Ageless Passions by Karen Putz

Author: Karen Putz

  • Discovering Autism


    When I first started working in early intervention, I didn’t really have much exposure to children with autism. I grew up with a friend who was diagnosed with Aspergers as an adult. So today, I’m sharing my journey of discovering Autism as part of the Blogging for Autism Awareness month.
    When I received the paperwork for a little girl who was nearly three, my heart sank. I knew I wouldn’t have much time to work with the family, as the early intervention program ages kids out when they turn three.

    I’ll call this little one, Sarah. By the third visit, I knew there was something else going on, not just a diagnosis of hearing and vision loss. My first clue was the fish tank. Most kids love watching a fish tank and show some interest. I brought Sarah over to the colorful fish tank and attempted to introduce some signs. Her mother remarked that Sarah never did look at the tank, or even the family dog.

    Sarah often became easily frustrated, banged her head repeatedly and if I took a toy away to move on to another one, she self-soothed herself using the same pattern over and over at each visit. She became fixated on certain toys and her mom mentioned that she could lie quietly in her crib for a long period of time.

    Autism.

    The word crept into my mind as the visits went on. The problem is, I knew so little about it. So I contacted Bonnie Sayers, a fellow writer that I knew from another website. I knew she was a mom of two boys with autism and she knew a lot. She runs the Autism Spectrum Disorders website at Bella Online.

    Bonnie directed me to a checklist that parents could use to rate behaviors that their child was demonstrating. From the little that I knew, it seemed to me that Sarah ranked high on the scale.

    So I found a way to have a conversation with the mom to see what her thoughts were. She explained that Autism crossed her mind and she brought it up with other therapists, but none of them agreed that it could be that. One did suggest that she explore it further.

    I told her about the checklist that I learned about and I asked her if she would be interested in looking it over.

    She said yes.

    So the following week, I brought it over and explained it. I suggested that she sit down with her husband and look it over together and share some thoughts.

    The following week, nothing had been completed. I didn’t say anything, for it’s a hard thing for any parent to seek out answers or explore the possiblity that something different is happening with their child.

    But the next week, she opened the door and said simply, “I think she has Autism. She scored high on the checklist for that.”

    Sarah was eventually diagnosed with Autism. The parents and I explored a nearby classroom together and they transitioned her there.

    Here are some links that Bonnie shared:

    CDC Growth Checkpoints

    Autism Symptoms Checklist

    Checklist for Autism in Toddlers

    A special thank you to Bonnie for helping me to help that family.

  • Time to Call it Quits

    I’ve given this a lot of thought lately and this morning, I woke up from a dream and realized what I need to do:

    It’s time for me to stop blogging and start living.

    I haven’t seen the bottom of my kitchen sink since I cleaned it as a New Year’s resolution last year. The time that I cleaned it for the television reporters doesn’t count, as I shoved the dirty dishes into the oven.

    I haven’t made my bed since I started blogging. Oh wait, I can’t blame blogging, because it started when we got our first computer nearly ten years ago.

    I’ve neglected my compost pile–it’s time for me to pay some attention to those hard-working worms in my backyard.

    Oh, and my kids– just the other day I noticed that my oldest towers above me. The middle kid has grown into a woman. The youngest kid is now negotiating to stay up until midnight. And the youngest kid needs a haircut– I can’t see into his eyes.

    So, my blogging readers, it’s time for me to hang up the blogging shingle and go clean my kitchen sink and get to know my kids once again. And oh–the hubby too! Thanks for hanging out here in the last year and half– it was great getting to know you!

  • “Beautiful” Video is Indeed, Beautiful

    D-Pan has released a new video based on Christina Aguilera’s song, “Beautiful.” Kylie Sharp, the co-director of Michigan Hands & Voices has a daughter in the video–check out the girl in the pink:

    The lyrics for the original song:

    Don’t look at me

    Every day is so wonderful
    And suddenly, it’s hard to breathe
    Now and then, I get insecure
    From all the pain, I’m so ashamed

    I am beautiful no matter what they say
    Words can’t bring me down
    I am beautiful in every single way
    Yes, words can’t bring me down
    Oh no, so don’t you bring me down today

    To all your friends, you’re delirious
    So consumed in all your doom
    Trying hard to fill the emptiness
    The pieces is gone left the puzzle undone
    Is that the way it is

    You are beautiful no matter what they say
    Words can’t bring you down, oh no
    You are beautiful in every single way
    Yes, words can’t bring you down, oh no
    So don’t you bring me down today

    No matter what we do
    (no matter what we do)
    No matter what they say
    (no matter what they say)
    We’re the song inside the tune full of beautiful mistakes

    And everywhere we go
    (everywhere we go)
    The will always shine
    (sun will always shine)
    But tomorrow we might awake
    On the other side

    We are beautiful no matter what they say
    Yes, words won’t bring us down, oh no
    We are beautiful in every single way
    Yes, words can’t bring us down, oh no
    So don’t you bring me down today

    Don’t you bring me down today
    Don’t you bring me down today

    And finally, you can view Christina Aguilera’s original video with subtitles:

    Beautiful

  • Swimmer Aims for the Deaf Olympics

    Karen Meyer at ABC News Chicago did a segment this morning on deaf swimmer, Will Landgren: Deaf Swimmer’s Teammates Learn Sign Language.

    When Will first began swimming, his teammates wore sweatshirts to welcome him to the team. When Will’s cochlear implant comes off and he slips into the water, his teammates communicate with him by signing or through an interpreter. To me, that’s what inclusion is truly about– recognizing the barriers to communication and using a two-way street to get around them.

    When I was on the swim team in high school, I always had a teammate or two who would relay what the coach was saying because without my glasses, I couldn’t see well at all, much less hear. At swim meets, the coach always lined me up near the starting gun so I could see the flash of the gun. A strobe light would have truly been appreciated back then!

    More on Will:

    Deaf Swimmer Makes a Splash

    A Time for the Signs

    Will is aiming to qualify for the Deaf Olympics and I’m betting he’ll swim his way to a medal there.

  • Matthew Gets an Implant–Six Months Later

    “How’s Matthew doing?” a reader recently asked me. You may remember Matthew from earlier posts: Matthew Gets a Cochlear Implant and Matthew’s Cochlear Implant Activation. I have gotten several emails from readers wondering about Matthew’s progress with his cochlear implant and what he’s doing today.

    From the very first day of activation, Matthew instantly took a liking to the sounds he was hearing through the implant. It took a while to get used to the sound, but his brain learned to adjust and the sounds became clearer over time. Keep in mind, Matthew has Auditory Neuropathy and had many moments when he could hear normally when he was a young child. During the last several years, Matthew had great difficulty having conversations with people who didn’t sign and was struggling to pay attention in school.

    The summer before Matthew obtained his cochlear implant, he attended a sports camp at the Illinois School for the Deaf. He told Sue, his mom, “I want to go to school down there.” Sue couldn’t imagine sending Matthew away to a residental school. In fact, just two years before that, Sue sat on a panel with other parents and declared that she would never send her kids to a residential school. “I want my kids at home with me,” she said.

    So it may surprise some readers to learn that Matthew and his brother have been attending ISD since January, 2008.

    Matthew took an instant liking to his new school and it was easy to see that he was very happy there. I asked him how ISD was different from the school he attended at home with a handful of deaf and hard of hearing students and he said, “At my old school, I didn’t participate much. I felt left out of a lot of conversations, like I wasn’t even here. At ISD, everyone signs and I participate in everything. I’m involved in a lot of activities. I’m on the track team. I have lots of friends at ISD. We go bowling and play video games.”

    Sue explained that Matthew receives auditory training each week to practice listening with his implant. Matthew described the sessions as fun and enjoyable. He is in sixth grade and is being challenged with seventh grade work.

    “It sounds like ISD has changed your life,” I remarked to Matthew.

    “Yes, it has, but so has my implant,” he said with a huge grin.

  • Adversity University Interviews Karen Putz

    Stephen Hopson over at Adversity University has a series of interviews that allow readers to get a deeper glimpse into the life of bloggers all over. I’m really honored that Stephen chose to interview me and share a bit more about my life.

    Stephen asked several questions that made me pause and think before answering. Of course, after completing the interview, I thought of many more answers that I wanted to share. If anyone ever attempts to write an autobiography–interviews by another person would be a great way to jump-start the writing. I was surprised as some of my own answers that came up and it brought out some faded memories. I very much enjoyed this interview and I hope you do too:

    Adversity University, Karen Putz Part I

    Adversity University, Karen Putz Part II

  • Why Culver’s Gets My Drive-Thru Money

    My mom and my sister excitedly emailed me. “We went through the Culver’s drive-thru!” they said.

    So why were they so excited?

    They liked the “Order Assist” system that Inclusion Solutions installed in several of Culver’s restaurants. Quite simply, there is a sign with a large button near the speaker of a drive-thru. When customers press the button, this alerts the drive-thru employee that the customer needs assistance. Culver’s has pre-printed menus and pads and pens ready for customers.

    I spent some time talking with Patrick Hughes, Jr., the owner of Inclusion Solutions after getting the drive-thru window closed on me at my local Steak ‘n Shake. I learned that he also has a system that includes an induction loop for hard of hearing persons and cochlear implant users. This allows those with t-coils in their hearing aids and cochlear implants to get the speaker orders transmitted directly into their hearing aids and implants.

    After spending a considerable amount of time on the drive-thru issue and time with Inclusion Solutions, I was able to give Patrick some feedback on how to improve a few things in the system to make service even better and more equal for deaf, hard of hearing and speech-challenged customers.

    I learned that Patrick has spent years, literally YEARS, on the drive-thru issue but restaurants are unwilling to change their way of service. When a large corporation was faced with this issue, their answer to the issue was to simply slap a sign on the speaker.

    So what’s the problem with signs? Signs still don’t alert the employees that assistance is needed. More than once, I have driven up to a drive-thru and as soon as the window opens, I’m handed the order of the driver behind me. I still encounter flustered employees who don’t know what to do and have to take the time to figure out how to keep the orders straight.


    (Photo description: Karen and Ron, the manager of Culver’s in Romeoville, IL)

    I went to the Romeoville Culver’s near me and met with the manager, Ron. When I asked Ron why he chose to install the system, he said, “When deaf customers come in here and they see the Order Assist system, their eyes light up. They know they are welcomed here.”

    I emailed Craig Culver, whose father founded the Culver’s chain and asked him similar questions. Craig’s father, George, was hard of hearing all of his life. While his father was the motivation behind his decision to add Order Assist, Craig shared, “I believe in doing the right thing and in my opinion it was simply the right thing to do and a good business decision, too.”

    And because of that, I make every effort to patronize Culver’s and use their drive-thrus and I encourage others to do the same. Thank you, Culver’s!

  • Steak ‘n Shake–Will We Move Forward?

    “What’s happening with Steak ‘n Shake,” a friend asked me recently. I figured it was time to blog about it once again.

    First, I have to say that the Steak ‘n Shake incident has turned my life crazy upsidedown. The latest to pick up the story was Diversity, Inc.:

    Second Class Citizen: Deaf Mother of Three Denied Service At Restaurant.

    Protecting Rights of People with Hearing Loss: What Does the Law Say?

    A few days ago, my husband came home from work and told me that a co-worker heard the situation being discussed on the radio.

    As it stands right now, I am still waiting to hear from Steak ‘n Shake to see what their solution is to providing drive-thru access for people with disabilities. I want them to do more than just slap a sign on the speaker telling us that they’ll serve us at the window. Their lawyer has stated that they are close to reaching a solution that they will present soon.

    I have not filed a lawsuit– I am working with the corporation to reach a solution that will ensure that every person with a disability who goes through a Steak ‘n Shake drive-thru will do so with access.

    Stay tuned!

  • I’m Allergic to Glitter Earmolds

    My daughter Lauren has glitter earmolds with pink and purple glitter in them. They look really cool sparkling in her ears so I figured I’d get some blue glitter earmolds myself. After all, my current earmolds were several years old and quite nasty looking. It was time for something fresh and different.

    I loved my blue glitter earmolds, but after the first day, my ears were red and itching. By the second day, I had developed sores in several places. I wore them four more days, until I could no longer put the earmolds in.

    The old, nasty earmolds went back on. I figured I’d try again after a week.

    The same thing happened, but by the end of the day, I knew the earmolds were going to have to go back. I tried again a few days later, but the same itchy feeling came creeping back.

    The audiologist called the company to see if they could come up with a solution for me to keep the glitter in a different material. The company is going to remake the earmolds but skip the outer glazing. This means the next set will still have the glitter, but none of the shine. I’m hoping that the next set won’t give me an allergic reaction.

    After all, I want to be the cool, hip mom.

    I know my kids beg to differ.

    On another note, today’s the last day to send me to SOBCon’08! All I need is a click on this link, nothing more:

    Send Karen to the SOBCon!

  • Dancing with the Stars–Marlee Matlin is Ready

    For seven hours a day, the stars from Dancing with the Stars practice. All day long, they twist, twirl, and tango– and in high heels to boot. Marlee Matlin looks really good in today’s Chicago Tribune (above), which shows her dancing with her partner, Fabian Sanchez. Not only does she have to follow Fabian’s lead in high heels, she’ll have to do it backwards as well.

    I’ve never watched Dancing with the Stars, but I’ll be glued to the TV on Monday night and cheering for Marlee.

    Marlee Matlin Ready for Dancing Debut