Christmas Hearing Aid and Cochlear Implant Decorating...

I've created a sneak-a-peak video of some of the fantastic designs that parents and teens have come up with this Christmas!

Check them out in the video below :)

For more pictures, or to find out how to join in with our jazzing up craze visit our Facebook Group - http://www.facebook.com/groups/pimpmyhearingaidsandcochlearimplants/

We now have nearly 500 members and literally hundred of photos a long with lots if different ways and ideas to make your aids or CIs more colourful and unique!

Pondering Noises...

Sometimes things happen in the world around you that make you sit down and reevaluate your own life as such.I've certainly had one of those days today and they're the times when you realise that just perhaps you aren't as comfortable with your own deafness, your own identity as you thought you were. The days when everything just feels a bit of a struggle, and you're not a hundred percent sure whether its really worth working everyday to overcome the barriers that you face.

Of course with my positive role model hat on I know that confidence to shout out and feel at ease with your own deafness is important for your own well-being (and everyone around you's!) but there are some days when you feel like going oh f*** it and putting on your "I don't speak hearing person" tshirt.

I've lived with the fact that my hearing loss is progressive for a few years now, most of the time I don't really give much thought to it. I've learned to get over the panic that happens every time your audiogram shows another 10dB gone... But however comfortable, however much of an incredible role model people might believe me to be I'm just a teenager really, and I have days when the idea of losing my hearing scares me to death.

I might say I hate my hearing aids, that I'd rather go without them, I might throw them away when I'm mad or sad or just plain confused. But if you told me that I would wake up tomorrow morning and they wouldn't be there if I wanted them I have no idea how I would cope. What about music? What about the world around me?

Maybe I'm melodramatic, I know some people who would say I am. But maybe I'm just tired of pretending I'm "cool" with being deaf when actually it makes me cry every time I really sit down and think about it.

I wonder how many other deaf teenagers, either deaf from birth but maybe more specifically those with late onset or progressive loss feel the way I do.

I guess the difficulty with being a late onset progressive deafie is I feel like I somehow missed out on the childhood lectures on how to cope in a world that doesn't seem to see passed the word deaf to actually understand that it means you can't actually hear. I'm a little sick of being told that "your speech is so good that of course I forgot that doesn't mean you understand me like I understand you". I find myself wishing that my speech was a little worse, a little more obvious. Just so people would have a little reminder every time they spoke to me.

So yeah, I guess all this pondering is what happens when your lecturers play 3 DVDs in one day - none of which are subtitled. When you're already exhausted from lipreading conversations in a noisy background just to appear as "normal" as possible then that's a killer right there.

But then what is "normal"? Certainly my social work lecturers wouldn't agree with that particular sentence.

So deaf kids out there... Embrace "abnormality" and rock on.

A&E and Me - PDDCS Website

So I have a new column now as well as this blog! I've been asked to write for the Peterborough District Deaf Kids Society website and I'm loving it...

I even have my own banner at the top of the column!! :)

Here's my first post courtesy of... http://www.pddcs.co.uk/2012/12/deaflifeaandeandme.html

So, last week I was asked to start writing this column and while I was thinking about what to write, an issue that has probably affected every deaf child, teenager and adult popped into my head.

This week I took a trip to A&E and it struck me once again just how un-deaf aware a number of doctors and nurses are. I mean, of course, you occasionally meet the odd person, like the paramedic I met whose wife was deaf or the nurse who had a profoundly deaf nephew, but by and large medical staff seem to have absolutely no idea what I mean when I say 'I’m deaf.'

It’s not just A&E staff either. I've had the GP who walks around the room while talking to you and even the ENT consultant who talks at you whilst looking in your ears. The story my mum always tells is when I had a chest x-ray and the radiographer asked me to take out my hearing aids and then said 'I’m going into the back room now, but when I shout I need you to breathe in for me.' I’m afraid I just looked at him with confusion.

But for me that’s not even the worst part. As a Deaf teenager, I’m fiercely independent. If I want to communicate with someone, I will, even if it means a long frustrating half hour writing everything down on a piece of paper. So what annoys me more than anything is when medical staff talk to the person next to you as if you’re not there. 'Is she allergic to anything?' or 'What’s her pain threshold?' I thought that going to the hospital with a friend rather than my parents would stop this from happening but it made no difference…

Are deaf people really so difficult to communicate with that it’s just not worth the effort? I know that Deaf Direct in Worcestershire have taken on board the issues that deaf patients are experiencing every time they go to the GP or hospital and have recently been running some deaf awareness training in local hospitals. Hopefully this will make a difference and change the way doctors and nurses treat deaf patients. Maybe this deaf awareness training is something that could be done nationally by agencies such as NDCS or Remark?

In terms of advice on how to deal with these un-deaf aware medical staff, I’m not sure I’m the best person to ask! But when I have it sorted I’ll let you know. For now I guess these are a few pointers that might help:

• Make sure that doctors and nurses know you are deaf, it’s annoying but staff don’t seem to share that kind of information between them.
• If a doctor or nurse doesn't communicate well with you try and give them some handy tips. I know this is hard and feels embarrassing at times but the next deaf person they meet will be so thankful you did it!
• Don’t be afraid to shout up if you haven’t heard. It’s your care and you have the right to understand everything that’s happening to you. Similarly if you want or need an interpreter then make sure you get one, it’s important to understand everything and that will make you feel more confident.

Pimping your hearing aid or CI... A "How To" Guide with pictures!

Lots of people on the Pimp my HAs and CIs Facebook group have been talking about how fiddly it is to stick nail foils on their hearing aids and cochlear implants, so I thought I could do another step by step tutorial for those people who are just getting started!

1) Take of the mold and take out the battery.



2) choose your nail foils! You can buy hundreds of different designs from shops and online from Amazon and Ebay.



3) Choose a nail sticker about the right size and stick it down, don’t worry if it’s too wide as you can cut it to the right shape.



4) Carefully cut the sticker to size so that it doesn’t cover volume controls and most importantly microphones!! Sometimes you can do this before you put the sticker on and sometimes afterwards by carefully trimming the edges.



5) Use the same process to cover the rest of the aid! Make sure you can still open the battery door and nothing is covered over!  You can cover just one side of the aid or all of it! As long as you’re careful!#
 

6) If you have a radio aid shoe you can also decorate that!



You’ve now successfully pimped your hearing aid or cochlear implant!!

Other things you could consider “doing up” would be your radio aid, box for your hearing aid, i-com or oticon streamer… Some people have also started colouring their tubes using a sharpie!

 

Fairy Ears...

This is another blog post by my friend Eloise... I asked her to write about overhearing this conversation because it shocked me so much!! 

It was a very bad day in audiology today. Not for me, but for a girl who looked to be the age of around six or seven waiting with her mother to go into an appointment.

“Mummy, please let me have the pink hearing aids,” she said, swinging her legs off the chair. She was pretty with brown, slightly curly hair which came past her shoulders. Her mum was also quite pretty but oozed pretentiousness throughout the situation.

“I promise I’ll be a good girl,” she continued, “All I want is fairy ears…”

Her mother interrupted before the girl could carry on. “Be quiet, Martha, we need to listen out for your name to be called.”

The little girl sat quietly, still swinging her legs around. She looked at the TV but the mumbling of the news could not keep her distracted for long.

“But mummy, Josh in year two at school has blue hearing aids and says they are like superhero ears! I want to be the same, but with fairy ears! And the nice hearing lady said I could have pink ones if I wanted!”

“Martha, how many times have I told you to be quiet about the fairy ears? You’re a big girl now and you can stick to brown. It blends in with your hair and so everyone thinks you’re normal. Josh’s ears are very nice, but you’re grown up now and all these colours look silly on such big children!”

At this point, I had become so angry and upset at the mother’s attitude that I had to switch my own hearing aids off. My hearing aids are pink with glitter moulds, blue tubes and butterfly stickers – and I’m eighteen years old. The fact that I can decorate my hearing aids gives me a sense of pride and identity as a young deaf person. It seriously upset me that this little girl could not get the ‘fairy ears’ that she desperately wanted. That small dream would have been in reach had her own mother let her have them. Instead, her mum, only concerned about appearances, forbid her own child from having the colour and design she so wished for.

"Eloise's hearing aids before blue tubes!"

To children, having the colour of hearing aids and ear moulds that they want can make all the difference between being confident and proud of who they are or being frustrated. I just wonder whether in the future, this little girl, Martha, will grow up wanting to show her hearing aids, or whether her confidence will be low and she’ll be constantly asking God “Why me?”

Please share your opinions on this situation. What would you say to the mother and the little girl? I certainly know what I’d say, and the mum probably wouldn’t like it!

Team V needs you!! Tackling Youth Homelessness...

A slightly different blog post than usual this time as I wanted to tell you all about the work I've been doing with vInspired an organisation connecting young people with charities and voluntary organisations as well as promoting self development.

Each year vInspired runs an amazing opportunity for young people aged 18-25 called Team V and after a long interview process I've amazingly made it onto this years Team V 2012!

Over the course of the year Team V will run 3 national campaigns within their local communities by recruiting a "dream team" of volunteers to manage PR, media, finance and pretty much any other role you can imagine within a campaign!

The first campaign reveal was last weekend and I'm happy to announce that our first campaign will be tackling youth homelessness and promoting awareness of organisations offering help for young people experiencing youth homelessness.

Below is the campaign video - entirely accessible :) A big step as I've previously complained to vInspired about their videos being all speech and no subtitles...

I think you'll agree that the statistics around youth homelessness are pretty amazing - and not in a positive way... I was shocked to learn how many young people experience youth homelessness and even more shocked to learn how many of my fellow Team V members had personal experience of homelessness and living in supported accommodation.

I'm really excited to start campaigning but i really really need volunteers!! Team V has never had a deaf young person involved before and this year we have 2 - but id love to have a "dream team" of deaf and hearing volunteers who could work together to run this campaign!

As you saw from the video there are a number of steps involved in this campaign... contacting a local organisation... running an event or exhibition... and organising an eye catching stunt in order to draw attention to youth homelessness!

I can't do all that by myself - so if you're interested in campaigning to raise awareness of youth homelessness, live in the Birmingham area and would like to get involved then please give me a shout!

You can comment on this blog post with your email address, or you can email me directly at teamvnairi@gmail.com

As well as volunteers I could also do with a couple of interpreters or communicators - I have a campaign budget but i'd rather spend it on the campaign than interpreters to help out :) again if you're interested get in touch!

For more information take a look at the vInspired Team V page :) http://vinspired.com/teamv

Starting University... and wearing my hearing aids for 17 hours!

This was first published on the Limping Chicken :) 

I’m writing this sat in the laundry room of my university.

From what I can work out there are 3 washing machines and a tumbler dryer on the go but all I can hear is, well, nothing. This is what I love about university. I woke up this morning and looked at my hearing aids before thinking – “you know what, today I want to be Deaf.” Nobody stopped me, my parents didn’t nag me. There wasn’t even a particular reason, and even though I can’t hear anything I feel perfectly safe because for the first time I have a pager in my pocket which I know will vibrate like hell if the fire alarm goes off.

As well as all this silence I’m feeling amazingly awake, buzzing, and full of energy… Despite having two hours of lectures already today I don’t feel like I’m in information overload – the reason why? Oh, well I have an interpreter now! In terms of academics and support I’m loving it! After years and years of battling for support in a mainstream school, with a council that never seemed to come through with support even when it was promised, I feel like I’m on cloud 9 right now. This is another thing I love about university.

I’m not going to lie though; there have been moments when the tears have spilled over and I’ve sat in my room with my hearing aids out wishing and hoping that another deaf person will just walk through the door and start up a conversation with me. You see, although I have enormous amounts of fantastic support within university outside of lectures it’s just me. All on my own. My university is actually split into three campuses – North, South (that’s me!) and Millennium Point – and although there are apparently a couple of other deafies up at City North, here at South I’m the only one.

In the long run I hope this won’t matter too much, that people will become more deaf aware and that the university will hurry up and organise a deaf social event like they’ve promised! But at the minute it means that for the first time in years I’ve felt almost (shock horror!) like a hearing person…
Whereas I would normally do as I’ve done today and spend any free moment hearing aidless I realised last week that what with moving in, talking to new people (scary!) and going out for Freshers I’d actually had one day where I wore my aids for 17 whole long hours… That has to be some kind of record! I found myself sitting in conversations, where I couldn’t hear much of what was being said, debating the benefits of stem cell research and cochlear implants… Scary thoughts for someone who’s always sworn blind they would never consider them! Not that I’m saying I would – but I’m really starting to see why people would think about it!

In the defence of my lovely and wonderful flat mates, and flat next door mates, they have made an effort! Nearly all of them now know their names in sign, as well as various things such as “hello”, “good morning” and amusingly “where are the tea bags…?” So I can’t fault them for effort. But I think it’s more of a general misunderstanding about the complexities of not being able to hear half of a conversation, or not ever having had to think about how tiring it is to lip read a conversation all day. But I do love them all to bits, and I hope that over time they’ll become fluent signers or at least incredibly deaf aware!

To look back over my past week I have to say that moving in day was the most daunting experience, a flat full of new people who could have potentially been horrendous to lip read was never going to fill me with joy! But I do seem to have lucked out – so far all my flat mates have been easily lip readable!

I suppose the funniest moments have been in clubs where at first I felt even more isolated until I realised that people’s deaf awareness increases ten-fold. Suddenly texting on phones when you can’t understand is acceptable and normal, and using gestures and signs is common place! I even found I had an advantage – lip reading skills are very useful in a club!

I guess in conclusion I should say that after a week and a half I both love and hate university. I love my support and my friends. I dislike the general lack of deaf awareness, but I applaud the efforts made by everyone I know (well most of them…). At the same time I do hate not having my deaf friends around me – I find myself overjoyed just to have an appointment with my disability advisor and actively seeking out speech and language therapy students or pretty much anyone with sign language skills!!

I’m sure that overtime things will improve and so for now I’m staying as positive as possible! But if you’re reading this and you happen to be a deaf person living in Birmingham please do get in touch! I would love a coffee with another deafie!! 

Writing for the Buzz -Pimping My Hearing Aids And Cochlear Implants

Our group were recently given the opportunity to write for the NDCS Buzz to promote our group and give others the chance to learn about decorating the hearing aids and cochlear implants! This is what will be published...

Do you think your hearing aids or cochlear implants look dull and boring? 

Would you like to make them individual, funky and fun? 

Why not try customising them? 

By using small stickers or gems you can create a look that’s unique to you; or if you want something even funkier you can use nail foil stickers to cover the whole of you hearing aids or cochlear implants! (Don’t cover the microphones!) 

You can also use printable sticky paper to create your own designs or use Tube Riders, Skinits or Ear Gear! 

Pimp my Hearing Aids and Cochlear Implants is a group set up by teenagers (with help from some parents!)  who felt that their hearing aids and implants were uncool and wanted different ways to show them off with bright colours and awesome designs! The group has grown and now has nearly 300 Facebook members who share pictures of their jazzy aids and implants or share advice about new ways to customize!

Pimp my HAs and CIs Facebook Page

Pimp my HAs and CIs new blog!

Skin-its for Advanced Bionics 

Connevans Ear Gear 

Tube Riders :) 

Deaf Gerbils...

So yesterday the press (and Action on Heairng Loss) published a story which has - yet again - brought the Deaf community together in what has mainly been shock and sadness.

The BBC news story Deaf Gerbils hear again after stem cell "cure" has sparked interesting, if a little outraged, debate on social media. The story claimed that over 10 weeks of being injected with stem cells and such like the Deaf Gerbils could hear on average 45% better than before. And as the story reports "It would mean going from being so deaf that you wouldn't be able to hear a lorry or truck in the street to the point where you would be able to hear a conversation. It is not a complete cure, they will not be able to hear a whisper, but they would certainly be able to maintain a conversation in a room."

But the question I know I immediately asked was what on earth will happen to our amazing Deaf community and to BSL as a language in its own right. Will it just die out? Will the 90% of deaf kids born to hearing families really never know what it means to be deaf? Or will parents think of the future and wonder how their child might be if they were allowed to be deaf... 

Because I was interested in the story I posted it around Facebook. On my own page I got the kind of predictable "Oh my Gods" and the normal arguments against a "cure" for deafness from my deaf friends. And the normal misunderstanding from my hearing friends who couldnt work out why anybody wouldnt want to hear.
In a kind of sweet way a friend of mine going to university to study medicine promised never to allow a family with a deaf child to make such a massive decision without contacting NDCS first. (See! There is hope for the hearies!)

It was when I posted the story on the NDCS facebook page that I was a little shocked.. Straight away I had a comment telling me that the research was amazing... and the overall opinion did seem to be that deaf children were part of a hearing rather than deaf community... and that they didnt have much of a deaf identity.
I did think it would be interesting to know how many of these children also had cochlear implants?

I do have to stress though that I know several "NDCS Mums" who would never dream of "curing" their childs deafness and are proud of their deaf child and what they achieve.

However perhaps the most disturbing thing was the message I had when I woke up this morning... (From someone Ive never spoken to and dont know.) Telling me how evil I am for wishing deafness on could be hearing children... I mean Ouch. I dont wish deafness on anybody! I just think that people need to see deafness as more than just a medical condition. Its a culture, language, history etc...

The twitter debate #DeafGerbils has been predictable really... The people I know are mainly members of the Deaf Community in a big way and there have been some funny comments and cartoons - including the picture below.

I did have an interesting discussion with one person about the similarities between the arguments about stem cell "cure" and cochlear implants. We agreed that actually the pressure put on families by ENT consultants, audiologists, ToDs etc has a massive impact on the choices parents make. We already know that some audiologists and consultants are openly still preaching against BSL use which I think is unforgivable.

From what I've understood - which is limited by my scientific knowledge - if someone did gain funding etc to continue this research it would be many years before it was successful enough to even be trialled on humans.
Thats great because it gives us plenty of time to campaign against it and show people the reasons why deaf people love being deaf! As someone told me earlier, there needs to be a greater focus on raising deaf awareness so that when a deaf child is born to a hearing family they have some basic knowledge of deafness.

Unlike some people I do have a slightly random aside view to all this... As a person with progressive deafness I can understand that there might be some newly deafened people out there who did want their "sound" back. I think if you're an adult who suddenly loses all hearing, or an elderly person with age related hearing loss, maybe this idea of a "cure" suddenly looks a lot more promising...

Anyway - If you want a particularly interesting film to watch about the -dangers- of a "cure for deafness" I totally recommend watching the film The End, by Ted Evans. Its a remarkable piece and made me cry when I watched it - I think it sums up the fears of the Deaf community perfectly.

Our Local Celebrity :)

So normally this blog discusses issues relating to deafness etc, has a good moan and chats about how much I love decorating my hearing aids.
But I thought for a change I would introduce you to an inspirational deaf friend of mine.

15 year old Tilly was diagnosed as deaf when she was a baby and has overcame many barriers to gain a place at Chethams School of Music in Manchester where she is a boarder. (I should add that there are other deaf students at Chethams!)

This year she auditioned for, and was picked to be, a part of the Paralympic Paraorchestra! An amazing opportunity to play alongside other disabled musicians as well as Cold Play!

She also got a chance to show off her blue ear gear and hearing aids to a national audience... A great way to raise deaf-awareness! 

Tilly, who plays the viola amongst other instruments, told me "it was an amazing and unforgettable experience, I love the orchestra and will be continuing with them and it was inspirational. Just a very emotional night!"

Serious kudos to Tilly for being an amazing role model to other deaf young people wanting to learn to play an instrument. A great example of how being deaf should never hold you back and that you should always reach for your dreams!

Well done Tilly, we're all very proud of you!

A business proposal....

So, I think I should go on Dragon's Den.

My pitch I hear you ask; well its been gradually brewing over the last few months. Over the past few months the idea of decorating hearing aids has gone from a pet project belonging to a few Mums to something wide spread and massive, crossing the Atlantic and bringing together parents and teenagers on Facebook as they search for the latest cool nail foil/sticker design.

But as time has gone on and the market for hearing aid decoration has increased I've realised that the whole process would be a lot easier (and make someone ALOT of money) if there were specificly shaped hearing aid stickers made from the same material as nail foils. These could easily be available in a range of colours, patterns etc and with a bit of work i'm sure the stickers could soon be made available in a range of sizes/fits.

I'm not saying it wouldn't be difficult... To start with I reckon that on the Facebook group alone I've probably seen close to 15 different makes of hearing aid - Phonak and Oticon are of course the most popular companies but there are also a lot of Siemans aids around and even something called Danalogic... And all these companies make more than one type of aid... So of course a lot of market research would need to be done. However in some cases two hearing aids are (we have discovered) the same size and shape (Phonak Naida and Nathos being the obvious example...).

There are other difficulties of course... With my own hearing aids the battery door has to unclip from the rest of the hearing aid and therefore you need two stickers in order to allow it to open and close...

However I reckon all these difficulties could be overcome to create an amazing and special project or even business for somebody with the ability to take it on! There is definetely a huge market out there and lots of opportuntites to sell products through facebook, webpage and even connevans (like Ear Gear do) and possibly the hearing aid companies themselves.

I also think there are lots of opportunities to branch out as well - lots of people in the group complain that their cochlear implants are boring so maybe cochlear implant decoration would be something to explore. I've seen loads of amazing designs with flowers on the coil or sparkly diamantes so they look more like hair clips!
I also decorated my radio aid the other week which has made it look tons better!

So - for any bored people out there who have the skills, or would be willing to learn the skills needed to make nail foils into the right shapes for hearing aids we need your help!!!

No seriously... Get in contact :)

Kathryn Wilkins - The new Deafie on the block...

So my friend Kat who has written a couple of posts for this blog has now started her own blog writing about deaf issues and ideas as well as her life from the point of view of a deaf teen!

To visit her blog please go toooo... kathrynwilkins16.blogspot.co.uk

This is just a sample of some of her writing...

After doing some research into a well-known deaf model:Fletch@, reading about Louis Tomlinson's new found "deafness" and simply talking to deaf friends I started to wonder  what are the connotations of the word "deafness", what does it really mean?

Well, deafness goes across a wide spectrum: from mild to profound and within that spectrum are many different levels, and every individual's needs regarding deafness is unique. Some people choose to use BSL, some choose to speak and some choose to use a combination of both. There are hearing aid users, cochlear implant users, BAHA users and some who choose not to wear anything. Unfortunately Cochlear Implant's do spark a bit of controversy within the deaf community, but I'll leave that for another post! As you can tell, the deaf community is diverse, so being deaf doesn't always necessarily mean that you cant hear-full stop.

So why do we have to tick the disabled box on forms, just because we're deaf-we can still do everything that hearing people do so why should we let our deafness get in the way. We're not disabled, we're able to do anything. I personally think that deafness is separate to disability, we should be allowed to say that we're "deaf" and not "disabled" when applying for jobs,for uni etc. Another label we have to put up with; Special needs. Man people associate special needs with being stupid, that they can't do anything. Well I for one know that's not true because I volunteer with them, I have a family member who has Down's Syndrome and they're a pleasure to be with. But why should people associate deaf people with the word stupid? This relates back to the old saying 'deaf and dumb', many deaf people are on par with hearing peers,some above average and yes some are below the national average but that's not because they're dumb, it's because they haven't been provided with the necessary amount of support to enable them to achieve their potential. And yes we may need to have support and resources in an educational and work environment, and we may use a different language. But Special needs?! What happened to being "deaf"?

To end on a positive note I'm proud to deaf, proud to be a part of the deaf community, proud to say to people "I'm deaf."

#UKYP2012

So a couple of weeks ago I was up in Nottingham representing NDCS at the UK Youth Parliament Annual Conference - an opportunity for all members of UKYP to meet and attend various lectures, presentations and seminars. Its run very similarly to a real deal party conference with fringe events taking place as well.

This year NDCS had managed to set up an information stall and get permission to run a half hour workshop about our Look Smile Chat campaign as well as playing a Look Smile Chat video to all UKYP members after lunch.

We arrived early in the morning to set up our stall with loads of information about NDCS, The Buzz, the YAB and our campaigns. We also walked around sticking up posters advertising our lunchtime workshop and asking young people if the would be interested in learning some random signs.

During the breaks between seminars I was amazed and so excited at the number of people dropping past our stall for a chat, to ask questions and to fill in our quizs etc. Everyone had a question and we were very happy to answer as many as we could and to teach some signs and point people in the direction of places they could learn BSL.

I was set reading through some of the material in a quiet moment when I realised that the UKYP manifesto said in big letters that UKYP supports the teaching of sign language in mainstream schools alongside languages such as French and German.
I started pointing this out to people dropping by the stall and was a little disappointed that none of them even knew this aim was in the manifesto... I talked to a few people about why it was so important to teach BSL in schools and explained about Signatures new GCSE in BSL.

At lunchtime a large crowd of people crowded around our stall all very excited (I bet the other stalls were jealous!!) to begin a quick workshop.

We decided to play a lip-reading game to show people how hard lip-reading is and to make them aware of the importance of good communication tactics such as facing people when you talk and speaking clearly. We pointed out to them that these skills transfer to everyday life, not just to when you meet a deaf person.

It was really funny to see young people and adults struggling to lip-read words and phrases and resorting to amusing gestures in order to make themselves understood... I think they got the message we were trying to put across!!

After that we talked for a bit about the difficulties of being a deaf young person in mainstream education, focusing on the lack of subtitles on educational videos. We played on of the Look Smile Chat Videos and we answered questions.
Finally we taught the group a few signs including parliament, geek, tortoise and whats your name?

It was great to see how enthusiastic and motivated everyone was about the workshop and to realise that all the things they had learnt would be fed into their work in their local communities!

In the afternoon we attended a seminar with an MP and two young men who worked in the media who were discussing the attitudes of the media to young people. I was able to ask them a question about how they thought young people with disabilities were portrayed in the media, and whether they believed their views were fairly represented.

Did you miss me?

You probably haven't noticed but I haven't been around much these last couple of weeks! I've been off travelling around the countries doing lots of fun things, especially NDCS events!

The other weekend I was volunteering at a Pre-Secondary Weekend in a place called Irthlingborough, near Northampton. The idea of the weekends is that all the parents come together and meet with other parents, NDCS staff and in particular education advice people who talk about statements, picking the right school etc. The parents (and kids!) also get to meet Deaf role models who share their experiences of secondary school and what worked for them.

At the same time the kids meet and do fun activities aimed at raising their confidence and talking about things such as "what makes a good or a bad friend?".  They also do outdoor activities - team building, climbing and archery this time...

For a volunteer its an awesome weekend with the best of both worlds, you spend the day with the kids but at meal times and in the evenings the families have responsibility so you're free to do silly things like have pyjama parties...

I've just got back from my latest NDCS event... Last year I was lucky to be a member of the NDCS Youth Advisory Board along with 13 other amazing deaf young people. Now that we've "graduated" from the YAB a group of us have become young facilitators and did a day of training on Friday where we learnt about communication, leading sessions and the importance of giving clear instructions! It was a great day (yummy food) and in the same place as our last residential as a YAB. (The Studio in Birmingham.)

Today the new YAB arrived - looking very nervous! and Ellen and I were on hand to "meet and greet". It's great to see how similar and yet different our two groups are. This years board are much more diverse with a deaf-blind member, more BSL users and more people from Deaf schools. Oh and there are people from Wales this year too!! (drastically under represented last year!!)

The new YAB have done most of the same activities that we did last year... Talking about why they wanted to join the board, getting to know each other and discussing their rights as young people.

Ellen and I also ran a session about the "vintage" YAB and explained what we had achieved...

It was great to see and new, motivated and committed YAB and I hope they become great friends and enjoy the rest of their weekend :)

The Theme Park Theory - Eloise

Another post written by somebody else! Think I'm going to have to rename this blog something other than "Ni Gallant" as that doesn't seem very fair anymore!

This post is by Eloise and came about after some discussion on the NDCS Facebook Page following her school trip to Alton Towers. 

Theme parks can be tricky places for many people who have particular needs. For those who are physically disabled, many special arrangements are made in order to accommodate them in the best possible way. 

However, for those who are deaf, there seems to be an unseen loop amongst these thrilling attractions.

I recently went on a trip to Alton Towers with my school. When I arrived, I was given a white wrist band by guest services in order to highlight the fact that I had either a visual impairment or that I am deaf. Although there were no major problems with Alton Towers throughout the day, there were a few points I would like to highlight with the service I received:

• A white wrist band wasn’t enough to draw the attention of the staff at Alton Towers – In fact, I’m not sure anybody noticed at all even though I walked around with my right sleeve rolled up to make it easier to see! My main problem with this is that when my friends and I got stuck on a ride in the dark, I couldn’t see or hear anything – especially with my hearing aids out. My understanding of the ‘rescue mission’ was nil until my friend shouted the process into my ear so that I could get the gist of what was going on!

• Some of the staff were evidently undertrained in how to help a deaf person on a ride. As you know, visual cues are an important part of understanding what someone is trying to say to you. There was a lack of this, particularly amongst the younger members of staff at the park who tended to put their hands in front of their mouths and turn away at crucial moments of instruction. It’s unsettling to be sitting on a noisy ride and not being able to understand the instructions from the staff as they’re strapping you into your seat!

• Finally, I could see no evidence of flashing alarm systems being installed into rides. I would have difficulty hearing an alarm without my hearing aids in unless it is very loud. I expect that almost every deaf person would take their hearing aids out on rides to make sure they stay safe, so this would further the need for visual warning systems.

Although my experience was not bad at Alton Towers, a little bit more awareness and understanding amongst the staff would have gone a long way. I’m not someone to shout out to people if I am having a communication issue as I’m naturally quite shy, so this awareness really would help me and probably a huge number of others.

Many parents worry about their children going to a theme park if the system is not well established. The concern that parents have for their deaf child’s safety in theme parks is completely understandable – rides should be made accessible to all people with a variety of needs, and if this is not the case then it can be extremely worrying.

What is terrible is that some theme parks have been reported to discriminate against deaf sign language users - namely Disney Land Paris. One person reported that as a deaf family, she and her family weren’t allowed onto some of the rides without a hearing peer aged 18 or over. In order to access these rides, they had to pretend they weren’t deaf, thus putting themselves at potential risk. This situation could be easily resurrected through some training and a simple system for the staff to help deaf people access the same attractions as their hearing friends.

Other parks, however, have received gleaming reviews on their efforts with helping all people of all kinds. Lego Land is said to have their staff walk around with badges stating which languages they can speak, and sign language is on the list. This is a system to be admired and hopefully followed by other theme parks.

Alton Towers is half way there, and will hopefully improve with a nudge or two in the right direction from deaf visitors. Keep up the good work and I hope to have a great time next time I go!

Deaf Education vs. Mainstream Education - Kathryn

This post was written by my 16 year old Deaf friend Kathryn who is currently agonizing over whether or not she should apply to our local council for funding to go to Mary Hare Sixth Form.

As a lifelong main-streamer Kathryn knows all the ups and downs of mainstream school life as a profoundly Deaf teen but she fell in love with Mary Hare's unique environment when she visited a few years ago.

I hope you enjoy her moving post because it certainly resonated strongly with me... 

The way in which society educates deaf people has evolved throughout generations.  There was a time when deaf people were taught at deaf schools only, using the strategy of BSL, then BSL was banned in deaf education and deaf people were forced to speak. They were punished if they chose to sign as it was forbidden anywhere on school grounds.

BIG MISTAKE! 

By making them speak they felt like they lost their freedom, the freedom to embrace their deaf culture.

But have we learned from our mistakes?

Over time more deaf schools have been closed and deaf people have been sent to mainstream schools and have been taught orally.  Deaf people are now seen as part of the hearing world.  We have to learn English yet BSL isn’t taught.

We are seen as “deaf and dumb” this is NOT true, we can achieve anything in life if we put our minds to it. 

But shouldn’t we have the choice as to where we’re educated? 

The mainstream environment can cause deaf people to feel isolated, with lower confidence and self esteem but of course this doesn’t apply to everyone many deaf students thrive in a mainstream school and many don’t let their deafness get in the way of their goals and will continue to achieve their potential, with the right support and equipment.

But why should we have “special equipment” and have a TA sat next to us, and be seen as the odd one out, the one who’s disabled? Well, we’re deaf not disabled. Wouldn’t you like not to constantly battle for the right hours of support or equipment? 

Well, none of this matters, no battles are needed.   

Doesn’t society encourage equality? 

We should have the choice, the option to be educated in a deaf environment where you’re all treated equally, not being treated any different; not being singled out or having advantages because of your deafness. 

Not having to worry about explaining to a supply teacher how a radio aid works, or having to stick your hand up, embarrassed because you couldn’t hear what the teacher has said. No bullying towards your deafness. 

The deaf education is tailored to students who are deaf, with special group hearing aids, specialist teachers of the deaf. Deaf education allows deaf people to be themselves and forget their deafness, immerse themselves into a world of like-minded people, people who understand them, allowing them to feel “normal”, and also to develop their love for education again. Therefore, increasing self esteem and confidence.

The reason why we don’t see many deaf schools open and very few deaf students applying to go to deaf education is because of cuts and lack of funding. Why should our futures be decided by our LA’s?  However, there is a wide amount of support available in a mainstream environment but the quality of support is arguably varied. 

Wouldn’t you like the option to choose; mainstream or deaf education? You should have the choice to embrace your deaf culture, to decide how you want to lead your life, for you only live life once. So you should think about what’s best for you, and take the opportunity by both hands.