May 28, 2025 • 33 mins
Lizzie Eastham and Sam Rickard present Studio 1 - Vision Australia Radio’s weekly look at life from a low vision and blind point of view.
On this week’s show
"A little Support?"
What role do support workers have in your life?
We talk to two support workers who coincidentally have the same name. The two Meg(h)ans talk about their backgrounds, what got them involved with the NDIS and where things are going from here.
Lizzie also catches up with Peter Spencer about how he supports his clients in the realm of sport and Recreation.
Studio 1 welcomes any input from our listeners. If you have any experience or thoughts about issues covered in this episode or believe there is something we should be talking about.
EMAIL: studio1@visionaustralia.org or leave comment on the station’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/VARadioNetwork
Thank you to Megan, Meghan and Peter
This program was made possible with support from the Community Broadcasting Foundation. Find out more at https://cbf.org.au/
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
S1 (00:07):
This is studio one on Vision Australia Radio.
S2 (00:16):
Hello, I'm Sam.
S3 (00:17):
And I'm Lizzie.
S2 (00:19):
And this is Studio One, your weekly look at life
from a low vision and blind point of view here
on Vision Australia Radio.
S3 (00:24):
This week, what role do support workers play in your life?
S2 (00:28):
We talk to two support workers who coincidentally have the
same name. The two Morgans talk about their backgrounds, what
got them involved with the NDIS and where things are
going from here.
S3 (00:39):
Also, chat with Peter Spencer about how he supports his
clients in the realm of sport and recreation.
S2 (00:45):
As we always say at this point, please do get
in touch with the show where they have experience of
any of the issues covered on this week's episode of
Studio One, or if you think there is something we
should be talking about. You never know. Your story and
insight may help somebody else who is dealing with something similar.
S3 (00:59):
That's right, you can contact us via email at studio
one at Vision Australia. Org, that's That studio number one
at Vision Australia. Org or of course, you can drop
us a note on our station's Facebook page by going
to facebook.com Slash Radio Network.
S2 (01:16):
Okay. Hello, Lizzy. How are we going today?
S3 (01:18):
We are. I'm in the bones of creaking a bit,
but we're good.
S2 (01:21):
Why are the bones are creaking a bit?
S3 (01:23):
It's cold down here in Adelaide. It's a cold, cold day.
S2 (01:26):
We're actually having weather, which is unusual. Um, we don't
usually get weather. We usually get, um, hot and dry
or cold and dry. Um, now we've actually got rain,
which is unusual for some. Um, I suppose some of
you up in Queensland would probably like some of their
rain to go down here, but. And we'd like that too.
S3 (01:45):
Oh, yeah. I mean, as much as we can complain
about the rain because it inconveniences us as blind people
as far as catching buses and stuff. The Earth certainly
needs it, I will say on the way to work today,
because I got a lift. Uh, visibility became so bad
that the driver could barely see, like, 20m ahead of himself. Self.
S2 (02:04):
That gives you a lot of confidence, doesn't it?
S3 (02:06):
No. Yeah, totally.
S2 (02:08):
So I'm presuming you've got to lift in through a,
I don't know, a support worker.
S3 (02:12):
I did the wonderful Mr. Spirou, Chris Spirou, he helped.
He gave me a lift in today and so graciously
offered his the shelter of his car, since it was
a very wet out there.
S2 (02:24):
Mhm. So this week we are once more looking at
um the role that support workers play in our lives. Um, because, well,
throughout the um early part of this decade we were
introduced to the NDIS and some people, well, we were
sort of forced onto it because the support we got from, say,
local city councils or something like that just vanished. So now, yes,
(02:48):
we have these wonderful people who we pay to look
after us. Um, how do you go as far as
that goes?
S3 (02:54):
I'm very blessed, actually. I have a little team of
support workers.
S2 (03:00):
Um, an entourage?
S3 (03:01):
Yeah, I mean, a little bit. Yeah. Like I have
Chris and Megan who helped me with most of my stuff.
And I do have another wonderful man by the name
of Dimitri, who helps me occasionally, but he also supports
my husband. I must say, it's really nice to actually
hear from support workers themselves about their journey into the
industry and what motivates them to keep supporting people. Because
(03:23):
I mean, often enough we hear people complaining and griping
about the NDIS, which is fair enough. It's not a
perfect system, but it's I think it's really nice to
just highlight the level of dedication that these support workers show,
and just how much they enjoy their job, and watching
us develop and grow and achieve our goals.
S2 (03:44):
Now, the funny thing is, is that we both worked
out quite early on that we have a support worker
with the same name. It's not the same support worker,
it's just two, two ladies with the same name just
so happened to be, uh, occasionally driving us around.
S3 (03:58):
Yeah, I mean, how crazy is that? I mean, it
would be funny if they were the same support worker.
But having shared Megan the support worker, my support worker
with other friends, I can tell you it's sometimes the
lines get a little bit blurry. But yeah, I'm glad
we don't have the same support worker.
S2 (04:18):
Well, I mean, this is what happened with us is
that for a while there I was. I was looking
after me on a Thursday morning and just driving me around.
We went down to once a fortnight and she said, oh,
by the way Saturdays are now opening up for me
Saturday mornings. Would Heidi be interested? And suddenly Heidi jumps
(04:38):
on and goes, yes, yes, please. So Megan's been quite
happily my Megan. Our Megan has been quite happily looking
after us now for just over a year now. And
unfortunately though, she's moving on to other things, she's getting
getting another life, which is so inconvenient for me, but
I'm so happy for her.
S3 (04:57):
This would be a nice farewell gift then. It won't.
It will mean she gets her voice aired on studio one.
And who doesn't want that.
S2 (05:03):
But first we're going to hear from your Megan. So, uh, over,
over to you.
S4 (05:11):
Tell us about your journey into support work. My grandfather
had a neighbor who had been diagnosed with Ms. and
was having seizures, and she needed someone to drive her around.
I'd lost my job through Covid and needed something to do.
So we took my convertible out and took her driving
and had a lot of fun. And at the end
of the shift, she said, I hope you know you'll
(05:31):
be working for me from now on. Funnily enough, she
owned a support working business. Amazing.
S3 (05:37):
That's quite an organic way to get into support work,
isn't it?
S4 (05:39):
Absolutely. I felt very, very lucky and blessed through that support,
like something you'd never thought you'd get into. I really did, actually.
When I was young, I thought about working with people
with disabilities, but I was frightened of the unknown in disability.
And once I stepped into it, I will never, ever
look back.
S3 (06:00):
Can you tell us about some of the.
S4 (06:02):
Positive.
S3 (06:02):
Experiences.
S4 (06:03):
That you've had through supporting people. Some of the most
positive experiences I've had is making friends with my clients.
That has been very impactful on my own personal life. Uh,
people such as yourself are now my closest friends, and
I'm so blessed and so lucky for that. But my
favorite memory of being a support worker is watching a
(06:25):
lady relearn the ability to walk again. That was very,
very emotional.
S3 (06:30):
That must have impacted you in a massive way because
that's quite a transformative experience.
S4 (06:35):
It actually humbled me. The simple act of being able
to raise your arm up to get something out of
a cupboard made me feel lucky. What are some of
the highlights.
S3 (06:44):
Or the most memorable things that you've done.
S4 (06:47):
Was supported people with? One of my fondest memories is
you and I walking up Morialta, and you're seeing eye
dog jumping in the river and getting nice and wet
in the middle of winter and having to chase her
out of the water. We had a few laughs, we
had a few laughs, and I love people's reaction to
(07:09):
us doing our bush hikes because we get a bit
crazy and start singing, and we have so much fun
making up our own words to songs we do, don't we?
Like earlier today. So what are some of the more.
S3 (07:22):
Basic or more routine tasks that you assist people with
day to.
S4 (07:25):
Day? I help people with things from personal care, which
include brushing teeth, brushing hair, doing clothing changes, showering, getting
things ready for the next day, meal prepping. I get
to take people to appointments, to their jobs, go shopping, traveling, um,
(07:47):
most fun of all the social stuff. So would you
say support work is.
S3 (07:51):
Just as much about like, the social and the mental
and the companionship just as much as it is like
independence and life skills and stuff.
S4 (07:58):
I think socialization is a big part of having a
positive life. Some people who may not know how to
reach out in a social way or have been rejected
by certain friends and family members of society, do feel
rejected and isolated, and it's lovely to help them change
their perspective of the world.
S3 (08:18):
What are some of the challenges that you've encountered during
support work?
S4 (08:23):
I think one of the biggest challenges that we face
on a daily basis is discrimination, and I think that
comes from a lack of education. If you don't know better,
how do you act better? And I'm really hoping that
with what you're doing, we can educate people on people
with disabilities and maybe not needing to put in so
(08:45):
much when people are independent.
S3 (08:47):
That's such a big thing, isn't it? Because people when
you go out with your support workers, they'll ask the
support worker what your needs are. And I mean, although
the support worker may be familiar with that, it's just
nice for us to be able to express that ourselves, right?
S4 (09:01):
It can be very uncomfortable for me when somebody chooses
to ignore my client, who's the one engaging them in
the first place. And I unfortunately seem a bit rude
when I turned my back on them and say, could
you please speak to them, not me. Some of the
most difficult things that I've faced are people who have
had a lack of funds, and a lack of resources
(09:24):
to help them in the way that they require. Lack
of external support can really impact someone in ways that
someone with a mainstream lifestyle may not understand. So what
advice would you.
S3 (09:36):
Give to other people looking to get into the support
work industry?
S4 (09:40):
I say do it. Everyone has a different walk of life,
different desires and requirements, and there are so many beautiful
things that you can do to impact someone in such
a small way or a large way.
S3 (09:56):
What would you say is the biggest motivation for you
staying in the industry?
S4 (10:00):
Oh, a big motivator for me is how much I
enjoy my job. I love watching people grow and develop
and become awesome human beings, just from having that little
bit of extra independence and support.
S3 (10:18):
I love Meghan's enthusiasm and energy. She's such a bright
and bubbly person and she didn't, you know, put on
that energy for the interview. She's always like that. I mean,
you could swear there's caffeine in her veins instead of blood.
She's go, go, go all the time. I've been with Meghan.
We've been working together for about three and a half
(10:38):
years now. Coming up to, I reckon. And yeah, just
every day that I see her, she brings a smile
to my face. But enough from me. Let's hear from
your Meghan, shall we?
S2 (10:49):
Well, yeah. Yes, let's. I'm going to preface this, preface
this by saying that my journey with Mabel, who, um,
I think we mostly all go through at the moment,
started sort of rocky, I've got to admit, because Cause
I put it in an ad and then got something like, um,
a dozen replies just within the first hour and thought, okay,
there's one person I wouldn't mind talking to, but went away,
(11:11):
and by the time I came back she said, no,
I'm not available anymore. So I learned that, okay, I
took that particular ad off the table, as it were,
and then re-advertised and jumped on this wonderful person, Megan,
who now looks after me. But not for long. Much
longer unfortunately. And yeah, the rest is history. So if
(11:33):
you are thinking of jumping on one of these platforms
and getting somebody get them, get them, do it quickly.
S3 (11:40):
Yes, I will say just quickly too. With Megan, it
was funny the way your story reminded me, I we
were looking for a cleaner. First off, that was our first, um,
you know, that was why we placed the ad. The
first lady we had came in and didn't do a
satisfactory job, and I remember going back through the postings
like the replies during that cleaning session or just after
(12:03):
and going, gee, this this Megan sounds really cool. Like,
I just I wonder if she'd be up for me
saying yes to her now and reopening that booking because,
you know, it had been a couple of weeks since, um,
she'd messaged me and I just loved her message because
she was like, well, I'm not a I'm not an
actual cleaner, but I have a thorough and keen eye
for detail. And I was just like, yes, I love
(12:24):
this chick. So that's actually how we got started. And then,
you know, we're talking about hiking and tandem cycling and
baking and all sorts of things, and it just snowballed
from there.
S2 (12:34):
But enough about you. Let's talk about our Megan. So my,
our Megan, um, is well, is this coming Thursday is
our last session together. So, uh, but, um, over to you.
Over to me. That's right over to me. I did
this interview.
S5 (12:48):
Yeah. You did.
S2 (12:53):
Hello.
S6 (12:54):
Hey, Sam. How are you doing?
S7 (12:55):
Oh, I'm pretty good. I mean, you just put this on. Um, please.
It's a it's a a microphone.
S6 (13:01):
Okay.
S7 (13:02):
Um, do you mind if we have a chat? Because, uh, we. Yeah.
We're not going to be working together much longer, so
it's just nicer to sort of, I don't know, reflect
on a few things.
S6 (13:11):
Great. Happy to do that, Sam.
S7 (13:13):
Okay. As we walk through the immense corridor and completely
ignore Heidi, who's not there at all. So we've been
together for how long now?
S6 (13:23):
I reckon is probably over a year. Definitely. Maybe even
a year and a half. It's been a while. Yes.
S7 (13:31):
It has. Um, so what's your background? Is sort of, well,
medical and also therapeutic though.
S6 (13:38):
Yeah, it's a bit diverse. So my background's nursing. And
then I did glass art therapy, which got me into
more of a working for myself role. And then, um,
through that I started to come in contact with clients
with varying needs. So I applied many years ago for Mabel,
(14:00):
And that's where you and I made our first contact. And, um. So, yeah, I've.
I've had a few balls in the air, juggling a
few balls in the air. But at the moment, I'm
just doing all support roles.
S7 (14:15):
Right. So, so the, um, art therapy and things like
that are sort of taking a backseat at the moment.
S6 (14:20):
With backseat with a plan to return. Okay. Yeah.
S7 (14:23):
Okay. Well, I might talk about that just a little
bit later. Sure. But I'll I'll start with sort of
talking about I my reason why I sort of chose
you and also why you sort of go with, say,
registered nurses and stuff like that in future I think
more because and you can correct me if I'm wrong here,
(14:44):
you're ridiculously overqualified to actually help me. But but that said,
me and people like me are probably some of the
easier jobs you'll get. And that's sort of one of
my logic here, is I'd rather have somebody who's ridiculously
overqualified and maybe having a little bit of a rest,
then someone with no experience with disability whatsoever.
S6 (15:03):
You know, Sam, I really appreciate your reflection on that
because something I've noticed working in a perhaps a non-formal
medical field is that having that professional underpinning really gives
you a good understanding of how to work with people
professionally within, especially within the community, because I think there's
(15:28):
a lot of perhaps inexperienced and unqualified people who do
work in the area, and they don't always offer the
best care or have the best understanding of how systems work,
either well or badly or in between. So, um, for me,
(15:49):
it's been a real grounding experience because I've been able
to support people in their homes and, and also advocate
for for them, not necessarily for you in your role
because you, you know, you've got an amazing insights into,
you know, the area of support that you know is
within your, your area. Yeah. So that's been good for me.
S8 (16:12):
Have you had many other.
S7 (16:14):
Blind or visually impaired clients?
S6 (16:16):
The only so for me I've, I've had one other
and that that person was um requiring. What did he
call it. Where I had to actually he had to
hold my, my arm. I had to.
S7 (16:32):
Block the sight of God. Yeah.
S6 (16:33):
Yeah. But I've also, through my family, been, um. Very.
I suppose, you know, I've grown up with a brother
with a disability, and I've, um. And he was in
disability support sports, so, you know, I've sort of, uh,
been around that world, and I've got an uncle who's
a wheelchair, you know, so I've kind of. Yeah, been
(16:56):
in contact and had relationships with for people with varying disabilities,
but not necessarily vision impaired.
S7 (17:02):
Well, I mean, one of the big tricks, I think,
is not just knowing how much support somebody needs, but
also how little when to sort of step back and. Absolutely.
And not be too much. So that's again, the big
thing I tend to look for when I'm sort of
looking for somebody to help me out is I don't
want to be mollycoddled or anything like that. It's the
ability to step back. I mean, how important have you
(17:23):
found that?
S6 (17:24):
Oh it's amazing. And I think that's something I picked
up immediately. Um, because I've worked for so many years
within areas of aged care, especially where you don't want
to be, you don't want to be stabilized somebody, and
you want to really encourage their capacities to strengthen. And
(17:46):
you also don't want to offend people because, you know, it's,
you know, um, disability is an interesting word in itself
because you've got an ability which is different to other peoples.
And so I think that's where my mindset is with, um,
when I approach supporting people like I walk alongside you,
(18:08):
I don't do for you and I, you know, communicate
with you and, um, understand you and what you're, you know,
ask you, do you need help with this as opposed
to just assuming. I think that's really, you know.
S7 (18:22):
Oh, yeah. No. Simply assuming that somebody needs help is. Yeah,
that's a sure fire way to get on the wrong
side of somebody. Yeah. Um, has there been any surprises, uh,
that you've come across that you thought I would have
never have thought about that, whether it'd be from a
positive or negative?
S6 (18:39):
I think you've helped me understand the the diversity in
vision impairment. So, um, I think one of the things
is the where the senses, the other senses are heightened. So,
you know, that's given me more of an awareness of, um,
(19:00):
you know, somebody may have an impairment here, but then
there's a heightened sense over here that kind of can
compensate for that. So it's it's the other thing that
I think surprised me was the when I learned from
you the discrimination, um, with especially, um, seeing eye dogs
(19:22):
in taxis. That was, that was a bit of a
shock for me. Um, and an awareness of, you know,
how hard that can be for people to navigate. Other
service providers that we take for granted, as you know,
non vision impaired people and transportation and getting around.
S7 (19:40):
Well, I mean that's one of the biggest things that
have been useful to me is going to a place
like Bunnings and that kind of thing where I might
spend 15 minutes looking for something, and we just go
straight to the right aisle and find whatever it is.
I mean, we've got a doorknob, literally a cupboard literally
up there, which took less than five minutes to find. Yeah.
And that would have taken me forever to find that. Um,
(20:02):
we had someone with a decent pair of working eyes.
S6 (20:05):
Absolutely. Just those. Fine, you know, the fine tuning things.
And I love Bunnings, so I might know where the
doorknobs are, but. But yeah. Yeah, it's it's just that appreciation.
Because sometimes, you know, when I'm with you, I think, gosh, Sam. So,
you know, capable of getting up and moving and navigating within,
within places that sometimes I feel like I've got to
(20:29):
keep up with you. And then I just, you know, I'm.
It's when you asked me, perhaps just to read the
smaller details that I think, oh, okay. This is where,
you know, my role can really support.
S7 (20:42):
Oh, I mean, Dan Murphy's has got your shopping as
far as that goes. I mean, there's price tags seem
to be getting smaller and smaller. Yeah. Yeah. But as
I said, we're our time working together is coming to
a close. Yeah. What are you planning Meaning after all this.
I mean, you're sort of moving away from us all.
S6 (21:00):
I know. So, um, I'm having a tree change, which is, um,
which is going to be great. And I will focus
on my art therapy side of, uh, um, my career.
So where I'm moving to, I've had conversations with a
woman who runs a an art therapy studio in the Barossa. And, um,
(21:25):
so I'll sort of be exercising that muscle again, and
I'm because I've been away from it for about 18 months,
I'm feeling really excited about, um, what that may look like.
So probably providing open studio for people, um, in the community,
some more NDIS work. Yeah.
S7 (21:46):
And you've got a new place to live. That's basically
just a a quick walk away from, from where you
work and all that. Yeah.
S6 (21:53):
So that'll be, you know, um, a real ease in it.
And and it'd be nice to be out in the
country again. I'm a country girl, so I'm sort of
returning to an area that's familiar with me, and, um,
it will be a larger space, so I'll be able
to also set up my own art practice because I,
(22:15):
you know, I went to art school many, many moons ago, and, um,
that's how I got into art therapy, because I could
see that, you know, there was a link between people
and wellbeing and and art practice and creativity.
S7 (22:31):
Well, thank you so much for agreeing to have this chat.
I know I mugged you at the door, but, um,
I'm sort of envious that you're starting this whole new life, so, um. Enjoy.
S6 (22:42):
Thank you, Sam, and thanks for the opportunity to chat.
S2 (22:48):
Well, thank you, Megan. Um, and I will. I will
miss you. Hopefully, uh, your new life down in the
Barossa Valley is as terrific as it sounds. Anyway, so
to finish off this week we talked to Peter and well,
you talk to him first. So let's hear what you've
got to say.
S3 (23:07):
Thanks, Sam. It was very interesting talking to Peter. I
have to say, because he approaches support work differently, like
he fell very organically into support work. Um, he started
his journey actually through sport. And now he mostly helps
support clients who wish to get into sport and recreation.
So he's got some very interesting advice for people that
(23:31):
want to get into support, work about how to best
find the right clients for them. So without further ado,
let's hear from Peter Spencer. So tell me about how
did you get into support work?
S9 (23:45):
Well, it's a little bit of a long winded story,
but over ten years ago now, well over ten years ago,
I was approached because I used to ride and race
bikes reasonably well. um, you'd call it national elite level,
where I'd won enough races to be okay at it.
And the bloke who ran the state para cycling program
at the time approached me and asked me if I
(24:08):
wouldn't mind jumping on the front of a tandem just
because he had a bloke who wanted to do the
state titles in a few weeks. He fully intended to
get me involved in tandem racing as a pilot, much
longer term than just this one race that he pitched
to me. And that was my very first introduction to
anything to do with disabled people, disabled sport, any level
(24:31):
of para competition whatsoever. And it's only through that, ten
years later, that I find myself doing some support work
that facilitates more tandem cycling, more para sport, and for
the guys that I support them, leaving much more active lives.
S3 (24:48):
So before you became a support worker, had you any
lived experience or exposure to people with disabilities, whether that
be through like family, friends or other roles.
S9 (24:59):
My father had a stroke and he was severely impaired,
but I didn't have a lot of firsthand contact with
him after he had his stroke. I lived in Sydney.
We were somewhat estranged at the time, and the exposure
I had to him, and his impairment was limited to
flying visits of only a few hours at a time.
(25:20):
To be perfectly honest. So as much as yes, I
have had a little bit of close contact before that point.
Not really.
S3 (25:28):
So what keeps you motivated to stay in the support sector?
S9 (25:32):
The enthusiasm. All of these people that I come into
contact with have for overcoming the adversity, that is their disability.
I have found myself regularly calling able bodied people out
when they're whingeing or complaining about something. And I'll tell
them straight that this is a first world problem compared
(25:54):
to the para athletes I deal with. You have got
to be kidding me. You're going to let this stop you.
And it's that ethos from the para community at large
that that really keeps me going and wanting to help
them just be motivated and involved in things that they
otherwise wouldn't do without me.
S3 (26:13):
You have been helping someone engaging in powerlifting. How did
that come about?
S9 (26:18):
So this was young Zach, who I mentioned a little
bit earlier. I call him Young Zach because he's only
5 or 6 years younger than me, but I've been
quite invested in him since he was 18 odd years old,
and we'd been out of touch for a little while,
and I ran into him in our gym at the time,
where I'd only just started lifting things, and I ran
(26:40):
into him there, and it just so happened that his
support worker, who was bringing him there, didn't really couldn't
really cover the amount of times that Zach wanted to
be able to come to the gym. And I said, well,
I can take you. I've got no issues picking you up.
It's on my way. I'll bring it. And I had
no intentions of formally becoming any level of support worker,
except that it was convenient for me to be able
(27:01):
to help him. And the more we got invested in this,
the the more competitive he got. And it's not that
he hadn't competed, but this definitely gave him the opportunity
then to start targeting powerlifting events, because he had my
sort of flexibility to be able to get him to
where he needed to go.
S3 (27:21):
So what role did you play there? Like, were you
a coach or did you just spot him? Did you
help write programs? Like how involved did that get for you?
S9 (27:28):
I would give him detailed descriptions of what he looked
like when he was doing particular lifts from a form perspective,
and sometimes those descriptions were exactly what he intended to
be doing, and sometimes they weren't. But I would audio
describe what I could see when he was lifting. I
would spot him. I would be able to go and
get the plates reasonably quickly compared to what he could.
(27:51):
Sometimes we would walk over to the weight trees and,
you know, we'd carry, you know, a pair of 25
each back where he would basically follow my voice all
the way back to whatever it was that we were
doing just to try and speed the process up. So
I suppose I would just guide him around the gym
so that he wouldn't hit anything. And yeah, we, we
just went about that sport in the most professional manner
(28:12):
I've ever seen anybody prepare for anything. And he ended
up doing a huge PB. I think he deadlifted something
like 225 kilos in that competition that we did. And
I forget the other stats, but I was genuinely and
absolutely astounded at how well he did.
S3 (28:27):
So what other activities have you helped clients with?
S9 (28:31):
One of the most interesting things I've been a part
of was with a man called Glenn Baxter, where he
got me involved in blind archery, where I actually don't
even know at what point I decided that I was
going to do this with him. I think it was
purely for the sake of interest of, yeah, I've got
a couple of hours. We'll go over to the range
and see how this works. And I thought that I
(28:54):
was really just being his driver to get him there.
I had no idea how much investment that was actually
going to take from me to help him do it,
because there's a whole lot of, again, audio describing feedback
about directions and angles and things like that. You are
in the first place. You're lining them up so that
(29:15):
they can shoot as close to the target as possible.
And then once real competition starts, you don't get to
give them any feedback until the end of the round.
So setting them up in the first place as accurately
as possible is super, super important. But that started, you know,
initially as what I thought was just a bit of
recreation and, and me helping him get around, and it
(29:37):
ended up with us going down to the national titles
in Sydney, where Glenn earned himself a silver medal.
S3 (29:42):
Amazing. Well, that leads perfectly into my next question, which
was do you have any, like, standout memories or highlights
from your years of supporting people?
S9 (29:52):
I've got a really funny story, and this is one
of those stories that as an able bodied person, it
really sat me back in my chair and made me
realize just how lucky I was. We'd taken a bus trip.
We were down at a national title somewhere obscure, and
I forget exactly where, but we would have flown down
from Queensland to somewhere like rural Victoria, and we had
(30:14):
a bus load of people who were hand cyclists and
wheelchair athletes, and I got off this little bus where
I'd been a bit cramped up, walked off the bus
and said, man, my back hurts. And the bloke who
was sitting at the door who was a paraplegic, he said,
tell me how. Tell me a bit more about how
your back hurts. And he just gave me this deadpan
stare that made me sit back and go, man. Not
(30:37):
only was that tone deaf, I'm really lucky to have
walked off that bus instead of getting carried off. So
as far as standout memories go, that really helped me
grow as a person. That was one of the biggest
moments I could tell you about. There are other, happier,
more successful moments. But of the things that I've learned
from the disabled community, um, that would be the biggest.
S3 (31:00):
So if anyone's listening to this and they're thinking about
getting into support work, or perhaps they're in support work and,
you know, they're struggling to find their motivation, what advice
would you give to those people?
S9 (31:14):
Find people in the disabled community who want to be
involved in something that you are already an expert at,
so that you can teach them so that you can
involve them, because the act of uplifting somebody and teaching
them can be hugely rewarding. So from the support workers perspective,
work with people who want to do something that you're
(31:37):
already passionate about.
S2 (31:39):
That's a wrap for this week. A big thank you
to Megan, Megan and Peter.
S3 (31:43):
And of course, a big thanks to you for listening.
And that includes our listeners on the Reading Radio Network.
As usual, you can find the podcast to this programme,
plus some extra content on Google, Spotify, Apple or your
favorite podcast platform.
S2 (31:58):
Next week, how many times have you been told you
don't look blind? We ask, what is a blind person
supposed to look like? And why do people think we
don't look that way?
S3 (32:09):
But between now and then, please do get in touch
with the show. Whether you have any experience of the
issues covered on this week's episode of Studio One, or
if you think there's something we should be talking about.
You never know. Your story and insight may help someone
who's dealing with something similar.
S2 (32:24):
Our email address is Studio one at org. That's studio
number one at Vision Australia.
S3 (32:29):
Org or of course you can find us on all
of the good social media platforms.
S2 (32:34):
And a few of the bad.
S3 (32:35):
Ones. Yeah, whether that be Facebook or Instagram by searching
for VA Radio Network. We really want to hear from you.
S2 (32:42):
Bye for now.
S10 (32:43):
This program was made possible with the support of the
Community Broadcasting Foundation. Find out more at.
This is studio one on Vision Australia Radio.
S2 (00:16):
Hello, I'm Sam.
S3 (00:17):
And I'm Lizzie.
S2 (00:19):
And this is Studio One, your weekly look at life
from a low vision and blind point of view here
on Vision Australia Radio.
S3 (00:24):
This week, what role do support workers play in your life?
S2 (00:28):
We talk to two support workers who coincidentally have the
same name. The two Morgans talk about their backgrounds, what
got them involved with the NDIS and where things are
going from here.
S3 (00:39):
Also, chat with Peter Spencer about how he supports his
clients in the realm of sport and recreation.
S2 (00:45):
As we always say at this point, please do get
in touch with the show where they have experience of
any of the issues covered on this week's episode of
Studio One, or if you think there is something we
should be talking about. You never know. Your story and
insight may help somebody else who is dealing with something similar.
S3 (00:59):
That's right, you can contact us via email at studio
one at Vision Australia. Org, that's That studio number one
at Vision Australia. Org or of course, you can drop
us a note on our station's Facebook page by going
to facebook.com Slash Radio Network.
S2 (01:16):
Okay. Hello, Lizzy. How are we going today?
S3 (01:18):
We are. I'm in the bones of creaking a bit,
but we're good.
S2 (01:21):
Why are the bones are creaking a bit?
S3 (01:23):
It's cold down here in Adelaide. It's a cold, cold day.
S2 (01:26):
We're actually having weather, which is unusual. Um, we don't
usually get weather. We usually get, um, hot and dry
or cold and dry. Um, now we've actually got rain,
which is unusual for some. Um, I suppose some of
you up in Queensland would probably like some of their
rain to go down here, but. And we'd like that too.
S3 (01:45):
Oh, yeah. I mean, as much as we can complain
about the rain because it inconveniences us as blind people
as far as catching buses and stuff. The Earth certainly
needs it, I will say on the way to work today,
because I got a lift. Uh, visibility became so bad
that the driver could barely see, like, 20m ahead of himself. Self.
S2 (02:04):
That gives you a lot of confidence, doesn't it?
S3 (02:06):
No. Yeah, totally.
S2 (02:08):
So I'm presuming you've got to lift in through a,
I don't know, a support worker.
S3 (02:12):
I did the wonderful Mr. Spirou, Chris Spirou, he helped.
He gave me a lift in today and so graciously
offered his the shelter of his car, since it was
a very wet out there.
S2 (02:24):
Mhm. So this week we are once more looking at
um the role that support workers play in our lives. Um, because, well,
throughout the um early part of this decade we were
introduced to the NDIS and some people, well, we were
sort of forced onto it because the support we got from, say,
local city councils or something like that just vanished. So now, yes,
(02:48):
we have these wonderful people who we pay to look
after us. Um, how do you go as far as
that goes?
S3 (02:54):
I'm very blessed, actually. I have a little team of
support workers.
S2 (03:00):
Um, an entourage?
S3 (03:01):
Yeah, I mean, a little bit. Yeah. Like I have
Chris and Megan who helped me with most of my stuff.
And I do have another wonderful man by the name
of Dimitri, who helps me occasionally, but he also supports
my husband. I must say, it's really nice to actually
hear from support workers themselves about their journey into the
industry and what motivates them to keep supporting people. Because
(03:23):
I mean, often enough we hear people complaining and griping
about the NDIS, which is fair enough. It's not a
perfect system, but it's I think it's really nice to
just highlight the level of dedication that these support workers show,
and just how much they enjoy their job, and watching
us develop and grow and achieve our goals.
S2 (03:44):
Now, the funny thing is, is that we both worked
out quite early on that we have a support worker
with the same name. It's not the same support worker,
it's just two, two ladies with the same name just
so happened to be, uh, occasionally driving us around.
S3 (03:58):
Yeah, I mean, how crazy is that? I mean, it
would be funny if they were the same support worker.
But having shared Megan the support worker, my support worker
with other friends, I can tell you it's sometimes the
lines get a little bit blurry. But yeah, I'm glad
we don't have the same support worker.
S2 (04:18):
Well, I mean, this is what happened with us is
that for a while there I was. I was looking
after me on a Thursday morning and just driving me around.
We went down to once a fortnight and she said, oh,
by the way Saturdays are now opening up for me
Saturday mornings. Would Heidi be interested? And suddenly Heidi jumps
(04:38):
on and goes, yes, yes, please. So Megan's been quite
happily my Megan. Our Megan has been quite happily looking
after us now for just over a year now. And
unfortunately though, she's moving on to other things, she's getting
getting another life, which is so inconvenient for me, but
I'm so happy for her.
S3 (04:57):
This would be a nice farewell gift then. It won't.
It will mean she gets her voice aired on studio one.
And who doesn't want that.
S2 (05:03):
But first we're going to hear from your Megan. So, uh, over,
over to you.
S4 (05:11):
Tell us about your journey into support work. My grandfather
had a neighbor who had been diagnosed with Ms. and
was having seizures, and she needed someone to drive her around.
I'd lost my job through Covid and needed something to do.
So we took my convertible out and took her driving
and had a lot of fun. And at the end
of the shift, she said, I hope you know you'll
(05:31):
be working for me from now on. Funnily enough, she
owned a support working business. Amazing.
S3 (05:37):
That's quite an organic way to get into support work,
isn't it?
S4 (05:39):
Absolutely. I felt very, very lucky and blessed through that support,
like something you'd never thought you'd get into. I really did, actually.
When I was young, I thought about working with people
with disabilities, but I was frightened of the unknown in disability.
And once I stepped into it, I will never, ever
look back.
S3 (06:00):
Can you tell us about some of the.
S4 (06:02):
Positive.
S3 (06:02):
Experiences.
S4 (06:03):
That you've had through supporting people. Some of the most
positive experiences I've had is making friends with my clients.
That has been very impactful on my own personal life. Uh,
people such as yourself are now my closest friends, and
I'm so blessed and so lucky for that. But my
favorite memory of being a support worker is watching a
(06:25):
lady relearn the ability to walk again. That was very,
very emotional.
S3 (06:30):
That must have impacted you in a massive way because
that's quite a transformative experience.
S4 (06:35):
It actually humbled me. The simple act of being able
to raise your arm up to get something out of
a cupboard made me feel lucky. What are some of
the highlights.
S3 (06:44):
Or the most memorable things that you've done.
S4 (06:47):
Was supported people with? One of my fondest memories is
you and I walking up Morialta, and you're seeing eye
dog jumping in the river and getting nice and wet
in the middle of winter and having to chase her
out of the water. We had a few laughs, we
had a few laughs, and I love people's reaction to
(07:09):
us doing our bush hikes because we get a bit
crazy and start singing, and we have so much fun
making up our own words to songs we do, don't we?
Like earlier today. So what are some of the more.
S3 (07:22):
Basic or more routine tasks that you assist people with
day to.
S4 (07:25):
Day? I help people with things from personal care, which
include brushing teeth, brushing hair, doing clothing changes, showering, getting
things ready for the next day, meal prepping. I get
to take people to appointments, to their jobs, go shopping, traveling, um,
(07:47):
most fun of all the social stuff. So would you
say support work is.
S3 (07:51):
Just as much about like, the social and the mental
and the companionship just as much as it is like
independence and life skills and stuff.
S4 (07:58):
I think socialization is a big part of having a
positive life. Some people who may not know how to
reach out in a social way or have been rejected
by certain friends and family members of society, do feel
rejected and isolated, and it's lovely to help them change
their perspective of the world.
S3 (08:18):
What are some of the challenges that you've encountered during
support work?
S4 (08:23):
I think one of the biggest challenges that we face
on a daily basis is discrimination, and I think that
comes from a lack of education. If you don't know better,
how do you act better? And I'm really hoping that
with what you're doing, we can educate people on people
with disabilities and maybe not needing to put in so
(08:45):
much when people are independent.
S3 (08:47):
That's such a big thing, isn't it? Because people when
you go out with your support workers, they'll ask the
support worker what your needs are. And I mean, although
the support worker may be familiar with that, it's just
nice for us to be able to express that ourselves, right?
S4 (09:01):
It can be very uncomfortable for me when somebody chooses
to ignore my client, who's the one engaging them in
the first place. And I unfortunately seem a bit rude
when I turned my back on them and say, could
you please speak to them, not me. Some of the
most difficult things that I've faced are people who have
had a lack of funds, and a lack of resources
(09:24):
to help them in the way that they require. Lack
of external support can really impact someone in ways that
someone with a mainstream lifestyle may not understand. So what
advice would you.
S3 (09:36):
Give to other people looking to get into the support
work industry?
S4 (09:40):
I say do it. Everyone has a different walk of life,
different desires and requirements, and there are so many beautiful
things that you can do to impact someone in such
a small way or a large way.
S3 (09:56):
What would you say is the biggest motivation for you
staying in the industry?
S4 (10:00):
Oh, a big motivator for me is how much I
enjoy my job. I love watching people grow and develop
and become awesome human beings, just from having that little
bit of extra independence and support.
S3 (10:18):
I love Meghan's enthusiasm and energy. She's such a bright
and bubbly person and she didn't, you know, put on
that energy for the interview. She's always like that. I mean,
you could swear there's caffeine in her veins instead of blood.
She's go, go, go all the time. I've been with Meghan.
We've been working together for about three and a half
(10:38):
years now. Coming up to, I reckon. And yeah, just
every day that I see her, she brings a smile
to my face. But enough from me. Let's hear from
your Meghan, shall we?
S2 (10:49):
Well, yeah. Yes, let's. I'm going to preface this, preface
this by saying that my journey with Mabel, who, um,
I think we mostly all go through at the moment,
started sort of rocky, I've got to admit, because Cause
I put it in an ad and then got something like, um,
a dozen replies just within the first hour and thought, okay,
there's one person I wouldn't mind talking to, but went away,
(11:11):
and by the time I came back she said, no,
I'm not available anymore. So I learned that, okay, I
took that particular ad off the table, as it were,
and then re-advertised and jumped on this wonderful person, Megan,
who now looks after me. But not for long. Much
longer unfortunately. And yeah, the rest is history. So if
(11:33):
you are thinking of jumping on one of these platforms
and getting somebody get them, get them, do it quickly.
S3 (11:40):
Yes, I will say just quickly too. With Megan, it
was funny the way your story reminded me, I we
were looking for a cleaner. First off, that was our first, um,
you know, that was why we placed the ad. The
first lady we had came in and didn't do a
satisfactory job, and I remember going back through the postings
like the replies during that cleaning session or just after
(12:03):
and going, gee, this this Megan sounds really cool. Like,
I just I wonder if she'd be up for me
saying yes to her now and reopening that booking because,
you know, it had been a couple of weeks since, um,
she'd messaged me and I just loved her message because
she was like, well, I'm not a I'm not an
actual cleaner, but I have a thorough and keen eye
for detail. And I was just like, yes, I love
(12:24):
this chick. So that's actually how we got started. And then,
you know, we're talking about hiking and tandem cycling and
baking and all sorts of things, and it just snowballed
from there.
S2 (12:34):
But enough about you. Let's talk about our Megan. So my,
our Megan, um, is well, is this coming Thursday is
our last session together. So, uh, but, um, over to you.
Over to me. That's right over to me. I did
this interview.
S5 (12:48):
Yeah. You did.
S2 (12:53):
Hello.
S6 (12:54):
Hey, Sam. How are you doing?
S7 (12:55):
Oh, I'm pretty good. I mean, you just put this on. Um, please.
It's a it's a a microphone.
S6 (13:01):
Okay.
S7 (13:02):
Um, do you mind if we have a chat? Because, uh, we. Yeah.
We're not going to be working together much longer, so
it's just nicer to sort of, I don't know, reflect
on a few things.
S6 (13:11):
Great. Happy to do that, Sam.
S7 (13:13):
Okay. As we walk through the immense corridor and completely
ignore Heidi, who's not there at all. So we've been
together for how long now?
S6 (13:23):
I reckon is probably over a year. Definitely. Maybe even
a year and a half. It's been a while. Yes.
S7 (13:31):
It has. Um, so what's your background? Is sort of, well,
medical and also therapeutic though.
S6 (13:38):
Yeah, it's a bit diverse. So my background's nursing. And
then I did glass art therapy, which got me into
more of a working for myself role. And then, um,
through that I started to come in contact with clients
with varying needs. So I applied many years ago for Mabel,
(14:00):
And that's where you and I made our first contact. And, um. So, yeah, I've.
I've had a few balls in the air, juggling a
few balls in the air. But at the moment, I'm
just doing all support roles.
S7 (14:15):
Right. So, so the, um, art therapy and things like
that are sort of taking a backseat at the moment.
S6 (14:20):
With backseat with a plan to return. Okay. Yeah.
S7 (14:23):
Okay. Well, I might talk about that just a little
bit later. Sure. But I'll I'll start with sort of
talking about I my reason why I sort of chose
you and also why you sort of go with, say,
registered nurses and stuff like that in future I think
more because and you can correct me if I'm wrong here,
(14:44):
you're ridiculously overqualified to actually help me. But but that said,
me and people like me are probably some of the
easier jobs you'll get. And that's sort of one of
my logic here, is I'd rather have somebody who's ridiculously
overqualified and maybe having a little bit of a rest,
then someone with no experience with disability whatsoever.
S6 (15:03):
You know, Sam, I really appreciate your reflection on that
because something I've noticed working in a perhaps a non-formal
medical field is that having that professional underpinning really gives
you a good understanding of how to work with people
professionally within, especially within the community, because I think there's
(15:28):
a lot of perhaps inexperienced and unqualified people who do
work in the area, and they don't always offer the
best care or have the best understanding of how systems work,
either well or badly or in between. So, um, for me,
(15:49):
it's been a real grounding experience because I've been able
to support people in their homes and, and also advocate
for for them, not necessarily for you in your role
because you, you know, you've got an amazing insights into,
you know, the area of support that you know is
within your, your area. Yeah. So that's been good for me.
S8 (16:12):
Have you had many other.
S7 (16:14):
Blind or visually impaired clients?
S6 (16:16):
The only so for me I've, I've had one other
and that that person was um requiring. What did he
call it. Where I had to actually he had to
hold my, my arm. I had to.
S7 (16:32):
Block the sight of God. Yeah.
S6 (16:33):
Yeah. But I've also, through my family, been, um. Very.
I suppose, you know, I've grown up with a brother
with a disability, and I've, um. And he was in
disability support sports, so, you know, I've sort of, uh,
been around that world, and I've got an uncle who's
a wheelchair, you know, so I've kind of. Yeah, been
(16:56):
in contact and had relationships with for people with varying disabilities,
but not necessarily vision impaired.
S7 (17:02):
Well, I mean, one of the big tricks, I think,
is not just knowing how much support somebody needs, but
also how little when to sort of step back and. Absolutely.
And not be too much. So that's again, the big
thing I tend to look for when I'm sort of
looking for somebody to help me out is I don't
want to be mollycoddled or anything like that. It's the
ability to step back. I mean, how important have you
(17:23):
found that?
S6 (17:24):
Oh it's amazing. And I think that's something I picked
up immediately. Um, because I've worked for so many years
within areas of aged care, especially where you don't want
to be, you don't want to be stabilized somebody, and
you want to really encourage their capacities to strengthen. And
(17:46):
you also don't want to offend people because, you know, it's,
you know, um, disability is an interesting word in itself
because you've got an ability which is different to other peoples.
And so I think that's where my mindset is with, um,
when I approach supporting people like I walk alongside you,
(18:08):
I don't do for you and I, you know, communicate
with you and, um, understand you and what you're, you know,
ask you, do you need help with this as opposed
to just assuming. I think that's really, you know.
S7 (18:22):
Oh, yeah. No. Simply assuming that somebody needs help is. Yeah,
that's a sure fire way to get on the wrong
side of somebody. Yeah. Um, has there been any surprises, uh,
that you've come across that you thought I would have
never have thought about that, whether it'd be from a
positive or negative?
S6 (18:39):
I think you've helped me understand the the diversity in
vision impairment. So, um, I think one of the things
is the where the senses, the other senses are heightened. So,
you know, that's given me more of an awareness of, um,
(19:00):
you know, somebody may have an impairment here, but then
there's a heightened sense over here that kind of can
compensate for that. So it's it's the other thing that
I think surprised me was the when I learned from
you the discrimination, um, with especially, um, seeing eye dogs
(19:22):
in taxis. That was, that was a bit of a
shock for me. Um, and an awareness of, you know,
how hard that can be for people to navigate. Other
service providers that we take for granted, as you know,
non vision impaired people and transportation and getting around.
S7 (19:40):
Well, I mean that's one of the biggest things that
have been useful to me is going to a place
like Bunnings and that kind of thing where I might
spend 15 minutes looking for something, and we just go
straight to the right aisle and find whatever it is.
I mean, we've got a doorknob, literally a cupboard literally
up there, which took less than five minutes to find. Yeah.
And that would have taken me forever to find that. Um,
(20:02):
we had someone with a decent pair of working eyes.
S6 (20:05):
Absolutely. Just those. Fine, you know, the fine tuning things.
And I love Bunnings, so I might know where the
doorknobs are, but. But yeah. Yeah, it's it's just that appreciation.
Because sometimes, you know, when I'm with you, I think, gosh, Sam. So,
you know, capable of getting up and moving and navigating within,
within places that sometimes I feel like I've got to
(20:29):
keep up with you. And then I just, you know, I'm.
It's when you asked me, perhaps just to read the
smaller details that I think, oh, okay. This is where,
you know, my role can really support.
S7 (20:42):
Oh, I mean, Dan Murphy's has got your shopping as
far as that goes. I mean, there's price tags seem
to be getting smaller and smaller. Yeah. Yeah. But as
I said, we're our time working together is coming to
a close. Yeah. What are you planning Meaning after all this.
I mean, you're sort of moving away from us all.
S6 (21:00):
I know. So, um, I'm having a tree change, which is, um,
which is going to be great. And I will focus
on my art therapy side of, uh, um, my career.
So where I'm moving to, I've had conversations with a
woman who runs a an art therapy studio in the Barossa. And, um,
(21:25):
so I'll sort of be exercising that muscle again, and
I'm because I've been away from it for about 18 months,
I'm feeling really excited about, um, what that may look like.
So probably providing open studio for people, um, in the community,
some more NDIS work. Yeah.
S7 (21:46):
And you've got a new place to live. That's basically
just a a quick walk away from, from where you
work and all that. Yeah.
S6 (21:53):
So that'll be, you know, um, a real ease in it.
And and it'd be nice to be out in the
country again. I'm a country girl, so I'm sort of
returning to an area that's familiar with me, and, um,
it will be a larger space, so I'll be able
to also set up my own art practice because I,
(22:15):
you know, I went to art school many, many moons ago, and, um,
that's how I got into art therapy, because I could
see that, you know, there was a link between people
and wellbeing and and art practice and creativity.
S7 (22:31):
Well, thank you so much for agreeing to have this chat.
I know I mugged you at the door, but, um,
I'm sort of envious that you're starting this whole new life, so, um. Enjoy.
S6 (22:42):
Thank you, Sam, and thanks for the opportunity to chat.
S2 (22:48):
Well, thank you, Megan. Um, and I will. I will
miss you. Hopefully, uh, your new life down in the
Barossa Valley is as terrific as it sounds. Anyway, so
to finish off this week we talked to Peter and well,
you talk to him first. So let's hear what you've
got to say.
S3 (23:07):
Thanks, Sam. It was very interesting talking to Peter. I
have to say, because he approaches support work differently, like
he fell very organically into support work. Um, he started
his journey actually through sport. And now he mostly helps
support clients who wish to get into sport and recreation.
So he's got some very interesting advice for people that
(23:31):
want to get into support, work about how to best
find the right clients for them. So without further ado,
let's hear from Peter Spencer. So tell me about how
did you get into support work?
S9 (23:45):
Well, it's a little bit of a long winded story,
but over ten years ago now, well over ten years ago,
I was approached because I used to ride and race
bikes reasonably well. um, you'd call it national elite level,
where I'd won enough races to be okay at it.
And the bloke who ran the state para cycling program
at the time approached me and asked me if I
(24:08):
wouldn't mind jumping on the front of a tandem just
because he had a bloke who wanted to do the
state titles in a few weeks. He fully intended to
get me involved in tandem racing as a pilot, much
longer term than just this one race that he pitched
to me. And that was my very first introduction to
anything to do with disabled people, disabled sport, any level
(24:31):
of para competition whatsoever. And it's only through that, ten
years later, that I find myself doing some support work
that facilitates more tandem cycling, more para sport, and for
the guys that I support them, leaving much more active lives.
S3 (24:48):
So before you became a support worker, had you any
lived experience or exposure to people with disabilities, whether that
be through like family, friends or other roles.
S9 (24:59):
My father had a stroke and he was severely impaired,
but I didn't have a lot of firsthand contact with
him after he had his stroke. I lived in Sydney.
We were somewhat estranged at the time, and the exposure
I had to him, and his impairment was limited to
flying visits of only a few hours at a time.
(25:20):
To be perfectly honest. So as much as yes, I
have had a little bit of close contact before that point.
Not really.
S3 (25:28):
So what keeps you motivated to stay in the support sector?
S9 (25:32):
The enthusiasm. All of these people that I come into
contact with have for overcoming the adversity, that is their disability.
I have found myself regularly calling able bodied people out
when they're whingeing or complaining about something. And I'll tell
them straight that this is a first world problem compared
(25:54):
to the para athletes I deal with. You have got
to be kidding me. You're going to let this stop you.
And it's that ethos from the para community at large
that that really keeps me going and wanting to help
them just be motivated and involved in things that they
otherwise wouldn't do without me.
S3 (26:13):
You have been helping someone engaging in powerlifting. How did
that come about?
S9 (26:18):
So this was young Zach, who I mentioned a little
bit earlier. I call him Young Zach because he's only
5 or 6 years younger than me, but I've been
quite invested in him since he was 18 odd years old,
and we'd been out of touch for a little while,
and I ran into him in our gym at the time,
where I'd only just started lifting things, and I ran
(26:40):
into him there, and it just so happened that his
support worker, who was bringing him there, didn't really couldn't
really cover the amount of times that Zach wanted to
be able to come to the gym. And I said, well,
I can take you. I've got no issues picking you up.
It's on my way. I'll bring it. And I had
no intentions of formally becoming any level of support worker,
except that it was convenient for me to be able
(27:01):
to help him. And the more we got invested in this,
the the more competitive he got. And it's not that
he hadn't competed, but this definitely gave him the opportunity
then to start targeting powerlifting events, because he had my
sort of flexibility to be able to get him to
where he needed to go.
S3 (27:21):
So what role did you play there? Like, were you
a coach or did you just spot him? Did you
help write programs? Like how involved did that get for you?
S9 (27:28):
I would give him detailed descriptions of what he looked
like when he was doing particular lifts from a form perspective,
and sometimes those descriptions were exactly what he intended to
be doing, and sometimes they weren't. But I would audio
describe what I could see when he was lifting. I
would spot him. I would be able to go and
get the plates reasonably quickly compared to what he could.
(27:51):
Sometimes we would walk over to the weight trees and,
you know, we'd carry, you know, a pair of 25
each back where he would basically follow my voice all
the way back to whatever it was that we were
doing just to try and speed the process up. So
I suppose I would just guide him around the gym
so that he wouldn't hit anything. And yeah, we, we
just went about that sport in the most professional manner
(28:12):
I've ever seen anybody prepare for anything. And he ended
up doing a huge PB. I think he deadlifted something
like 225 kilos in that competition that we did. And
I forget the other stats, but I was genuinely and
absolutely astounded at how well he did.
S3 (28:27):
So what other activities have you helped clients with?
S9 (28:31):
One of the most interesting things I've been a part
of was with a man called Glenn Baxter, where he
got me involved in blind archery, where I actually don't
even know at what point I decided that I was
going to do this with him. I think it was
purely for the sake of interest of, yeah, I've got
a couple of hours. We'll go over to the range
and see how this works. And I thought that I
(28:54):
was really just being his driver to get him there.
I had no idea how much investment that was actually
going to take from me to help him do it,
because there's a whole lot of, again, audio describing feedback
about directions and angles and things like that. You are
in the first place. You're lining them up so that
(29:15):
they can shoot as close to the target as possible.
And then once real competition starts, you don't get to
give them any feedback until the end of the round.
So setting them up in the first place as accurately
as possible is super, super important. But that started, you know,
initially as what I thought was just a bit of
recreation and, and me helping him get around, and it
(29:37):
ended up with us going down to the national titles
in Sydney, where Glenn earned himself a silver medal.
S3 (29:42):
Amazing. Well, that leads perfectly into my next question, which
was do you have any, like, standout memories or highlights
from your years of supporting people?
S9 (29:52):
I've got a really funny story, and this is one
of those stories that as an able bodied person, it
really sat me back in my chair and made me
realize just how lucky I was. We'd taken a bus trip.
We were down at a national title somewhere obscure, and
I forget exactly where, but we would have flown down
from Queensland to somewhere like rural Victoria, and we had
(30:14):
a bus load of people who were hand cyclists and
wheelchair athletes, and I got off this little bus where
I'd been a bit cramped up, walked off the bus
and said, man, my back hurts. And the bloke who
was sitting at the door who was a paraplegic, he said,
tell me how. Tell me a bit more about how
your back hurts. And he just gave me this deadpan
stare that made me sit back and go, man. Not
(30:37):
only was that tone deaf, I'm really lucky to have
walked off that bus instead of getting carried off. So
as far as standout memories go, that really helped me
grow as a person. That was one of the biggest
moments I could tell you about. There are other, happier,
more successful moments. But of the things that I've learned
from the disabled community, um, that would be the biggest.
S3 (31:00):
So if anyone's listening to this and they're thinking about
getting into support work, or perhaps they're in support work and,
you know, they're struggling to find their motivation, what advice
would you give to those people?
S9 (31:14):
Find people in the disabled community who want to be
involved in something that you are already an expert at,
so that you can teach them so that you can
involve them, because the act of uplifting somebody and teaching
them can be hugely rewarding. So from the support workers perspective,
work with people who want to do something that you're
(31:37):
already passionate about.
S2 (31:39):
That's a wrap for this week. A big thank you
to Megan, Megan and Peter.
S3 (31:43):
And of course, a big thanks to you for listening.
And that includes our listeners on the Reading Radio Network.
As usual, you can find the podcast to this programme,
plus some extra content on Google, Spotify, Apple or your
favorite podcast platform.
S2 (31:58):
Next week, how many times have you been told you
don't look blind? We ask, what is a blind person
supposed to look like? And why do people think we
don't look that way?
S3 (32:09):
But between now and then, please do get in touch
with the show. Whether you have any experience of the
issues covered on this week's episode of Studio One, or
if you think there's something we should be talking about.
You never know. Your story and insight may help someone
who's dealing with something similar.
S2 (32:24):
Our email address is Studio one at org. That's studio
number one at Vision Australia.
S3 (32:29):
Org or of course you can find us on all
of the good social media platforms.
S2 (32:34):
And a few of the bad.
S3 (32:35):
Ones. Yeah, whether that be Facebook or Instagram by searching
for VA Radio Network. We really want to hear from you.
S2 (32:42):
Bye for now.
S10 (32:43):
This program was made possible with the support of the
Community Broadcasting Foundation. Find out more at.
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