Don't you just hate it when someone decides to be a party popper. But while your plotting and planing the holiday festivities, working on family get together's. Deciding who is coming to dinner and who isn't. What to eat. What parties to go too and what to wear...Out there somewhere close by will be a needy lonely person. maybe they don't have family or someone to care. We can't help everyone as much as we'd like to and its very sad to think of sad lonely people.
But wait a minute!
You may well have a lonely person sitting right in the midst of your celebrations!!
Grandma, Grandpa or old Auntie sitting at the end of the dinner table ignoring everyone like a cankerous old fart. Then later sitting apart from everyone else in the chair in the corner, nursing a drink and refusing to join in family activities. Everyone knows the elderly are less sociable don't we?
But are they really less sociable, is it really just old age and moodiness. or could it be they have a level of acquired deafblindness.
If they have they may not even realise it, loss can be gradual over time, so gradual you don't even notice how little you can actually see and hear. Of course even family mostly don't recognise the signs and sometimes doctors don't either. You could always try a couple of little tests to ascertain if they are hearing and seeing sufficiently, if you have any doubt at all suggest they see a doctor or consultant and make sure the doctor is aware of the fact you suspect dual sensory loss. Maybe grandma, grandpa, old auntie or uncle feels left out because they can't follow the conversation and can't visually keep up with things.
Be aware!!
The majority of all deafblind people are over 50, after then senses deteriorate rapidly especially if a person has suffered problems with vision or hearing throughout life. They don't need to have suffered a loss of both to be effected by loss of both in later years.
The young can also be affected. Some have hereditary or genetic dual loss. Some have usher syndrome Yet others contracted meningitis or the mother came in contact with Rubella or other viruses. Young people today are unaware that the sexual disease Herpes can also cause deafblindness in unborn children.
Like their older counterparts, younger deafblind people also suffer isolation and can easily be forgotten in groups and gatherings. most deafblind people regardless of age prefer one to one conversation as its impossible to follow regular conversation in groups.
If someone has or you suspect they have dual sensory loss take time and a bit of effort to include them. NEVER, ever speak to someone with a hearing loss with the light BEHIND you. If you couldn't hear do you think you could read lips or see sign with the light blinding you and blotting out the person your trying to understand? Be considerate,
It's annoying and time consuming to repeat second or third hand snippets of conversation, jokes or antidotes , but taking the time to do so and include someone with sensory loss will make them feel involved and wanted and above all make them feel part of the festivities. We can't go out of our way to help all the lonely isolated people out there. But we can make extra effort to go out of our way to make sure our nearest and dearest have the very best of times with us.
But wait a minute!
You may well have a lonely person sitting right in the midst of your celebrations!!
Grandma, Grandpa or old Auntie sitting at the end of the dinner table ignoring everyone like a cankerous old fart. Then later sitting apart from everyone else in the chair in the corner, nursing a drink and refusing to join in family activities. Everyone knows the elderly are less sociable don't we?
But are they really less sociable, is it really just old age and moodiness. or could it be they have a level of acquired deafblindness.
If they have they may not even realise it, loss can be gradual over time, so gradual you don't even notice how little you can actually see and hear. Of course even family mostly don't recognise the signs and sometimes doctors don't either. You could always try a couple of little tests to ascertain if they are hearing and seeing sufficiently, if you have any doubt at all suggest they see a doctor or consultant and make sure the doctor is aware of the fact you suspect dual sensory loss. Maybe grandma, grandpa, old auntie or uncle feels left out because they can't follow the conversation and can't visually keep up with things.
Be aware!!
The majority of all deafblind people are over 50, after then senses deteriorate rapidly especially if a person has suffered problems with vision or hearing throughout life. They don't need to have suffered a loss of both to be effected by loss of both in later years.
The young can also be affected. Some have hereditary or genetic dual loss. Some have usher syndrome Yet others contracted meningitis or the mother came in contact with Rubella or other viruses. Young people today are unaware that the sexual disease Herpes can also cause deafblindness in unborn children.
Like their older counterparts, younger deafblind people also suffer isolation and can easily be forgotten in groups and gatherings. most deafblind people regardless of age prefer one to one conversation as its impossible to follow regular conversation in groups.
If someone has or you suspect they have dual sensory loss take time and a bit of effort to include them. NEVER, ever speak to someone with a hearing loss with the light BEHIND you. If you couldn't hear do you think you could read lips or see sign with the light blinding you and blotting out the person your trying to understand? Be considerate,
It's annoying and time consuming to repeat second or third hand snippets of conversation, jokes or antidotes , but taking the time to do so and include someone with sensory loss will make them feel involved and wanted and above all make them feel part of the festivities. We can't go out of our way to help all the lonely isolated people out there. But we can make extra effort to go out of our way to make sure our nearest and dearest have the very best of times with us.