Please Note: This is entirely my opinion and may not reflect others who are Deafblind.

There was a recent court case where a Deafblind man, Paul McGann, demanded that Cinemark Theaters provide him with a Tactile Interpreter so he can attend "Gone Girl".

Now I'm wondering how this would work.....

There'll be two interpreters to take turns - not just the dialogue, but screen actions, descriptions of people, places and so on and so forth.

Some of you have seen Captioning - print descriptions of every sound happening:
[phone ringing]
[dog barks in distance]
[paper rustling on desk]

Then there's audio description for people with vision loss - describing nonverbal happenings on screen, scenery, etc:

Now a Tactile interpreter would have to do BOTH these jobs and the two switch turns (usually every 20 - 30 minutes).

• How does he combat fatigue? Not just from holding his hands up all that time (2 hours), but mental fatigue from concentrating throughout. That's a lot of information to process through TASL.
• What happens when he needs more details or he missed something? Pause the movie?

I don't care about other moviegoers being distracted by this - that's their problem.

It's just my opinion that this guy is asking for a lot and expecting a lot.

Maybe he can't get access to TASL for movies at home, so he goes after the "big guy" with the money? I don't know his reasoning and I don't care.

I'm sorry, but just be like many other Deaf and Deafblind person who don't want, or can't access, the standard captioning service at the theater and wait for it to come out on DVD and watch it at home.

Pretty soon there'll be technology for Captioning to Braille for television watching available, and then probably adapted for movie theaters as well.

Now I'm all for equal accessibility and everything, but right now, this Deafblind woman is baffled and bothered by this lawsuit. In the current state of things it is an "undue burden" on the owner of that particular theater - not the Parent Company. Sure, the lawsuit names Cinemark, but they'lll just pass it off onto the small business owner of the Pennsylvania theater. If they don't pass it off and absorb the costs themselves, and other DB folks request it - the costs are going to be passed off to the consumers. Moviegoers already pay a ridiculous amount to get into a movie, how would they feel with another price hike? 

So, have patience grasshopper.....technology will improve to where we all can enjoy movies without any waiting, without any requests, without any barriers.

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Want exposure for your writing, teach others, or share information, but don't have the knowledge, or don't want the hassle, of running your own website. Leave that to me!

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​Taking an infrared sauna is good for health and would be great for people who are deaf and blind. It is a well known fact that consistent infrared sauna use improves just about all aspects of the body's overall health.

​But what about those with the challenges of a disability; in particular the deaf and blind. A person who is deaf or blind needs to make sense of the world using somewhat limited information. If the person’s sensory disabilities are great this challenge can be overwhelming. Behavioral and emotional difficulties often associated with deaf-blindness and can be the natural outcome of the person's isolation.

People with limited sight and or hearing experience the world around them through their limited sight or hearing, but mainly through their sense of touch. A busy day of being indedependent gets very tiring. What a wonderful sensory experience an infrared sauna can be to a deaf-blind person. In the safety of a small space they too can benefit from the many advantages of the infrared along with experiencing, due to their heightened sense of touch, the sheer enjoyment of the soft, gentle heat from the infrared itself.

Many who are deaf or blind have some usable vision and hearing. Some even have enough vision to be able to move about in their environment. They can recognize familiar people, see sign language at close distances or by tactile, and possibly read large print. Others have enough hearing to recognize familiar sounds, understand speech, or even speak themselves.

Deaf-blindness includes a large range of sensory impairments. Touch therapy could be enhanced through the use of infrared as well. These saunas are entirely large enough to comfortably hold many people at a time. A therapist and patient could enjoy quality time spent together while enjoying an infrared sauna's many benefits.

Infrared saunas offer a modern twist to the ancient steam sauna experience. Traditional steam saunas elevate the temperature of the air in order to warm your body. Infrared saunas heat the air within the sauna cabin as infrared emits a wavelength that heats only your body.

Imagine yourself outside on a warm summer day with the sun overhead gently warming you. Your body becomes heated from the sun, however, if the sun is blocked you will feel cooler, though the outside temperature hasn’t really changed. This is your body being heated by the sun and it’s infrared rays. Infrared saunas heat your body in the same manner. Infrared heat is perfectly natural. Infrared sauna therapy heat provides all the healthy benefits of natural sunlight without any of the dangerous side effects of our sun’s radiation. Infrared sauna therapy is natural, comfortable, inexpensive and wonderful for your health.

Brent Bauer, the director of the Department of Internal Medicine's complementary and integrative medicine program at the Mayo Clinic, wrote in a Mayo Clinic Report, “The appeal of saunas in general is that they cause reactions, such as vigorous sweating and increased heart rate, similar to those elicited by moderate exercise. An infrared sauna produces these results at lower temperatures than does a regular sauna, which makes it accessible to people who can't tolerate the heat of a conventional sauna.”

The very safe and healing benefits for the deaf-blind are akin to all who use this infrared therapy. The benefits are myriad. You can experience muscle and organ relaxation, detoxification, pain relief, improved cell health, better circulation, anti-aging, skin purification, immunity boosting, relaxation, lowered BP and even weight loss. It also greatly reduces the effects of depression.

However, due to the heightened senses of the deaf-blind how does infrared feel? It feels like sunshine on a warm day. The gentle light from the infrared envelops the body in rejuvenating warmth as it literally melts away stresses and worries along with ridding the body of all the many toxins with which we are daily bombarded. The temperature of an infrared sauna is comfortable at about 110 to 125 degrees. When infrared comes into contact with the body it penetrates well below the skin, raising core body temperature and enabling your body to sweat while sitting in a comfortable temperature. Because you’re still sweating as deeply as you can, an infrared sauna is going to feel much hotter than it actually is. This allows for you to sit inside the sauna for a much longer period of time. Because of this, you are likely to come back to the sauna night after night, reaping it's many rewards. So, not only does it feel great it's benefits are immense.

The daily lives of the deaf-blind parallel those surrounding them who are not deaf-blind. They never ask to be pitied or patronized as they too can be and are successful, independent and happy individuals who work, raise families and manage a home. They experience all the similar ups and downs of all those around them and they, too, can benefit greatly from the consistent use of infrared sauna therapy.

Have you or someone you know lost some vision?

Had some loss for some time and want to gain more independence?

Whatever your circumstances, you can shop for groceries on your own independently with very little help. Wouldn't that be awesome?

There are many ways to shop for groceries when you have vision loss, all with varying degrees of monetary costs and help involved:

Many cities and even small towns have a delivery service / taxi service that can make small deliveries. I would only recommend this for the occasional item that you need "now" - such as a missing recipe item. 

Another similar service that you may want to know about is UberEats for food delivery from restaurants that don't offer delivery.

If you live close to a grocery store, consider walking there, you'll get good exercise, orientation and mobility (O&M) practice, and get familiar with your neighborhood.

The same goes for public transit, take a bus tour of your area and find a grocery store that's convenient on your route. Some advice, the best grocery store on your route may not even be the closest one to your home - pick a store that's easy to stop at and has a return route without many "exchanges" or long wait times.

Some grocery stores have shopping fulfillment services - you call or fill out an online form with your shopping list and can just pick it up at the customer service department. Wal-Mart offers this service in some places and will even put the groceries in your car for you. So use a ride-share service like Uber or Lyft, or your taxi and just have them wait while you go in and claim your order. No long hassle of searching for items on rows and rows of shelves.

If your local grocery store doesn't offer a fulfillment service, you can call ahead and request a personal assistant - an employee that will walk with you and either read you prices and items, or fetch them for you. This also saves time hunting around for items when you can't see things well.

Shop in bulk when you have a ride with a friend or relative. Grab all the big bulk items like toilet paper, paper towels, canned food, pantry items like flour, sugar, coffee, etc. This way you won't have to struggle with getting these heavy or awkward-sized groceries home on your own - whether you're walking, taking the bus, or ride-share. 

​This way you have -

• Reliable transportation
• A large supply of goods stocked up
• Savings
• Less expended energy
• A friendly helping hand
• 
  

Another new service you may want to check out is Amazon Fresh.  A produce and grocery service offered by Amazon.com. They offer an unlimited service for only $14.99 a month and the food is delivered right to your door!

For some extra savings, use these promotional codes when you shop on Amazon:

15% off Peet's Coffee k-cup packs - 15BRAZIL32CT
20% off Gillette Venus Women Razors with Olay - 20VENUS
20% off Gillette Fusion Gel - 20GILLETTE
$30 off Tiger JAX rice cooker - 30TIGEROCT
20% off Global Pet Nutrition soft chews - 20GPN

So, there's many ways to shop when you have vision loss and without losing your sense of independence as well. 

​What other ways do you do for shopping? Share your experiences!

.I’ve recently been asked by Sonic Alert to review two of their products.
 
I was given the Sonic Boom Travel Alarm clock and their NEW Bluetooth Sonic Boom Super Shaker Alarm.

Sonic Alert is a company that specializes in alerting systems for people with hearing loss and for those who are hard to wake up. They sell alarm clocks that have extra-loud ringers and "bed shakers" which are small pods that vibrate for you to feel. They also sell amplified telephones and home alerting systems (visual alerts to important sounds).

​Now the products:

The picture shows the clock portion upright, but it actually can fold flat.

​I tried the alarm in several scenarios:
   - Tucked under two pillows.
   - Between the mattress and boxspring.
   - Clipped to the fitted sheet in between the pillows (on a queen  bed).
   - Clipped to the fitted sheet, but dangling over the side (in case you knocked it off)
   - Clipped to the end of the bed in the middle (by my feet).

It didn't work in only 2 scenarios - dangling off the bed and clipped to the sheet in the middle between the pillows. I figured out why - there was no resistance to the vibrations, meaning there was nothing on top to enhance the vibrating. If it bounced freely, the vibrations are lost - so using a blanket or pillow helps.

In all the other situations - Man did it ever work! You could be in a coma and still wake up on time. That's why the name "Sonic Boom" fits it perfectly.

It was very easy to set up, Just install the batteries, one look at the diagram bof where buttons are and I was done setting the time, the alarm & the vibrate alert. It also has a snooze button, night light and options such as vibrate only, buzzer only, and both vibrate and buzzer. 

The only suggestion I have for improving this product is having a pocket in the storage case for the batteries, (as they advise removing the batteries while not in use).

So whenever you receive a new phone call, text, a new e-mail on your smartphone -  it sends an alert to the sonic boom.

The vibrations can be adjusted - short bursts, long vibrate, and so on. Sadly it cannot be set to different vibrations to different alerts. (short bursts for texts and long vibration for email). I don't really care for that option but thought some users might.

I really thought this would be AWESOME for Deafblind people like myself! Why? We often lack peripheral vision and miss seeing the visual alert flasher or the smartphone's own light. Sure, we could just have the phone vibrate in our pocket - but that gets uncomfortable when you're in a chair or on the couch watching TV, reading, or other activities. Stick the Sonic Bomb alert in your couch or chair cushion and you'll never miss anything else.

Another bonus I liked - the Sonic Boom alerter can either be plugged into a wall socket (with included plug adapter) or a USB port. The bonus is that the USB adapter has another USB port for you to plug in your smartphone or tablet into. So only one plug outlet is needed for the vibrating alert and to charge your phone  How cool is that?

Both of these great products and Sonic Alert's other products, can be found on their website, on Amazon, and in my Store.

So never be late for anything while away from home, or miss any more notifications with Sonic Alert.

Whether it’s partial or complete deafblindness, when they’re home people with hearing and sight difficulties need to feel comfortable, safe and completely in charge of their surroundings.

Acquired deafblindness can be frustrating and scary. It forces people to rethink their habits, their needs, and their environment.

To help deafblind people gain their independence, we’ve hand-selected 7 ways to adapt your house in order to accommodate them. 

Whether they live in a studio, apartment or house, one of the first and most important changes for a deafblind person’s environment should be lighting.

​Changing the placement of light fixtures can also help better illuminate dark spaces:
​
• Choose the brightest light bulbs. These will come in handy in darker spaces where accidents tend to happen such as the bathroom or on the stairway. Invest in fluorescent bulbs – they emit a more powerful light and they last longer.
• Be generous with the light fixtures. Illuminate the house entirely, including the hallways, closets, and outside.  

​The home of a deafblind person should be a safe haven. Here are some tips to help you create exactly that.

• Install a border in every room. This type of border goes around the edge of the room and helps deafblind people differentiate between the floor and the walls.
• Know what type of flooring you need. Take into consideration the needs and preferences of the deafblind person when choosing a flooring system for the house. The floor should have a non-slip texture. It should also be a different color than the walls and ceilings.
• Pad sharp edges. Accidents can’t always be prevented and they’re bound to happen sooner or later. Padding sharp edges and corners all around the house is especially important for those who recently acquired sight difficulties.
• Install handles and rails. These small additions can make it much easier to navigate the house and get around. They can also serve as points of reference and mark the beginning of a new room.

Electrical items can be tricky to get used to. But it’s not impossible for deafblind people to use them.

Here’s how you can make it go smoother for them.

• Use tactile bumps. This is a simple yet very effective way to help impaired people distinguish between various knobs and control buttons. A marker can easily be glued or attached to things so this is a simple do it yourself project.
• Organize all the wires. You’ll want to make sure you do everything in your power to minimize hazards. This includes a thorough organization of wires that could trip people and cause injury. Use tape or cords to tie wires together and arrange them so they’re never in the way.
• Use contrasts to your advantage. A white switch against a white wall won’t do anyone any favors. Replace the switches as soon as possible with brightly colored ones that easily stand out and are simple to notice. If you can’t change the switches, use colored tape to mark them and help them stand out.

This type of adjustment is essential for safety.

​Here’s how to adapt a bathroom for deafblind people:

• Add non-slip mats and floors. One of the most important adaptations is taking care of any walking surfaces that might be slippery. Invest in non-slip flooring that should go all throughout the bathroom. Add non-slip mats both in the tub and in the shower.
• Install grab rails in key places. The place where you install these might depend on personal preferences. Nonetheless, they are an essential addition that should be in every bathroom. Grab rails and hand rails make it easier for deafblind people to be more independent and find their way easier.
• Use contrasting colors. Both the walls and the accessories in the bathroom should have contrasting colors. For instance, if the tile is white, choose dark colors for the wash basin, toilet seat and towels. This ensures the items pop and are easier to spot for those with partial sight loss. 

Hallways shouldn’t be overlooked when you are working on adapting a home for a deafblind person.

​Here’s what you should know about corridor adaptations:

• Install a lot of grab rails. Grab rails do not only help deafblind people move around the house easier, they also serve as points of reference. For instance, a person will know that there are 3 grab rails between the kitchen and the front door, which helps them navigate smoothly and faster.
• Remove clutter. There shouldn’t be any unnecessary items lying around in hallways or corridors. Coat racks, umbrella holders and shoe racks can create more issues than they are worth. Move them to a separate room or to dedicated shelves where they can’t inconvenience anyone. 

To make it easier to deafblind people to go out or access the garden, here’s what you should keep in mind about outdoor adaptations:

• Maintain the paths. Whether you do it yourself or hire someone else to take care of it on a regular basis, maintaining and repairing paths is a must. They should always be hazard-free, especially during winter months when rain can easily transform into dangerously slippery ice.
• Install big door handles. The locks on doors should be easy to operate both from inside and outside. The door handles should be as big as possible without being cumbersome. This makes them easier to grab and open the door.

There are special alerting systems designed for people with hearing and sight difficulties that keep them informed about what is happing: phone ringing, smoke alarm going off or someone at the door.

• Pager. This is a simple to use device that can be carried in the pocket or attached to clothing. The pager uses vibrating signals to inform the user about alerts or alarms.
• Bed shaker. This device is usually placed under the pillow during nighttime and vibrates to alert people with hearing and sight difficulties. A bed shaker can be connected to the alarm clock or smoke alarm system.

About the Author:
 John Stuart works on behalf of raisedfloor.co.ukin outreach and content creation. He creates engaging content that help businesses connect with their audience and stand out from the crowd