actually does anyone have any tips or product recommendations for chronic joint pain in the hands? i’m a compsci major and not being able to type well REALLY sucks
I myself don’t have too much trouble with typing so I usually just suffer through it when it’s bad, but I think @chronicallypainful might know better than I do, she keeps a list of resources and is very well-versed in computers and assistive tech
Yep, I have dealt with this problem. It’s actually one of the main reasons that I didn’t major in computer science. (I got a BS in mathematics. Now a graduate student.) But, I have much better tools now than I did when I was starting undergrad!
You are welcome to poke around this blog or my assistive tech blog @awesomeassistivetechnology, but it is probably easier for both of us to just talk (on Skype or Google hangouts or whatever). And there’s also a fair bit of knowledge in my head that has never made it onto either blog. So, yeah, send me a message if you’d like to chat. One of my goals for the summer is actually to strengthen my social support networks, so it would be cool to “meet” you. :-)
I’m a professional programmer and completely use Dragon naturally speaking to dictate code because of chronic pain. There‘s a really cool open source software community around it. You need to install natlink, python, dragonfly, and my favorite tool set is called caster. There’s a YouTube channel called castervoice. It works pretty well, all things considered.
Very cool. Thanks for sharing! I currently use Dragon for emails/blogging/etc and LaTeX. And I’ve been using eye tracking (low cost eye tracker marketed to gamers) with an open source keyboard called OptiKey for writing code and working on the command line. I’ve experimented with natlink and vocola in the past, but never reached the point of finding them really useful.
One of my biggest challenges with Dragon is that it doesn’t cooperate with most code editors. May I ask what what editor you use?
So not to derail, but this is what’s called a one handed keyboard. Obviously, that means it’s designed to be used with one hand. While this is something that a few professionals who do hella typing and mouse clicking prefer, as it means not switching your right hand back and forth between input devices, the primary purpose is, of course, to allow people with the user of my one hand to have maximal use of their computers. People missing a hand, as well as people with partial paralysis are the primary market.
They come in right and left hand versions, and this itt board is one of the more expensive models, but the curvature really is (according to reviews) excellent for helping prevent fatigue and repetitive strain injuries on the one hand that’s doing the work of two.
Just thought I’d share. Accessible computing is a seriously under appreciated field and while I admit the keyboard is quite striking to look at, the engineering and consideration that has gone into its design really cannot be over stated.
I just bought the sickest product ever, telecoil ear hooks. I just put them over my ears, next to my hearing aids, plug them into my phone, and listen to music using the T-coil setting on my hearing aids. The music is playing through my hearing aids, no more headphones required, no more taking my hearing aids out to listen to music and it not being loud enough for me but being so loud everyone can hear my music, no more people talking to me when I’ve headphones in and me taking about 30 seconds to find my hearing aid, put it in and wait for it to turn on before I can hear them. Now I can just change my hearing aid setting with a push of a button and go back to normal hearing and have a conversation.
A bit over six months ago I got a new mobility aid. I think it’s time for a review. (As always, this is not in any way a sponsored post. I purchased my scooter myself at market price.)
Basics: What is it? Two-wheeled scooter with a bicycle seat and handlebars with brakes. I will refer you to the company’s website for pictures.
I’m doing some research on apps and technology for my grandfather, and I was wondering if anyone has recommendations.
My grandfather’s been dealing with some level of hearing loss his whole life, originally stemming a near-lethal case of measles when he was a child, and exacerbated by scarlet fever when he was a young man. Thanks to the marches of time (and age-related hearing loss), hearing aids really cutting it anymore, and social situations are increasingly tough for him. I’ve finally gotten him to admit that he could use some help, and now I’m determined to figure out what the best help would be.
So if any folks with hearing impairments are reading right now, what tech are you actually using? Are there any brands of tablets, particular speech-to-text apps, or other tools you find particularly useful? The plan is to buy my grandpa a tablet and set it up with apps & adaptations, and then learn how to use everything, so that I can teach him. Obviously, I’m doing my own research as well, but I’d really appreciate any personal suggestions, particularly for things with good multilingual support. Thanks a ton!
So, I am not your follower, don’t have a hearing impairment, and I stumbled on this post because I follow the assistive technology tag. But, I just took a whole semester class on assistive technology, and I’m actually using speech to text software right now to write this post. And I feel a little bad that this post only has 6 notes. (Because I have often had a horrible time finding help when I was looking for assistive technology myself…)
Anyway, those disclaimers aside, I can tell you a few things.
First, the word “tablet” can mean a lot of different things. Anything from a $100 android tablet that can barely were run a web browser to a $5000 Windows tablet computer capable of doing video processing would count as a tablet. But there is a big divide down the middle of the tablet selection, and what you choose does make a big difference for your software options. Basically, you have to choose if the tablet runs a mobile operating system (iOS or Android) or a desktop operating system like Windows. (I don’t think Apple makes any tablets that run the full OS X, but I could be wrong about that.) If you have the budget for it, going with a full desktop OS will generally give you more processing power (which is important!) and more software options.
On Windows, Dragon NaturallySpeaking is the current best speech to text software on the market. The problem with that is that it is speaker dependent recognition. That is, it creates a separate profile for each person using the software. That’s not a big deal if your grandpa is sitting down and having a conversation with one person at a time. He would just make a profile for each person he regularly talks with, and load up that profile at the beginning of the conversation. But it’s going to be really hard (if not impossible) to use in a large group of people.
(In fact, I suspect you won’t find anything that works in a large group of people. The problem of how to just identify multiple voices in a recording is really hard, and computer science hasn’t really solved that one yet :-( Microphone placement would also be a challenge in a large group of people.)
Dragon is available in multiple languages, but you would have to buy a separate copy of the software for each language, which could get expensive depending on how many languages you want to support.
Windows Vista and later also have some built-in speech recognition tools. I’ve never found the dictation recognition (that is, when you’re just dictating a document) to be good enough to be very useful for text entry. Depending on how much hearing your grandpa has, he might be able to get enough information from the recognition to be helpful, but I suspect it would still be tricky. I would really recommend going with Dragon over the built-in tools. The accuracy is better, and it’s going to be less frustrating for everyone involved.
One other thing you can play with on desktop is Google’s speech recognition tools. This works as long as you have a reliable Internet connection. Just open up Google docs in Chrome, make a new document, and find the voice typing option in the tools menu. This has the advantage of being speaker-independent, which would make it easier to use with many people. It’s still not going to do a good job with multiple people talking to it at once, though.
On mobile, I can only really talk about Android. Google’s speech recognition tools are built in to various parts of the android operating system. They generally require you to either tap a button to begin listening to your speech or to say a call phrase like “okay Google.” I’ve never gotten as good of recognition accuracy on my android device, but I do wonder about how microphone quality effects things. Regardless of what tablet you use, I would definitely look for a good quality external microphone. If a conversation partner is willing to wear a headset, that’s ideal. If your tablet has a USB port, there are loads of USB headset options. Bluetooth should be an option on just about any device (more expensive, but no wires).
Applications on android can use Google’s speech recognition framework, so you might find an app designed to facilitate conversation for people with hearing impairment.
Dragon has a subscription-based app for android. I’ve never messed with it, but their recognition accuracy is generally good, so it might be something to look into.
So, to summarize, the two technologies I would look at first would be Dragon NaturallySpeaking and Google’s speech recognition framework. I’m undecided about which one I would rank first versus second. Probably it depends on the exact use case. If the goal is to facilitate short interactions with a large set of people, then I would lean towards Google. If the goal is to help with longer conversations with close family or friends, then I would probably look at Dragon first. But, like I said, I don’t have hearing impairment, so take this all with more than one grain of salt. (I use speech to text software because of my physical disability.)
Also, just a couple other thoughts coming from the assistive technology course I took last semester. 1. If your grandpa is interested in medical intervention, he could talk to his doctor about a cochlear implant. People who lose their hearing later in life (and, in particular, grow up with spoken language) often have very good results with modern cochlear implants.
2. If he has any visual difficulties (also super common with aging), be sure to look in the accessibility settings of whatever device you choose and adjust text sizes/colors, mouse pointer size/shape/color, and any other relevant settings for his comfort.
3. Depending on the exact use case, some sort of a stand for the tablet might be super useful. Holding something like that up can get tiring really quickly. A case with a shoulder or neck strap to prevent accidental drops might also be a good idea (think of the strap on a camera). With any assistive technology device, positioning and durability are things to consider.
Once again, just my super geeky thoughts. Take them with a grain of salt.
Nope, not kidding. I have actually been writing computer programs with my eyes (and a few voice commands thrown in here and there).
More specifically, I’m using an eye tracking device called the Tobii EyeX. It’s a consumer-level eye tracker which mounts to the bottom of my computer monitor and connects to my computer via USB 3.0. (I’ve written about this type of eye tracking device before, and you can also look at Tobii’s website.)
Okay, so how?…
Good question! And I’m going to answer it with the rest of this post. I’m going to write this in the general style of a how-to guide, in case any of my readers actually want to copy my set up. (To my knowledge, no one else has documented how to do this.) However, even if you have no desire to write Python with your eyes, you might still want to skim the rest of this. Several of the tools that I’m using have potentially much broader applications.
Hardware requirements: -Tobii EyeX sensor bar (link, < $150) -external monitor, preferably at least 20 inches but no more than 24 inches (You probably could make this work with a laptop, but having a larger screen area makes the eye tracker much easier to use. 24 inches is the size limit for the EyeX sensor.) -Modern computer with USB 3.0 support (I have a quad core processor at 3.6 GHz, 8 GB of RAM. I wouldn’t recommend much less than that, unless you want to eliminate the speech commands from the project and use keystrokes instead.)
Software requirements: -Windows 7 64-bit (should work on Windows 8 or 10, as well. But you may have to make some adjustments.) -EyeX drivers and associated software (included with the device) -Dasher (free and open source) -FreePIE(free and open source) -Compiler and editor for the language you wish to program in (for this example, I’ll be using Sage and its browser-based interface)
You will also need some sample code from the language you want to program in (so that Dasher can build an appropriate language model). You can ignore this if you only want to write in English (or another natural language).
Got all that? Good, let’s get started.
1. Install the EyeX drivers and mount the sensor according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Run the configuration to get EyeX to work properly with your monitor, and calibrate it to recognize your eyes. All of this is standard for any user of the EyeX, and you should be able to follow instructions from the manufacturer. When you’re finished, you can test your calibration using the “test calibration” option in the EyeX software.
2. Download and install Dasher. We will make some configuration changes to Dasher in the next step, but for now just take a minute to familiarize yourself with Dasher if you haven’t used it before. With the default settings, you can click the mouse inside of Dasher’s window to start writing, and drag the mouse towards the letters you want in order to write. Your text will appear in the box at the top. For more details, see Dasher’s website. (Obviously, skip this experimentation/exploration step if you aren’t physically able to use the mouse. You can experiment with Dasher once we get it working with the eye tracker. I just included this step so that, as much as possible, new users can get used to one new technology at a time.)
3. (Skip this step if you just want to write in English, not computer code.) Close Dasher, and locate its program files on your hard drive. On Windows 7, I have a Dasher folder in Program Files (x86). Inside of that is another folder for my specific version, in this case Dasher 4.11. In your Dasher folder, find the folder labeled system.rc. We are going to add two new plaintext files to this folder. First, an alphabet file. This defines the all of the valid symbols for your language. I would recommend starting with an existing file, so make a copy of alphabet.englishC.xml and put it in the same folder. Name your copy alphabet.<yourlanguage>.xml, and open the file in a plain text editor. Make the following changes : -Change line 5 so that the text in double quotes is the name of your language (this will be shown in that the user interface). -Change line 9 by replacing ‘training_english_GB.txt’ with the filename for your training text. (I used 'training_sage.txt’) -Remove the section labeled “Combining accents” (lines 13 through 27) -(optional and language-dependent) I additionally removed line 127 (the tab character) because my editor does auto-formatting with tab characters, and unexpected results were generated if Dasher inserted a tab character and then attempted to delete that character with the backspace key (which it regularly does if you take a “shortcut” to the character you want through another box). I decided that it was simpler to leave the autoformatting on in my editor (I really didn’t want to manually insert six or seven tab characters before a line of code, as can happen in Python!) and insert my tabs manually with voice commands. You will have to decide how to handle these sorts of formatting and autoformatting issues yourself, based on the language and editor that you choose.
It is also at this point that you can reorder or regroup any of the characters if you want, in a way that makes sense for the language you are writing. Save your changes, and now you have an alphabet file. Now, let’s specify the training text. Create a plain text file titled training_<yourlanguage>.txt (or whatever you called it in the alphabet file). Paste all of your sample code into that file. (More is better! But Dasher will also learn from what you write over time.) Save your training text file in the system.rc folder, just like the alphabet file.
Now, open Dasher and make sure that you can access your new language. Click on the Prefs button, and look in the alphabet selection box. You should be able to locate the language that you just specified. Click on it, click okay, and try writing in your programming language. If everything is working, proceed to the next step. Otherwise, go back and check that you got all of the syntax and file names/locations correct. (A few troubleshooting details: If it works, but Dasher warns you that you have no training text, then your alphabet file is correct but you need to check the training text file (or file specified for training in the alphabet file). If it works, but the predictions seem bad, then you probably need more training text. If it works, but Dasher takes too long to load, try deleting some of your training text.)
4. Okay, now let’s configure the Dasher user interface. Click on the Prefs button. Under alphabet selection, make sure your desired language is selected. On the control tab, select 'Eyetracker Mode’ for 'Control Style’. Then, select 'Mouse Input’ for the 'Input Device’. You can select the speed and choose whether or not you want Dasher to automatically adjust its speed. (I like this feature, but it’s up to you.) Finally, choose the method(s) for starting and stopping. Personally, I like the “Start with mouse position – Centre circle” option for with the eye tracker. You might also want to enable the mouse button control and/or spacebar, especially until you get comfortable with the eye tracker (obviously only useful if you have a way to push the spacebar or click the mouse button). I would not recommend using the “stop outside of canvas” option, because it makes the motion feel extremely jerky when the eye tracker briefly leaves the active area. All of that is personal preference, though. There’s no harm in experimenting to see what you like best.
5. More Dasher configuration. In the preferences window, click on the Application tab. Under “Application style:” select “Direct entry”. This means that Dasher will automatically send keystrokes to the currently active window. This lets you write directly into your code editor of choice. Let’s test again. With Dasher open, open Microsoft Notepad. Click in Notepad so that your cursor is in the text entry field. Then go to Dasher and (without clicking on anything besides the canvas – you don’t want to change focus) start writing with the mouse. Your text should appear in Notepad. Once that’s working, give it a try with your desired code editor.
6. Download and install FreePIE.
7. Let’s actually use this eyetracker! At the end of this post, I have pasted the code for a simple mouse control script. Take this script and paste it into a new script in FreePIE. Click on script menu and then run script (or press F5). (Tumblr doesn’t support any sort of code environment, so, if you have trouble getting the script to work, let me know and I can email you the actual file.) Then press the Z key to start the eye-controlled mouse movements. If everything is working correctly the mouse cursor should now follow your gaze around the screen. I’ve also set up this script so that you can start or stop the eye mouse using speech. If you have a decent microphone (preferably headset), make sure that that device is selected as your default recording device in Windows. Then, with the script running, you can say “start eye mouse” or “stop eye mouse” to start or stop the mouse movement. (If the computer has a hard time recognizing your voice, you can improve this by doing some of the training in Windows speech recognition. You can find it in the control panel.)
8. Now all that’s left to do is chain all the pieces together. Get FreePIE open with your mouse script running. Make sure that Dasher is running, and also open your code editor. Make sure that the focus is in the text entry field of the code editor, press the or use speech to start the eye mouse, and finally start Dasher (by whatever you selected in Dasher’s configuration). You should now be able to enter code with only your eyes.
9. (Optional) Depending on your needs, you may want to add some additional commands to the FreePIE script. For example, I have written some code that lets me enter tab characters by voice, and also navigate with in text by voice (e.g. “go to end of line”, “go to beginning of line”, “go up line”, “go down line”, etc.). Each of these is just a couple of lines in FreePIE. Feel free to reach out to me if you need some help with adding these sorts of additional commands.
That’s a lot of text, so let’s finish off with a screenshot. Here’s what the whole thing looks like when it’s up and running. On the left-hand side of the screen you see Dasher. On the right-hand side is Firefox showing Sage. FreePIE is running but minimized.
[Image description: the image shows a screenshot of a Windows 7 desktop with two visible applications. On the left-hand side of the screen is Dasher. The majority of that window is filled with a collection of different colored squares and typable characters. There is a cross in the center of the window, and a red line shows where the user is currently pointing. On the right-hand side of the screen is a Firefox web browser window. The active tab is labeled Palindromes, and most of the window is occupied by text fields showing Sage code and output.]
The script for FreePIE:
#Use Z or speech to toggle on/off
import ctypes import math
def update(): global prevX global prevY
#Settings smoothingConstant = 0.2 #between 0 and 1; 0 means no cursor movement, 1 means use raw data
I have been browsing the Internet in search of accessible mouse solutions (for my own use), and, as a result, I have been looking at able of websites that sell assistive technology. And I have seen something that I think is, quite frankly, a predatory practice: companies selling software that does very little from a programming perspective (and could easily be replaced with free software) for hundreds (sometimes thousands) of dollars. And they’re selling these products to disabled people who have often been severely disadvantaged in getting a technology education because of their disabilities. So, I present, a list of software functions that you should never pay for. Ever.
(To be clear, not all assistive software is predatory. Some of it is very useful software that does complex tasks using innovative algorithms and large datasets. I want to help you learn to tell the difference.)
You should never buy software to perform the following tasks: 1) hover clickers or dwell clickers (software that automatically clicks the mouse when you hold the cursor still for a set length of time) 2) software to alter your mouse speed, acceleration, or sensitivity 3) software to remap inputs (for example, to switch the right and left buttons on your mouse, or to type in a phrase whenever you press a certain key) 4) on-screen keyboards (unless you have very specific needs, such as gaze interaction or interaction with another specialized input device. Or may be if the keyboard is particularly innovative and useful.) 5) software to “filter” your keyboard input or ignore repeated keypresses 6) macro writing software (such as software that lets you “record” the sequence of actions and then play them back with a single keypress) 7) break timers (software that reminds you to take a break from using the computer) 8) software to use a gaming device, such as a joystick or videogame controller, as a mouse
Please, please, please don’t buy these products! Use free software (or features built into your operating system) to do these tasks, and spend your money on something that will actually help you!
If you need help figuring out how to use free tools to do any of these tasks, feel free to send me a message. As a quick reference, is here is how I would recommend approaching the tasks that I have listed above. 1) I use an AutoHotkeyscript. There are also several free dwell clickers available for download; a Google search should point you in the right direction. (Linux users: both the GNOME and KDE have a hover click tool available under the standard accessibility options.) 2) Start with the controls in your operating system. If that’s not enough, try the drivers provided by the manufacturer of your mouse/trackball/joystick/etc. or a tool like AutoHotkey. 3)AutoHotkey! 4) Most modern operating systems have one included. There are also lots of free options online. 5) This is a standard accessibility option in modern operating systems. 6) There are lots of free macro packages available. I like AutoHotkey on Windows and simple shell scripts on Linux. 7) Workrave(hey, look, I have a whole post about it!) 8) Again, AutoHotkey!
I should probably write a post about AutoHotkey, hmmm?
Much of my research deals with the ways in which bodies are disciplined and how they go about resisting that discipline. In this piece, adapted from one of the answers to my PhD preliminary exams written and defended two months ago, I “name the disciplinary strategies that are used to control bodies and discuss the ways that bodies resist those strategies.” Additionally, I address how strategies of embodied control and resistance have changed over time, and how identifying and existing as a cyborg and/or an artificial intelligence can be understood as a strategy of control, resistance, or both.
In Jan Golinski’s Making Natural Knowledge, he spends some time discussing the different understandings of the word “discipline” and the role their transformations have played in the definition and transmission of knowledge as both artifacts and culture. In particular, he uses the space in section three of chapter two to discuss the role Foucault has played in historical understandings of knowledge, categorization, and disciplinarity. Using Foucault’s work in Discipline and Punish, we can draw an explicit connection between the various meanings “discipline” and ways that bodies are individually, culturally, and socially conditioned to fit particular modes of behavior, and the specific ways marginalized peoples are disciplined, relating to their various embodiments.
This will demonstrate how modes of observation and surveillance lead to certain types of embodiments being deemed “illegal” or otherwise unacceptable and thus further believed to be in need of methodologies of entrainment, correction, or reform in the form of psychological and physical torture, carceral punishment, and other means of institutionalization.
Much of my research deals with the ways in which bodies are disciplined and how they go about resisting that discipline. In this piece, adapted from one of the answers to my PhD preliminary exams written and defended two months ago, I “name the disciplinary strategies that are used to control bodies and discuss the ways that bodies resist those strategies.” Additionally, I address how strategies of embodied control and resistance have changed over time, and how identifying and existing as a cyborg and/or an artificial intelligence can be understood as a strategy of control, resistance, or both.
In Jan Golinski’s Making Natural Knowledge, he spends some time discussing the different understandings of the word “discipline” and the role their transformations have played in the definition and transmission of knowledge as both artifacts and culture. In particular, he uses the space in section three of chapter two to discuss the role Foucault has played in historical understandings of knowledge, categorization, and disciplinarity. Using Foucault’s work in Discipline and Punish, we can draw an explicit connection between the various meanings “discipline” and ways that bodies are individually, culturally, and socially conditioned to fit particular modes of behavior, and the specific ways marginalized peoples are disciplined, relating to their various embodiments.
This will demonstrate how modes of observation and surveillance lead to certain types of embodiments being deemed “illegal” or otherwise unacceptable and thus further believed to be in need of methodologies of entrainment, correction, or reform in the form of psychological and physical torture, carceral punishment, and other means of institutionalization.
This includes students who can’t write it all, students who can write but have difficulty writing neatly enough for others to read, students for whom handwriting is painful or fatiguing, and probably some other people as well. Remember that disability is almost never a binary thing; it’s totally valid to need help with tasks that involve handwriting even if you technically can write some.
These tips are aimed mainly at undergraduate students in the US, though high school students and graduate students may also find some of them useful, as may some people in other parts of the world.
These tips come primarily from my own experiences completing an undergraduate degree in math with a very limited ability to write. Remember that everyone’s body and experiences are different. You should consider these tips just as some suggestions or a starting place towards finding what works for you.
Get registered with the disability services office on your campus. If you are struggling to write, then you have a disability. It doesn’t really matter what the underlying reason is, as long as you can get a doctor to write a letter for you stating your challenges and limitations.
Depending on your school, disability services may be great or they may be useless. If they’re great, take advantage. If not, being registered with the office still give you official standing to go talk to your instructors about what you need.
Talk to your professors/TAs/other instructors at the beginning of each semester. I’ve written a general guide on how to do this, an email template for a meeting request, and some thoughts on communicating chronic pain in particular. (Note: you don’t have to share the particulars of your disability if you don’t want to! I have generally been pretty open about mine, so that’s what I can give better advice about. But you should, of course, make your own decisions!)
Stay in communication with your instructors throughout the semester. It’s always good practice to remind your instructors about your accommodations before any test/exam/field trip/other event where you need accommodations.
And of course, ask for help in the course if you need it. Go to office hours. If your professor knows that you are an actual person, they are far more likely to be willing to work with you.
Set boundaries. Especially if you have some ability to write, you may be tempted to try to do more writing than your body can handle. This might be because other people are pressuring you to be “normal,” because you are pressuring yourself to be “normal”, because it is a hassle to deal with getting appropriate accommodations in your classes, because you are embarrassed to ask for help, etc. For this reason, it is really important to know your own boundaries before you enter the classroom. For example:
“I will sign documents, but that’s all the writing I’m going to do.”
“I will handwrite things like homework, when I can set my own pace and use the right tools for me, but I will not try to handwrite anything in a classroom with time constraints.”
“I will stop writing when the pain level in my hands reaches a 5 on a 10 point pain scale.”
“I will complete multiple-choice tests and quizzes/exams requiring one or two word answers, but I won’t write anything longer than that.”
Get your accommodations in order. Exactly what accommodations will work for each person is of course a very individual thing, but here are some that you might consider/discuss with your disability services counselor:
a notetaker in your classes (usually just a peer who give you a copy of their notes after class),
using assistive technology (some examples below) for in class assignments/quizzes/exams,
working with a scribe for tests and exams,
working with a scribe for handwritten homework,
flexibility on assignment deadlines (when handwriting would be required in any part of the process of completing the assignment),
extra time for quizzes and exams (either because your handwriting is slow or because you are using assistive technology that is slower than handwriting),
unlimited untimed breaks during tests and exams (if you struggle with pain or fatigue, this gives you an opportunity to rest, stretch out your muscles, etc.).
Consider assistive technology. These are tools that you can use in class, on your homework, and/or on tests and exams. The possibilities vary from low-tech and simple to more high-tech and expensive. If you have access, an occupational therapist or assistive technology specialist can help you find good options for you.
Here are some things to consider to make any writing you choose to do easier:
using a different writing instrument (soft leaded artists’ pencils, felt tip pens, markers, gel ballpoint pens have been helpful for me),
using an electric eraser if you write in pencil and need to erase often,
using some tool to keep your paper from sliding (e.g. a clipboard, slant board with a clip, Dycem on your desk underneath notebook/clipboard, using weights on your paper),
writing on a chalkboard or whiteboard instead of paper,
physical supports for your forearm (e.g. this, or diy something)
a tool that helps hold the pencil/pen for you (e.g. thisorthisorthis).
And some assistive technology to consider as a replacement for handwriting (used all the time or just sometimes depending on your needs):
typing your work instead of writing by hand (perhaps with an ergonomic or otherwise alternative keyboard),
speech to text software (Windows now includes this in the OS, so all you have to do is buy a headset),
an eye gaze keyboard (this technology has come down and cost a lot in the past couple years, check out OptiKey if you are interested).
If you get into a tough position where you aren’t sure how to complete an assignment with your disability-related limitations, ask for help! Generally speaking, it’s best to start with your professor or TA, though of course the disability services office may also be able to help. (The details will depend a lot on the people involved, so use your own best judgment.) Be clear when you’re talking to these people that you’re looking for help solving a problem, not asking to be excused from a course requirement.
Sometimes the standard accommodations that your school is willing/able to provide won’t work for you. This could be because the accommodations are simply inadequate, because a particular course or field of study has challenges that the disability services office does not understand/did not anticipate, because you have many limitations due to multiple illnesses or disabilities, or for many other reasons. In this case, you have to get creative and enlist help from your allies. I can’t give you a formula for this, but I will share some of the more unusual accommodations that I have received at various times. Perhaps they will give you some ideas.
For a few of my math courses, I obtained permission from the instructor to turn in a joint homework assignment with a peer. I think this request was approved largely because I had been a student in the math department for a few years, the professors knew both me and the other student, and we were both very strong students who had a genuine desire to learn the material.
For many math courses, I completed my homework assignments by working the problems on my own (or with peers when allowed) and taking very succinct to notes for myself. I then had a scheduled time each week to meet with the professor and explain my solutions.
I’ve taken lots and lots of oral exams, especially in math.
I have submitted tape-recorded “essays” on exams in humanities courses.
For short quizzes, I have met with the instructor or TA 10 minutes before the start of class to take the quiz orally.
I am reblogging this because I fixed some formatting and added a few more links to resources.
Slick Chicks Underwear with side fasteners that can be put on or taken off while sitting, standing, or laying down. Trying to make it easier for people who have a had time lifting their legs and bending, or use a wheelchair.
TOMgirlApparel Bras that have wide bands, no wires, and velcro instead of hook fasteners. This can be a big help if you have limited mobility or chronic pain issues.
Wings Intimates More underwear that fasten on the side, but with lace and frills and thongs and stuff! No bending needed.
Tommy Adaptive Tommy Hilfiger has a line of clothing made to help people get dressed easier. Magnetic buttons that look like typical buttons. Magnetic openings at the neckline to help put on and take off shirts. Wide leg openings, especially useful for prosthetics, braces, casts, etc. One-handed zippers. Side openings. These clothes are more expensive, but sometimes stuff is on sale.
Target Pretty cheap adaptive clothing at Target! Things like jeans that are easier to put on, but also sensory friendly clothing! Another cool thing is they have a lot for little kids too.
ReboundWear Post-surgical clothes that are good for hospital visits too. These are more expensive and there’s not a lot of options right now so it’s probably not the best, but I’ll put it out there anyway I guess.
Independence Day Clothing No buttons or zippers. Basically all the clothes are reversible, can be worn forwards or backwards.
Magna Ready More magnets! These are more expensive but it has more professional clothes for men, which is something that seemed to be lacking in all the other websites. Dress shirts and pants that have magnets instead of buttons. They even have ties with zippers!
NBZ Apparel The letters stand for No Buttons or Zippers! They’ve got pants for men and boys. There’s not a lot and they’re not super cheap, but there they are.
Care + Wear Clothes that are accessible for clinical treatment. Shirts and hoodies with chest port access. Mobility gloves for people who have wheelchairs. PICC Line Covers.
And of course you can always look for stuff on Etsy.comtoo
So there’s that! Some are good and some are not so good. Some are expensive and others are cheap. But there’s stuff out there and there are options, so that’s always good to know
I’m not familiar with any of these brands, but it looks like good stuff!
I’m currently struggling with bras, so I am currently really appreciating the need for these resources!
(For the past like five years, I haven’t worn a bra at all. But since I started taking birth control to regulate my periods, my breasts have gotten more sensitive, and now it sometimes hurts to walk because they bounce around. So I actually went bra shopping this week. I remember why I hate it. And those little metal clips are absolutely the worst! Why can front-fastening bras not be the default?!? Honestly, I don’t think any woman likes those teeny hooks in the back!)
