I am a 38 year old man who was born with Cerebral Palsy. Assistive technology was part of my life before I even knew what AT was about.
Cerebral palsy affects me physically by a speech impediment and I have restricted movement in my hands (fine motor skills) and legs due to muscle spasms. Believe me, this has not stopped me from achieving and AT has been a big support in my life.
Assistive technology covers a range of areas in my life from every day home/Social life to daily work.
From an early age I have had a speech impediment and I did not want to rely on communication aids. So I refused to use them and I have to say for me I made a good choice. That did not mean it was a good choice for everyone else. I did have to work hard with a speech therapist and now I can speak much clearer where people can mostly understand me.
From the time I was a toddler till I was 24, I could walk with the support of a Rollater or the back of a wheelchair at home. Sometimes we forget the Rollater is a crucial piece of AT equipment. As a teenager I wanted to wear jeans like everyone else but I didn’t want to have to rely on friends and family to close the buttons on my trousers so I was given a buttonhook. This simple piece of equipment has given me independence and privacy to be able to close my trousers/jeans and in my eyes the buttonhook is like gold dust to me.
IT came into my life at the age of 18 and a few years after, AT really opened my eyes to a whole new world. Unfortunately when I left school I was still unable to read due to the school curriculum. I was determined to achieve in life and I knew I had to be able to read. I was introduced to a programme called Kurzweil 3000, which allowed you to upload text and the computer would read it out to you. The important thing here is that when it’s reading it highlights the word so I could begin recognizing words. This shows the programme can be used in a variety of ways.
At the age of 25 I had to start using a power Wheelchair as I kept falling. Without this technology I would not be able to get around or live independently. This has given me freedom in my work, home and social life.
The most important thing that I would see around assistive technology is that it evolves and improves which enriches people’s lives. People should embrace new ideas to enhance the ones they already have.
