Imagine yourself not being able to speak and not being able to get your thoughts out. There are people who cannot do what we take for granted every day.
Hello, my name is David Mensch and I have CP. I have difficulty speaking, and not everyone can understand me and I know that. For a long time I did everything on my own. For example, I work on computers in programming them and other things, and I have done this for a long time with my nose. Now I have had many different jobs in my life.
I never knew what assistive technology was until I went to work for the Independent Living Center of Kern County. This is where I learned about the many different kinds of assistive technology that are available to help people like me. After being at the Independent Living Center for a while, I had to take a class to learn about the assistive technology that was available and how to use it with various types of disabilities. We learned about communication devices and the different kinds of devices such as the difference between low tech and high tech. I was so amazed at this technology that I thought it would help me, but how?
I knew that my speech was one area that I needed help with, but did not want to come to that reality. I knew that I would be in contact with people who did not know me and I would have to talk to groups of people by myself at times and the only way was to get a communication device for myself.
We had to do a class project--we had to come up with something that pertained to the use of assistive technology, so I thought I would try to get myself a communication device. I did everything by the book, so I thought. However, I forgot the most important step, which was the trial period. The first device I saw I thought that it was the right one. So I would try the device when the rep. would come around, but I did not try it by myself to make sure it was for me. I went and I got the speech evaluation done, we had all the paper work done, and I finally got the okay from Medi-Cal. When I finally received it, I opened the box and turned it on to try to use it and it was like learning a new language. I knew that it was icon based, but I could not remember the sequences to say what I wanted to say and I felt dumb.
Here I am with a device that I should know how to use but do not, and since I had it, I should be an example for other users. So instead I put it on my desk and use it as a paperweight--a very expensive paperweight at that. I think it was almost $10,000. Every once in a while I would use it, but not that often. My employer would get frustrated with me because I would not use it. He knew that I had a lot to say but because of my speech, some people did not look at me as an equal.
As time went by, I learned more about communication devices and tried out many different kinds of devices until I found the one that fit me. I do not remember how I found Assistive Technology, Inc. It was probably at the CSUN conference. I invited Dani Mohn from Assistive Technology, Inc. to an Assistive Technology Fair that we were putting on with the Independent Living Center. I was looking for a new device--one that was Windows-based so I could use it not only for communication but also for other things like Outlook for my calendar and my contacts and other applications.
Dani Mohn showed me the Mercury and I knew that this was what I needed. It was easy to program and I did not need to learn another language. Now do not get me wrong, those other devices are great for someone who is starting to learn language, but for someone who is using language and who knows what he does best, it's hard to teach an old dog new tricks. I was that old dog and I did not want to learn new tricks.
Since I received the Mercury, I have used it on the TV news, in front of people; I use it for board meetings, and I have even been creative with it. You see I am in my wheelchair all day long and so I put a stereo on my wheelchair, and not a stereo that you walk around with, but a car stereo with woofers, tweeters and a 500-watt amp.
With my job, I sometimes have to go out to different organizations, schools, etc. So I thought for me to have a loud voice I could hook my device to my loud stereo. So I did and now everyone says that I have a big mouth. I also like to play DVDs; it blows people away when they see and hear it. I am planning to install a web camera on the back of my wheelchair so I can see behind me when I am going down the road too.
You see, devices like the Mercury that run under Windows can help people with disabilities in many different ways and this is why I like the Mercury.
David Mensch
Program Technician
Kern Assistive Technology Center
Bakersfield, CA
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