[nfb-db] New and introducing myself

[Janice Toothman]

Thanks Marsha for introducing yourself to the list and sharing your 
difficulties at the recent National NFB convention in Dallas.

Above all else, I was fortunate to be paired with a smart guide dog 
named Destiny. She is a 6 year old golden lab/flat cross from Guide Dog 
Foundation for the Blind (GDF) in Smithtown, NY. I would not have 
managed to go where I needed to go without her. Since the days when I 
first got her at GDF and we hadn't become an established working team, 
she remembered places after only one visit! One trial was all it took. 
Without this ability, I would have been lost countless times at the 
convention.

Like Marsha, I also use hearing aids and and an FM system which work 
well in certain situation but not others. I found the marble tiles in 
the corridors produced echoes. This made it impossible to have a 
conversation with anyone unless they wore the FM system.

Scott I appreciate the awkwardness you might feel in passing the FM 
receiving in order to hear what others are saying. I know that it does 
cause a delay as the FM is passed to the person wishing to speak. But if 
an announcement is made in advance letting people know of what to expect 
might explain  not only the reason for delay but also tell what (the FM) 
is being passed. This is probably more preferable than to have sit in 
silence while others around you have a discussion that you might have 
origination. This has happened to me many times until I decided to be 
proactive and admit that I am hard of hear/deaf and ask for the 
assistance of others in contributing to the conversation.  Some might be 
put off and that is a risk, but then others might be will to learn about 
the deaf and what it is that they are holding after your discussion is 
over. In this way, you can become an advocate for the deaf-blind when we 
ask for assistance. Because the majority of people are either naive or 
deaf-blind from a psychological standpoint.

Because Burnell Brown, the President of the Deaf-Blind Division and I, 
the secretary were the only officers attending the convention this year. 
Both of us were required to work the DB table in the exhibit hall. I was 
a nightmare. I couldn't hear Burnell standing next to me at the table 
due to  all the background noise which made the FM useless. It was very 
frustrating when people asked for things and I couldn't understand them. 
I think we didn't do as well because of the communication problem and 
because we didn't sell more Braille t-shirts. We sold all of last years 
"Orlando 2011 Braille Alphabet" t-shirts for $5.00. We have 30 /60 hats 
that have National Federation of the Blind on them and the Hozit in 
Black, Khaki, Green and Navy. We also have peanut brittle left.

I am always grateful for the FM receivers that the Radio Division people 
give out and the $40 I get returned to me. At least I know that I can 
hear the general assembly and the banquet. I gave up trying to visit the 
booths in the exhibit hall except when they had for sponsors only. I 
talked with Freedom Scientific about their Focus 40.

Being in a crowded room makes my vertigo worse. I also have more balance 
issues standing for a long period of time. GDF fitted Destiny's harness 
with a "upper" stationary handle for added balance. This affects my 
sense of direction. I frequently don't know which direction sounds come 
from. This frustrates people when the call from across the room or 
something. I don't know what direction to turn. However, Destiny can 
often located them and take me to them when I am clueless.

Destiny had a seizure on Sunday. It lasted 5 minutes and she was 
semiconscious or unresponsive to name or command for 30 minutes. This 
was around noon in the Atrium lobby cafe. I couldn't get in touch with 
anyone at that time. Once she was able to walk, the security guard 
escorted me to the "pool" elevator which opened right around the corner 
from my room of 1225. He suggested I let her rest for an hour before 
going about. My home vet recommended seeing an emergency vet. It took 
awhile to find Marion Gwizdala, NAGDU president, to contact Mark 
Brittany of GDF. Mark and I went to the ER clinic and the vet indicated 
that Destiny looked fine 4 hours later so he thought it was safe and 
cheaper to postpone bloodwork until we return home. Destiny went to our 
regular vet on Monday to have the required bloodwork following a 
seizure. Those results suggested a low thyroid due to her low T-4. 
However, the values for this test tend to fluctuate and as such were not 
considered to be a good indicator of hypothyroidism. Another test that 
was more reliable that would determine if she had hypothyroidism. The 
vet said low thyroid can induce seizures. Now I am waiting for another 
set of lab results.