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HI!
My name is Rebecca Roa
... and lately I have been touched and inspired with all of the #WhyISign videos these last few days.
I felt so inspired I felt compelled to contribute a little bit of something as well.
...ok... so
Now, I don’t want to talk about myself, but want to shift the focus about the field I work in.
Which is Mental Health Counseling.
... and I work as a Mental Health Counselor
at the Arc of the St Johns in St. Augustine, Florida. The nation's oldest City!
It is so beautiful so I have to brag a little!
So I started working at Arc about two years ago
... and before me they did not have a deaf counselor or deaf teacher - nothing!
The population Arc serves are those that have IDD which means Intellectual Disability/Developmental Disability
and some have Mental Health diagnosis such as Schizophrenia, Bipolar, Anxiety, Depression, and such
We have a good number of deaf clients there
So tell me as a deaf individual how can someone stay in a classroom or go to counseling and not understand a single thing a person says due to lack of access to ASL?
That is what my clients have gone through for years….
In a class for two hours daily and only getting a small portion of information via writing notes or other hearing clients fingerspelling basic alphabets.
Do the clients have full 100% access to information that is presented to them? NO.
For years, many of my deaf clients could not get counseling services because no one could sign or communicate with them.
When I first joined, I mentioned to my supervisor that I wanted to counsel deaf clients and also be willing to teach a life skill class because they did not have someone.
Did I originally want to teach a life skill class, no, but who else?
So I was willing to gain that responsibility because it’s what’s fair for the clients and hey, what other options do they have?
And if that is something I can provide then why not do it?
So I play both roles as a teacher and a counselor everyday with my deaf clients.
I do that everyday.
Let me tell you what I have noticed in the past two years I have worked at the Arc of St. Johns.
A lot of the deaf clients had behavioral issues.
There were problems at home/group home, in class, with their peers, with their staff…
often they feel frustrated, confused, and is not able to understand what is going on around them
which results in negative and/or attention seeing behaviors.
Because honestly how else can my deaf clients communicate?
Many of the staff there know basic ASL such as fingerspelling, but they are not aware of deaf culture and deaf needs and their rights so that right there creates a conflict.
So by providing counseling from someone who signs and having a teacher who signs (there was a recent addition of a deaf teacher who teaches Communication Class) really does help the clients so much.
By having access to ASL it helps them improve their behavior in their homes,
help them establish and maintain relationships with their peers and staff,
help them improve their problem solving sills and help them improve in managing their frustration by learning how to cope and deal and figure out solutions themselves all because they have access to ASL.
I really cannot emphasize how important ASL is for my clients.
Maybe it doesn’t make a big difference for them because I am just a small part in their day,
but if it helps affect some positivity in their lives then that’s all the difference I need.
Of course, I wish have access everywhere in their homes and in their community.
but....
this is why ASL is important. Why signing is important. Why having access to ASL is important.
My deaf clients are hungry for it. They need it. They crave for it.
They need someone to talk to other than their peers who they are with 27/4 at the program and at their homes.
Where's their sense of belonging? It's so very limited for them.
By having access to be able to talk to someone about their issues and problems and concerns with a deaf counselor makes a difference.
“Ah, finally someone understands me!” “Finally someone who can communicate in ASL – my language!”
Rather than not having access which results them in becoming frustrated and not caring about themselves. This causes my deaf clients to engage in negative behavior because no one understands – “what’s the point!?”
So… I am touched for my clients and really see the difference it makes when they are provided access to ASL…
I couldn’t be more proud of them for their progress.
So that's why I sign.
ASL is important and we have that right to sign, use it, and to have access to it.
That's #WhyISign!