When you build a business, you listen to the people you serve. You learn what they need, where the gaps are and how your own lived experience can help.
That is how aDAPTing to Vision Loss is evolving.
Our Vision Loss & Blindness aDAPT Program began as a positive and inspiring presentation about Gina Martin’s journey with vision loss, backed by more than 30 years of lived experience.
That presentation is not going away.
Today, however, aDAPTing to Vision Loss is becoming much more.
Along with presentations and disability awareness education, Gina Martin and Vanessa Pettinger are available for vision loss consultation, family support and practical problem-solving, sharing strategies, resources, tools and devices that can help people experiencing vision loss and the people supporting them navigate everyday life with greater confidence.
Two experiences of vision loss. One important lesson.
Gina and Vanessa both live with blindness, yet how they arrived there was very different.
Gina began losing her sight at age 20. Her vision deteriorated gradually over many years, requiring her to continually adapt as what she could see changed.
Vanessa’s vision loss happened suddenly following a car accident.
Their experiences reinforce an important message:
Even people with the same diagnosis can have very different experiences, needs, challenges and ways of navigating life.
There is no single experience of blindness or vision loss.
That is why aDAPTing to Vision Loss is rooted in conversation rather than assumptions.
Our Vision Loss & Blindness aDAPT presentations
Have you ever wondered how someone who is blind accomplishes daily tasks or travels independently? Maybe you know someone who has experienced vision loss, or perhaps sight loss is part of your own journey.
Through our vision loss and blindness presentations, we create a comfortable and safe space for people to get curious, ask questions and challenge biases or assumptions about blindness.
Gina’s teaching combines decades of lived experience with formal blindness training at the Louisiana Center for the Blind.
In 2016, she completed its nine-month intensive rehabilitation training program, completing the program under learning shades. The experience challenged her to develop non-visual techniques for everyday tasks, independent travel and problem-solving.
Today, both Gina and Vanessa can share their own lived experiences through presentations, giving audiences the opportunity to hear different perspectives on blindness and vision loss.
Living with vision loss
Our presentations and tailored training can explore:
How to effectively interact and communicate with someone who is blind.
How to offer assistance respectfully and guide someone safely.
How everyday tasks can still be accomplished, only differently.
Language that promotes dignity, respect and inclusion.
How vision loss impacts each person individually.
Tools, devices and technology that can make life easier and where to find them.
Strategies for staying safe and independent at home and in the community.
Alternative techniques for navigating everyday life.
The goal is not to teach one “right” way to live with vision loss.
It is to introduce possibilities.
From presentation to practical consultation
One of the biggest ways aDAPTing to Vision Loss is evolving is through vision loss consultation and support.
When someone’s sight changes, the questions do not belong only to the person experiencing vision loss.
Families, friends and sighted supporters may also be trying to understand what to do.
How much should I help?
When should I step back?
What tools are available?
How can we make the home easier to navigate?
Where do we find resources?
How can I support independence without taking over?
What questions don’t we even know to ask yet?
This is where lived experience can be incredibly valuable.
Gina and Vanessa are available for consultation and problem-solving with individuals experiencing vision loss, families and sighted supporters. Depending on the person’s needs, conversations may include practical strategies, resources, tools, devices, communication, guiding, home and community safety, independence and different ways of accomplishing everyday tasks.
Change can be difficult to navigate. Sometimes having someone to talk to who has actually navigated vision loss can help reduce some of the overwhelm and provide a place to begin.
Supporting the sighted supporter
We are also developing something new.
Diverse Abilities Programs Inc. is in the process of creating an online course for sighted supporters of people experiencing vision loss.
When someone begins losing their sight, family members and friends often want to help. Good intentions, however, do not automatically tell someone what kind of help is useful.
Supporters can become overwhelmed too.
Our goal is to provide practical education that helps sighted supporters better understand vision loss, respectful assistance, independence, communication, tools, resources and ways to support someone without assuming what they need.
We want to help replace some of the fear and uncertainty with knowledge, practical strategies and confidence.
aDAPTing to Vision Loss is not going away
It is growing.
The lived-experience presentations remain available. Gina and Vanessa can speak about their very different experiences with blindness and the strategies they use to navigate everyday life.
Vision loss coaching and consultation can be tailored for the individual experiencing vision loss, families and sighted supporters.
Support is available in person in Edmonton and Victoria, as well as virtually for people in other communities across Canada.
Our online education for sighted supporters will add another way for families to access practical information and support.
The format may be evolving, but the purpose remains the same:
To help people understand that losing sight does not mean losing possibility.
There are tools.
There are techniques.
There are resources.
There are different ways of doing things.
Sometimes you simply need someone to help you discover what might work for you.
Explore Diverse Abilities Programs Inc. to learn more about our aDAPT programs, presentations, consultations and training, or book a get-to-know-you call with Gina Martin to discuss the support that may be right for you, your family or your organization.
Photo description
Vanessa and Gina are standing next to each-other, holding their canes. They both smile as a water feature and park are behind them.
