passed Radio City Music Hall, many other landmarks and numerous stores. I truly applaud my wife’s site guiding technique and expertise, walking through NYC, evading hundreds of people, obstacles, yellow cabs, cars, and crossing busy streets with a variety of Hard (90 degree angles) and (Soft) curb cuts that gently sloped down at each intersection. All of this navigation was accomplished while at times I could not hear Kathy’s verbal instructions warning me about upcoming obstacles due to the loud traffic, and sirens from police cars and fire engines. Luckily I have learned to feel Kathy’s body movement with either my left hand on her right shoulder, or right upper arm with my right hand on my support cane while she sight guides me. With this technique I can react to her body movement and not rely on any verbal cues. By the time we did our very quick walking tour of mid town New York, it was getting close to dinner so we searched for a taxi. After observing which streets had the most taxies driving down the streets, we strategically placed ourselves on one of these streets in a location in which a taxi could easily pull up to the curb. By using this technique we soon found a taxi to take us back to our hotel in time for a wonderful dinner with a co-worker. After our wonderful meal and great conversations we went back to our hotel and prepared to leave for home the next day.

The Rest of the Story
Kathy and I had an incredible time listening to the remarkable people who were recognized for their work and received the Helen Keller Achievement Awards, listening about the valuable work AFB is doing to help the blind, visually impaired and visiting NYC briefly. Everyone we met on our trip was thoughtful, courteous and seemed to celebrate life and companionship.

A few days after we returned home we celebrated our 25th Wedding Anniversary. We honored and celebrated our life together, our companionship, devotion and our never ending love that will continue for all eternity. Read another blog post I wrote about our 20th Anniversary entitled:
Anniversaries: What they mean to you.

Have you had the opportunity to take a tour with assistance? This assistance does not need to be sight guiding or verbal descriptions, like the invaluable assistance I received. Maybe you have other challenges or disabilities which require other types of assistance when traveling and sightseeing you want to share? Has anyone attended or received a Helen Keller Achievement Award? Any other thoughts or comments?

We look forward to your comments to help us all grow personally and professionally, and expand our knowledge and awareness.

Bill Tipton
Contributing Author,
Global Dialogue Center
http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wdtipton
Facebook: http://profile.to/wdtipton
Twitter: http://twitter.com/wdtipton

Trust; Walking Without Eyesight

During a leisurely walk on a route I take frequently for exercise and relaxation, I contemplate the importance of trust. I believe the mind-set of trust can be in a person’s own ability, self-confidence, faith, or in others to do the “right thing”.

 

The thought of trust and the value of it occurs frequently when I pass certain locations on a local walking route.

 

I am completely blind and walk with a white support cane in my left hand and in my right hand I swing a long white cane.  I use my long cane to detect obstacles and receive feedback about the surface I am walking on from the cane tip as it touches the ground on every swing. I am constantly listening to the environmental sounds to help with orientation by remembering unique sound landmarks and utilizing auditory senses to detect obstacles by interpreting sound waves as they travel from their source and bounce off surfaces. Soon I hear the noise of motor vehicles passing in front of me getting closer and closer at a perpendicular angle. This is an indication that I am reaching a cross street. Feeling the light prick on my left hand from a sharp Yucca leaf that hangs over the sidewalk causes me to quickly feel my hand for possible injury (blood or deep scratches). I do not feel anything out of the ordinary, so I continue my leisurely walk with a chuckle and a smile.  Not far after passing the Yucca plant I slightly touch a fence to my left with my cane as the sidewalk slopes down and turns left onto another street and I reach a curb cut for a wheelchair access ramp.  I hear noticeably more motor vehicles passing me, going much faster than they were on the street I had just left. My senses and long cane tell me this part of the sidewalk is narrow because I cannot swing my cane to the left too far without hitting a fence, or feeling an abrupt drop off to my right with my cane tip.

 

When I explore this part of the route I discover the sidewalk is a considerable distance above the street which reinforces the need to pay attention so I do not accidently step off the curb. As I get closer to the next corner the motor vehicles are even closer, due to the fact they are coming from the west and turning to the south (cutting the corner). At this point the sidewalk slopes down for a curb cut for a ramp that gently turns to the left as the sidewalk abruptly ends. I carefully step off the curb paying attention to the direction I was walking to enable me to make an accurate direction adjustment, angling my walk to the left slightly enabling me to find a footpath rather than walking into the motor vehicles just in front of me.  Just after stepping off the sidewalk in search of the asphalt footpath, I cautiously walk through grass and dirt sensing hidden obstacles with my feet and canes. I soon feel my feet touch something solid as I then hear the tap of my cane against a hard surface alerting me I have reached the footpath. Feeling the border of the path with my feet I turn left and continue my leisurely and joyful walk.

 

Not long after I get my rhythm going, my cane hits something metallic sounding and very solid causing my body to slightly collide with the obstacle from my forward momentum. I explore the unknown object with my cane while attempting to figure out what could be blocking the footpath.  After some investigation I determine the obstacle is a vehicle parked across the footpath. As I maneuver around the vehicle towards the left, so I do not walk into motor vehicles passing on the street to my right, suddenly my cane hits another metallic obstacle. This obstacle does not sound or feel (with my cane) as solid as the vehicle, although this obstacle has blocked me from continuing down the path. I attempt to find a way around the two obstacles, when I hear a voice speak to me in a language I do not understand. I ask this person I do not know with self confidence and friendliness in my voice, if the path around to the left is clear.  This person answers me in their language which I do not understand. I then feel a trusting and caring hand touch my arm and gently guide me safely around the obstacles. At this point I remember, at times, a person would set up a stand to sell fruit at this corner, and the stand and their vehicle might be what the obstacles are. As I maneuver around the vehicle and other obstacle I ask the friendly person if they are selling strawberries.  This caring person understands the word strawberries and responds “yes”.

 

As I continue my peaceful and exhilarating walk I listen to the babbling creek to my right, and light breeze blowing through the leaves in the trees' canopies. I imagine in my mind’s eye what these images looked like when I had eyesight as I smile with remembrance of the beauty of nature. Suddenly I hear the sound of a bicycle coming up from behind me. Staying calm I demonstrate faith and trust that the rider would see me and my white canes. I slowly move to one side and stop to wait for the bicycle to safely pass. After I hear the bicycle pass very close, I say “hi” to the rider as I wave in their direction and continue my relaxing walk.  The silence of nature and solitude is interrupted by the sound of feet hitting the ground and quiet human breathing coming towards me, providing awareness a jogger is approaching. I continue to walk trusting the jogger will see me and not run into me, but move to one side of the path to allow the jogger room to run by as I say “hello”.

 

As I continue my relaxing walk, the path gently starts to slope down and gradually turns to the left, then to the right. This change of direction and slope is my landmark to start searching for the end of the paved path to enable me to find the sidewalk on the next street. Soon I do not feel anymore dirt border to the left of the path with my cane   alerting me I have passed the end of the path and have started to cross the street. At this point I quickly and abruptly turn to the left and walk back in the direction I had come from, at an angle that will enable my route to end up near the intersection of the street and the sidewalk. Suddenly I touch a dirt border with my feet and cane and follow the border until I feel a curb rise up with my cane tip or my foot (whatever hits it first). I carefully step up on the curb using my support cane to assist. I am now safely half way on my relaxing journey.

 

Continuing my joyful walk, I anticipate the possibility of running into obstacles to keep me alert, providing practice negotiating obstacles, improving my orientation and mobility and cherishing the gratitude of meeting friendly people.  Soon my walk is over leaving me with the desire to take another joyful lap around the block. Every time I go on a walk I am reminded how grateful I am to have the ability to walk.  This attitude comes from knowing what it feels like not being able to walk, get outside or move at all without great difficulty. This is because the same medical condition that took my eyesight away caused me to be unable to walk for one year while I regained my strength and learned how to walk again. I am also grateful I demonstrated faith and self-confidence when the medical specialists told me I would never walk again, and I decided to pursue my dreams of walking again.

 

Do you have examples of when you demonstrated trust? What did you learn from trusting your own ability, self-confidence, trusting others to do the “right thing” or believing in your faith? Do you have any tips to help us increase our trust?

 

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author,

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

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

Facebook: http://profile.to/wdtipton

Twitter: http://twitter.com/wdtipton