hearing loss accommodation in the workplace - part
one
i think i can now say i'm deaf without cringing. i still don't believe
it; i don't really accept it. especially because i do hear some and
can't understand how i can be deaf and still hear something. but i have
learned that most deaf, not all but most, do have some residual hearing.
and a hearing loss of 90+ dB's is, well, pretty deaf!
so, past that, let's talk about heaven. deaf heaven. not religiously
of course, but really, what would a deaf person, a newly deafened
person, need to make life grand?
shouldn't have to think too hard but let's get on with it - we need
accommodations. big time. we need the words we can't hear. especially in
our jobs, if we can manage to keep those jobs.
i went back to work this past week. and the day before, just last
sunday, my hubby and i were talking, as best as we can talk in the car,
and the word "disability" came up. what? me? disabled? even
worse - go out on disability?? because i can't hear? but i feel like me
- i'm still me!! i am the same me i was while i worked my way to my
assistant prinicpalship!! disability is not my style. i have to find a
way!!! i do not want to "retire" !!!!
but what am i going to do? i can't talk to people - strangers - who i
can't hear, who have accents, who don't face me. and kids - teens, how
am i going to talk to them?? and the phone - oh my god, the phones! i
use a tty most times now. in my job, i'm on the phone all the time!! the
voice of doubt, the voice of being disabled, started to actually seep
into my mind.
don't worry, it didn't stay there too long. that's not my way. <VBG>
i'm a wreck and i go into work monday. we have a meeting where i gave
my principal my fm - didn't help much, but hey, a bit is better than
nothing. he used it no problem. and when anyone spoke we passed it, but
i was still lost.
so afterwards, i speak to him and to keep this just long and not
longer, he says, whatever u need. no problem. we'll get it. that was
monday.
well - have i ever been accommodated at my job!! by Wednesday, I had
an interpreter helping me with the phones. a sign interpreter. say
whatever you want about sign, but i thank god i know this language. i
don't think about Deaf, deaf, culture, schmulture. sign is another tool
in my bag of tricks. and i'll use it and any other tool i can in order
to "hear."
by Wednesday afternoon, terp #2 arrived, and for our meeting that
afternoon, i had two terps - not one! i went into my principal, with
trepidation, mind you, and told him, "ummm, the board sent me
interpreters, ummm, 2 of them. ummm, they are both here."
know what he said??????
"wonderful!! this will be fun! exciting to try - let's see how
it works!"
i died and went to heaven.
he came into the meeting, greeted each terp, offered them food and
drink and introduced them.
take a deep breath. whew!
Thursday am - the board of ed sent me a terp just for the morning to
answer my phones. have you ever seen or experienced an interpreted phone
call??? it's great!! real-time, real-live, wonderful!! takes a fraction
of the time of a relay call, which, by the way, everyone i work with is
using for me. it's just great.
anyway, let's go to thursday afternoon - big, big borowide meeting.
big. hundreds of people. guess what i had??? CART!!!!
i'm not kidding - i'm in heaven. <HG> (HUGE grin!)
at first, one of the big-shots of the superintendency came over and
started angrily questioning the cart person. before i could say a word,
cart was explained. he was sorry and walked away with his head hung a
bit lower! then another muckity muck came over - started to say
something, then saw me and said, "OOHHH! i didn't see you here!
we've just had so many depositions lately, i couldn't imagine!"
well, i heard. really heard what was going on. i missed less than the
hearies. and when it was over, there was a crowd around my CART man. a
crowd. they had questions, and wanted his card and his services. why? i
don't know, but WOW!!
next we moved into a different room. i am still amazed, and please
forgive this rumination, but i can't hear. and i have my CART man! we
had to go around the room and introduce ourselves. he was at the end,
and the group wanted to know - who's that? and he was introduced as my
transcriber. at the end, someone wanted to know if i'd have that all the
time. at these meetings i will. and i think that person was jealous!
<G>
Part Two
