Steve Rose Therapy

04/03/2026

What does it mean to "hear" when silence is your landscape?

Today is World Hearing Day, but we want to look beyond decibels. For the deafblind community, hearing is not just a sense: it's an invisible thread that connects us to space, safety, and the voices of others.

Sometimes, hearing is felt in the palms of our hands. Sometimes, it becomes a vibration in our chest. And always, ALWAYS, it is a human right.

On this day, we remember that:
1️⃣ Communication is diverse: From tactile sign language to haptic technology, there are a thousand ways to "hear."
2️⃣ Technology is a bridge, not a luxury: Access to hearing aids and implants is vital for the autonomy of deafblind people. 3️⃣ True inclusion: An accessible society shouldn't just be noisy or visual; It must be felt.

Today we don't just celebrate sound, we celebrate the human capacity to connect, regardless of the medium.

31/12/2025

17/12/2025

The first eight instructional modules for Protactile Language Interpretation are now live on DCMP's free eLearning platform. We're working hard to make the remaining five modules available as soon as possible. https://dcmp.org/learn/728-protactile-language-interpreting-modules

23/09/2025

The autumnal equinox marks the arrival of autumn in the northern hemisphere. Today, the sun will be positioned directly above the Earth's equator, bringing nearly equal lengths of day and night.

From here, the days will gradually shorten, with more hours of darkness than light. For the , the equinox can serve as a reminder of the progressive night blindness experienced with Usher syndrome, reflecting both the challenges and resilience of living with this condition.

On Saturday, we celebrated Usher Syndrome Awareness Day, an event inspired ten years ago by the desire to "own the equinox" as a symbol of awareness and empowerment. Over the past decade, our global community has grown stronger and more united than ever.

ID: Graphic with vertically split black-and-white circle with the letters "USH" across its center. Circle over a split background contrasting with the halves of the circle, white on left and black on right. The words "Autumn" in black text and "Equinox" in white text are curved above and below the circle. The contrasting colors and symmetry represent the balance of light and dark during the equinox.

20/09/2025

Today is the day!

Usher Syndrome Awareness Day 2025 is officially underway, and we are honored to be part of such an incredible global community.

Let's raise awareness, gather, advocate, and reflect.

Tag us in all your USH Day posts and share how you're acknowledging USH Day!

ID: Bold navy font with text in all caps: "Usher Syndrome Awareness Day." Graphic of an eye at top right. Graphic of an ear between "Day" and "Sept, 20th, 2025" in blue text with white outline. USH logo in blue and gold bottom center.

10/09/2025

Don’t forget to submit your contributions for the upcoming DbI Review by October 1, 2025!

We welcome articles on research, experience sharing, interviews, and in the new section — casual, fun resources in the form of pictures and short quotes that relate to the Deafblind community.

Please email your submissions to dbireview@defblindinternational.org and visit the DbI website https://www.deafblindinternational.org/dbi-review/ for submission requirements.

02/08/2025

Vision Australia have done a story on Sean, Madelene's son. Sean has completed their woodworking program, designed specifically for people who are blind or have low vision. Go Sean!

Read the story: crafting with confidence
https://www.visionaustralia.org/community/news/2025-07-16/crafting-confidence

Image: Sean on the tools, wearing eye protection, making one of his woodwork pieces.

29/07/2025

RESEARCH OPPORTUNITY! Pain in CHARGE Syndrome

Kasee Stratton-Gadke's fantastic Bulldog Charge Syndrome Research Lab are researching pain in CHARGE. There is so much we don't understand about pain. Please consider completing a short survey and contributing to this important research. Open to all age groups. Further details below including link to survey.
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RESEARCH: PAIN IN CHARGE SYNDROME
The Mississippi State Bulldog CHARGE Syndrome Research Lab is currently conducting a research study exploring pain in CHARGE Syndrome. Specifically, this study aims to examine pain experiences in individuals with CHARGE throughout the lifespan. While previous research on pain has been examined in various populations of individuals with disabilities, there is little research involving those with CHARGE and no research including adults with CHARGE.

WHAT DO WE NEED FROM YOU?
We request that interested individuals click on the link below to complete an online survey (15-20 minutes).

WHO CAN PARTICIPATE?
Parents/Caregivers of a person with CHARGE (any age) and adults with CHARGE (18+) can complete this survey. Both parties do not have to participate.

SURVEY LINK: https://msstate.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_9AFXnJFt26nbc7Y

All data collected will be stored anonymously; neither your participation nor responses will be known by others. Please contact Dr. Kasee Stratton-Gadke, Professor and Licensed Psychologist, or Jamie Moss, Graduate Student, if you are interested in participating or would like to inquire about any further information: kstratton@tkmartin.msstate.edu or jkm516@msstate.edu

This study was approved by the IRB #25-228

25/07/2025

Breaking news: As part of the Global Education Campaign, DbI nominates a maximum of two teachers of children with deafblindness per focus region of the campaign (Africa, Asia and Latin America) for the Global Teacher Prize of the Varkey Foundation. We are talking about a 1 million USD award! If you are interested in being nominated, please fill out this Google form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScym1nizIsLRdPxDozfs-iMj3VPlAm-v0XnhA_qNIB30j5L9g/viewform
The deadline for submitting expressions of interest is 31 August 2025. With these nominations, we can work together to raise awareness of the right to education for deafblind children and the important and wonderful work of teachers with the relevant skills. Let's do it!

18/07/2025

Deafblind Information Australia’s 2025-2026 workshops kick off in Melbourne on 26-27th August. A free two day workshop for anyone interested in supporting people with deafblindness. Come join us!

Developmental disability and deafblindness workshop returns to Melbourne

Register via Trybooking https://www.trybooking.com/DDVUX
August 26th & 27th, 2025
Vibe Hotel Melbourne

This practical workshop is suitable for anyone with an interest in
· combined deafness and blindness
· sensory disability, meaning one or more of the senses are affected
· complex disability

The following may find this workshop useful:
· families
· people working in therapy
· people working in education
· other service providers eg. Deaf, support work, residential care

You can ask questions and bring case studies. Content includes:

· how to recognise deafblindness
· understanding access needs
· where to find help to support the person’s senses
· hand-under-hand teaching methods
· creating shared experiences
· developing shared meaning
· learning and practicing deafblind communication methods
· resources and tools to support your learning

Presented by Meredith Prain and Steve Rose. Guest presenters, born deafblind will also share their experiences.

Auslan interpreting, live captioning, alternate to print materials and other access provided on request. Please advise on registration.

26/06/2025

International Day of Deafblindness

This week marks Deafblind awareness week 2025, it’s held in this week every year to coincide with Helen Keller’s birthday on 27th June (also recognised as International Day of Deafblindness by the United Nations). I got involved in the deafblind space over 30 years ago, volunteering on a Sense H...

23/06/2025