April 10, 2025 • 28 mins
In this heartwarming episode of The Pawsome Companion, host Johanna Herrera sits down with Aida Laverde, a visually impaired woman whose life has been transformed through the support of her guide dog. Aida opens up about her journey from Colombia to Australia, her experiences navigating the world with vision loss, and how her guide dog provides not just mobility—but freedom, confidence, and companionship.
This episode is a powerful reminder of the life-changing bond between people and their assistance dogs.
Produced by Wavebreaker Productions
#GuideDogs #AssistanceDogs #VisuallyImpaired #ServiceAnimals #IndependenceWithDogs #PawsomeCompanion #DisabilitySupport #BlindCommunity #DogLovers #InspiringStories
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Welcome to the Pawson Companion, where
pets are part of our family. I'm
your host, Joanna Herrera, the founder of
Cocoa and Bondai. I'm very excited
0to interview experts and pet owners
to share their stories and insights so
you can use them to take care of your
babies.
(00:22):
Today I have Aida here with me, Aida
Laverde. Aida. Oh, it's Aida?Okay,
Aida Laverde.
Ida has been, you know, Ida is
from Colombia, has been in Australia for
13 years and has worked in the
financial industry and currently she's
working in the disability sector. 17 00:00:43,1000 --> 00:00:46,960 And like she
(00:46):
will tell us a story of
what had been the situation that she has
encountered for the last five years with
her vision lost. without cure,
so now she is getting
some, she has gone through different
treatments and 25 00:01:05,1000 --> 00:01:08,800 the doctors have... Like say that it's
(01:08):
nothing to do. The doctors have...
Find out that. Yeah, like find out that
there is no cure and that obviously she
had to go through support from NDIS
with help of see differently, yeah?
Well, we got this beautiful dog that is
sleeping now.
(01:30):
Wanda, she's working. That is the
position when she's working. OK, I'm very
happy to be here with Ida La Verde.
She is a Colombian living in
Australia. She has been here for 13
years. She has been working in Australia
in the financial sector and currently is
working as well in the disability sector.
(01:51):
Unfortunately, five years ago, she has
been diagnosed with some
vision loss and
after different treatments and seeing
many doctors,
unfortunately this is, they have no cure.
So Aida now is
getting some support from NDIS through
(02:12):
see differently. And now is
getting support from a guide dog that is
giving you company. And
her name is Wanda. So we got
here Wanda. Hello, Ida. How
are you today?Hello. How are you, Joanna?
Thank you for coming to our show. I I
know that all our listeners will love
(02:34):
your story. So please tell
me a little bit more about you. I know
that you have been here. 13 years,
sorry.
And I will say for those listeners who
don't know, I'm from Colombia as well. So
I feel very connected to to to you
and probably we are, we have a lot of.
things in common in terms of culture.
(02:56):
Yeah. So yeah. So we can say, Hola como
estas?Yes. So which is, how are you
in Spanish?For those who would like to
know that as well. Yeah. Like you say,
I'm from Colombia, living in Australia
for 30 years. Since I arrived
here, I started working in a finance
industry. With that
(03:18):
company, I was working for
12 years. Last year I moved with another
broker and
since 2020 I started
having issues with my vision.
You never notice what is happening
with your vision, yes, when you are going
(03:39):
to check out, it's when you find
out. But after
they discovered that I was having a
disease that is not. It's a
rare disease here in Australia,
so I start linking a few
issues that I have with my vision.
One of those was I was crashing my car
(04:02):
plenty times in the same spot in the
area where I was working. So
this is the point when you start
realizing that your vision has
problems after
so many. tests and
treatments, the doctors decided that it's
(04:22):
nothing to do with my vision. Yeah.
My left eye is not
working, so it's no central vision. The
peripheral vision was the first thing
that I lost.
After the last
decision, the only thing that
the doctor said is I need support from
(04:42):
NDIS if I want to keep
working and be able to
go around to have a normal life,
independence life.
So NDIS
send me which see them differently. They
are the ones that are working with dogs.
(05:04):
So I start doing the training first
before receiving Rwanda. And
that normally takes six months to receive
a dog, umm but my case was completely
different. I put my application
and one month after they already
found the dog perfect for me. You have to
(05:24):
to have the match like how you work,
how is your daily life.
So they have to find the right dog for
you. And Wanda is really active. She
walk like a, you have to run when you are
walking with her. So this was perfect for
me. Yeah. I just wanna go a little bit
(05:45):
back. So I know that you have been in
Australia 13 years. So how was your life
before that you find
out that you were having vision loss?
Like, what were you doing?Like...
Yeah, how was your life and and what was
the reason why you came to Australia in
the first place?I have two kids. They are
(06:05):
not really kids, 30 and 26.
They are still kids. Yes, they are kids.
And I was looking for a better life for
them. Colombia is beautiful, but
the opportunities for them is not
like you can find everywhere.
So I decided to come here with them
(06:26):
And when I arrived, I started working,
like I say, with a finance company.
And you were doing supporting a
broker. That's what you. Yeah, my role
there is office manager, which is you are
still doing it, but in a different
business, right?You are a different
company. Office manager and training the
(06:48):
the team is still doing the training. I'm
using the computers like. I was
doing before, using the same tools,
everything is like a
normal. A few things that I have to stop
doing, but in general, I'm trying to keep
the same. And my boss is really,
really a good person.
(07:09):
He's a... So you are talking about the
new boss?Yes. Yes The name is Mark.
He He was working. We
have like two brokers in the
company, the previous company. So when I
start losing my vision, my
elbows was
(07:30):
different. Like for him was
life is is the same. So I have to keep
going with the role. So he couldn't
understand the situation. Yeah So for
him, this is no existence.
So for me it was difficult, a little bit
overstressed. So what were what were the
symptoms that you were having in that
(07:50):
time when you start start losing the the
the vision you said that you were
crushing a lot your car around your
work area. But you don't notice that like
had a personal vision for you something
normal. Yeah. But when I was
crushing my car I didn't I couldn't
see the the the fence. Yeah
(08:11):
but normally the fence was. The same
fence, the same distance. I was a good
rider. I was riding for 30 years, so
nothing changed. And after I was crashing
my car with a with a back pole that was
always in the same place. Yeah. But
I didn't notice that. Like, who was my
vision?I say maybe I was distracted.
(08:34):
Distracted. Yeah. YeahBut I went to
the optometrist for glasses.
More for looking for a guarantee.
So they say no, you have a test
that is pending more than one year
ago. So they say no, you
need to go for that test. I didn't know
(08:54):
that it was so important that test. OK.
So that is the point when they found out
that it's a small
point in inside of my eyes that they
start going, it's it's fluid and
it start growing so. They say no,
you need to go emergency
now and everything is started
(09:17):
in that point. OK. When I trying to
to have my glasses repaired. Yeah.
OK. So after that, let's
say you you went to that exam, you
got it. They gave you the results. What
happened after that?How long after that
point you got
diagnosed that you couldn't?Can you be
(09:39):
sure that with the specialist here in in
retina?Yeah. This
is a is one of the best in in
Australia and they run
every test, different test for
every disease that they can find. Yeah.
Everything was OK.
(10:00):
I'm always linked this disease with
previously in 2018 I
suffered cancer. In my title. So it was
when you were here in Australia as well.
OK, it was in Australia, yeah. Oh my God.
So yeah. So how old were you when that
happened?When you were diagnosed with
cancer in 2018 and
(10:23):
now I'm not sure was
before my
50s, yes. But yeah, I am. You think that
that will probably come from that as well?
I'm always say that. Something is
related, no, with the cancer, more with
the treatment. Oh, okay. It's
(10:44):
like a radiation a little bit, so you
never know what is causing the damage.
But they say, I have to take that
treatment. Yeah. So nothing to do. If
it's that the result, I
have to do it. So nothing. So
after that,
in 2020,
(11:05):
Two years after, I start having the
issues. The normal, you start saying the
normal. I'm having that I can't read
properly, have blurry vision. At
nine was really scary. I couldn't
see the streets when I was
driving. It was too dark for you. Too
dark for me. So I start just following
(11:26):
the cars. That was a little bit
dangerous, but I thought that my car was
having issues with the lights, so I
always. put that excuse.
And when I start doing the
tests and the treatments, one day my
daughter came from Sydney and I
drive her to the airport. When I
(11:48):
stop, she say, Please promise me
that you are not driving anymore. I
say, Why?She said that I was driving
in zigzag. But for me,
I was driving straight. Completely
straight. So,
so you were very lucky that they gave you
(12:09):
that diagnosis. So you you didn't
crash or kill yourself on the road as
well. They started reducing the area
where you are driving like with all the
people. Yeah, they told me that I have to
stop doing long ways or
driving at 9:00. So I was doing that.
But after that they
(12:32):
they decided. I'm not
able to to have my driver's license
anymore. OK. One day they were doing
another test and she said, are you
still driving?One of the nurses said
yes. And she said no, you can. And she
want to tell the doctor that
I have to stop driving. OK. So after
(12:53):
this, obviously you got sent to
NDIS and you went through the process
with getting. It's a long process. OK,
I was first with Guide Dogs. They
helped me a little bit with the NDIS.
You have to prove everything that is
happening. Doctors,
(13:15):
documents, everything. They
after one year I received first
and a small support, but my vision is
deteriorating with the time and it's like
a quick no. It's
another case in Melbourne, I know for
my daughter.
She's having this issue for 10
(13:37):
years, but the deterioration of the
vision was like a slow, you
know, like quick. I use one is going
faster. So this is why
everything have to move quick to
have Wanda. The first thing that I
received was the thetraining with a
(13:59):
white cane. And I have to
tell you that when I went out of my
home for the first time with the cane, I
start crying. What do you mean with the
cane?The white cane that we used
to walk. But you didn't
have the dog yet?No. That is
(14:19):
the first step that you
have. And at that point, my vision was
not that bad. But I still I
was falling
sometimes. Yeah, I lose the
the perception. So the
streets and the steps are so
difficult to recognize. So
(14:40):
This is why you fall everywhere.
And yes, for me, that
that is to show the world that
I have something. I'm losing my vision.
Yeah. And I'm really independent. I'm
really, I'm trying to be strong. Yeah.
And you are very strong. And my style is
(15:01):
no. with the cane. So
that was a big problem when I was working
with the cane. I said, oh my god, oh my
god. I look like an
older, older lady. Yeah
I I sort of can say
that obviously it's not only impacting
(15:21):
how you perform, but also
physically and mentally totally.
Yeah. So you have to grieve. Yes, it's
a losing. So you have to grieve
what you are losing going through. Yeah.
And the vision is one of the more
important sense in your life.
(15:42):
You can. Yes, of course you can lose your
hearing, but the the vision is
is more than the 60% of
your sense. So losing your vision is
really, really complicated. Yeah.
Yeah, so after that, after using the
cane, you you were transferred
(16:03):
to... Yes, I was declared legally
blind. Okay. And I'm living
in my home by myself.
So they're trying to make my
life secure and easy. So the
option was to have... Would see
differently. Yes. So for
them, for me will be better if I can
(16:25):
have Wanda with me. So I
started doing the training, like I said
before to receive Wanda.
I can like, sorry, but I just
looking like right face, right face. Oh
my God, she's like that. She's so cute by
the way, but I know that I can.
(16:46):
She's working at the moment, so let's
keep going. We have everywhere where
say don't pet. Yeah, but it's like she's
just staring at me like, why are you
telling to my Ida?
Yeah. So
when I applied for health, which
definitely they are doing the the
(17:06):
questionnaire like what do you
expect for a dog?So
my first. And the only one request was to
have a medium-sized dog. I'm
living in a small unit, so for me to have
a small dog. And of course you got
a medium-sized dog. Yes.
(17:27):
So how big is
Wanda?How How many kilos?
38. 38 kilos. It's a big dog. Yes.
Beautiful, by the way. She's really
beautiful. And the trainer, they say,
please think that she's medium. She's
medium. But yes, she's fabulous.
So the reason why
(17:48):
she was born with you,
with me is what I say. I'm walking
a good worker. So we walk really fast.
Normally like we are in a
marathon. Yeah. And she's really
active. So for a person that is not able
to take her out, it's a little bit
(18:09):
complicated. Hmm Yeah, what
I understood from our previous
interview with... Daisy. Daisy from
See Differently is that
what See Differently does is that they
try to match the dog with the needs of
the patient. And also some of the
(18:29):
things they... organize the things
inside the house so your life
is easier, right?Yes, the first visit is
to have the idea what I was,
what expect from my dog. And look in
my home, how big the space
is, if I have the space for one.
(18:51):
After they are coming to my home with a
dog, demo dog, they
call that. Yeah. He's a
nice dog. I
got already a cat, so we need
another dog to try to see if my
cat is able to have
another... Pet next to
(19:13):
me. It's not pet. Yeah, okay. Yes, a
doctor. A doctor. But
my cat is... perfectly happy with. Now,
at the beginning was like, ohh
I don't want to see that dog in the
house. No, she's really cute, she's
really sweet, so she's always trying to
approach him, to play with him, to kiss
(19:34):
him, so he's not dumb.
He is the cat. What is the name of the
cat?Misifu. Misifu. Yes. Which is
a male dog, right?It's a male cat. A
cat, sorry. Yeah. Okay.
They are now really, really, they are
living really well, like they
share spaces, they are meh.
(19:57):
I'm happy with. So
now to go more into what you
currently are doing. So I understand that
you currently are working in the finance
industry as a
office manager and you're working as well
in the disability sector, which I I
is like. It's great that you
(20:19):
have this disability problem, but have
never stopped you to to keep going and
you know like achieving things which
is very remarkable and
nice for our audience to see if some of
our audience listeners are in the same
situation. So what would you say about
that?I know that your
(20:39):
life have changed in different ways and
how you live it, but what-- I have to say
that... to
be where I am now, I have to
pass for different ups and downs. Yeah
The downs are really downs, like
trying to accept what is happening,
trying to accept that people need to help
(21:01):
you, trying
to accept that your life is changing,
like you are not able to do the job that
you are doing in the same way that you
were doing. But I'm always
from Colombia. So we are
trying to fight with
(21:22):
everything. So Mark
was at the time trying to be
independent to grow the company, so he
was not able to give me... Your current
boss?Yes, give me the full-time
employment. But he said, No, Ida,
you have to work with me. I don't want
to lose you. So he offered me two days
(21:44):
per week. And the rest of the week I was
start going crazy. I was not
able to stay at home, just
crying for my grief.
So I start looking. She definitely
helped me to find a job. I passed through
so many interviews. I have to say, in
(22:05):
my life, I never
been in so many interviews. My first
interview for a job was here in
Australia. Yeah Now, not before. I
just, my first job here in Australia,
yes. My boss farming in a
church and he asked me if I was able to
(22:26):
work, I said yes and that's it. But I
have to go through interviews. Yeah, and
that was recently, right?Yes, Yes last
year with no vision.
It was not easy. So what do you currently
do in the disability sector?I'm the
database administrator. For which
business?The business is Blue
(22:48):
Star Care. They are
disability providers. Okay.
So they are really nice people.
This is like a challenge for me,
trying to to keep doing
everything through the computer.
(23:09):
But I like that kind of challenges.
Hopefully, hopefully I have
like a 20% in my left eye.
Yeah Hopefully that can stay for long
period while I'm learning
in the new company. After that,
I'm using a few tools that the
(23:31):
government provides you to keep
you're able to work. They call Job
Access. So you have the opportunity
to keep working with different
tools. So I'm learning and I'm still
learning. It's like this
year is a difficult one. I'm
losing more vision. Umm So I'm
(23:53):
start training again with Wanda. I'm
start working with
different software this year to
be able to keep working. Okay.
So what would be one of the
suggestions or any advice that you will
give to the listeners that are in the
same situations or the families that are,
(24:14):
that have someone in the family that have
a similar situation as you in regards to
like having a support guide dog,
like anything. It's to keep
fighting. It's like, yes, you
have to have the time to breathe, but
still you are able to do everything
thatYou are thinking you can do it.
(24:37):
So I have to
to be honest, in Colombia, this
will stop me to be able
to work, to live, wherever it is. Just
be inside of my home. That's it. Yeah. So
This is why I'm so happy to be here in
Australia. The support that you've
received from the government is
(24:58):
incredible. And I will say as
well that having a good circle of.
Family members or friends is very
important. I will say because I
know you through friends as well and I
feel that that's very important for you
to be able to always like keep
socialising, get support if you need
(25:19):
because I know that you don't have any
family here in Australia so it's hard to.
Yes, my kids are in Sydney so when it's
an emergency they they have
to come. But the rest I have a big friend
that she is looking for me. I don't know
for how long, but hopefully for life.
Yeah, but she's a big support for me.
(25:40):
So what are the future plans
for IDA?Keep
working,
just to learn how to
use the tools, the new tools.
My future is not to have,
not be able to to see in a
(26:02):
screen or in my phone. Everything have to
be read it, everything have to be to
voice. So one of the
big challenges is my accent.
So imagine I have to speak with the
computer, I have to speak with Siri
with this accent. I know. You've got a
beautiful accent, but I know that there
(26:23):
are words that are have to be recognized
by AI. Yeah, but
no for the software that you have in
the computer. Sometimes I want to fight
with the guy that is behind that.
So is all of these programs that you're
using right now, are they
(26:43):
like AI technology,
sophisticated, or not really?
iPhone is working. I'm taking
training with iPhone, with Apple, and
they provide. training
for free. It's incredible the things that
you start realizing that they are
(27:05):
for free. So they are teaching me how
to use VoiceOver and the
training with the software that currently
maybe in the future they will introduce
AI, but for now it's just the
software that they already have. Okay.
OK. That's great to hear that you will be
(27:26):
able to have some support of technology
to be able to keep working. Yeah. And I
also heard that you recently bought a
house. So that's something very
positive that's coming up as well. Yeah.
You know, it's incredible that I say
I'm not yet able to to buy a house.
I never will buy a house with
(27:49):
with this condition. Yeah, it's
impossible. But look what Mark.
My boss was doing to me. To support
you. Okay. Miracles, yes. He said, You
can do it. What is stopping you?
And you got it. Yes. So congratulations.
Hopefully I will move in at the end of
this year or the beginning of the 2026.
Congratulations, Ida on all those
(28:11):
achievements. You have been a strong
woman and I know that you will
keep fighting this and with the
support of friends and family, of
course, I think you will bedoing great
things. So thank you for having you here.
I love to have Wanda here and to be able
to share these stories with our listeners
(28:32):
because this is a way for us to to share
and to to give knowledge to people that
probably are looking for some sort of
support on this regard. Happy to
help you with that. Thank you. Thank you,
Ida. Thank you so much for tuning into
this episode of The Postman's Companions.
If you have any further questions for our
(28:53):
experts,feel free to leave them in the
show notes or reach out to me directly.
And if you are a pet expert who loves to
continue to this podcast, we will be
thrilled to hear from you. Don't forget
to follow us and if you enjoyed today's
episode, we will really appreciate a
five-star review. Thanks again and we
(29:13):
will see you at the next episode.
Welcome to the Pawson Companion, where
pets are part of our family. I'm
your host, Joanna Herrera, the founder of
Cocoa and Bondai. I'm very excited
0to interview experts and pet owners
to share their stories and insights so
you can use them to take care of your
babies.
(00:22):
Today I have Aida here with me, Aida
Laverde. Aida. Oh, it's Aida?Okay,
Aida Laverde.
Ida has been, you know, Ida is
from Colombia, has been in Australia for
13 years and has worked in the
financial industry and currently she's
working in the disability sector. 17 00:00:43,1000 --> 00:00:46,960 And like she
(00:46):
will tell us a story of
what had been the situation that she has
encountered for the last five years with
her vision lost. without cure,
so now she is getting
some, she has gone through different
treatments and 25 00:01:05,1000 --> 00:01:08,800 the doctors have... Like say that it's
(01:08):
nothing to do. The doctors have...
Find out that. Yeah, like find out that
there is no cure and that obviously she
had to go through support from NDIS
with help of see differently, yeah?
Well, we got this beautiful dog that is
sleeping now.
(01:30):
Wanda, she's working. That is the
position when she's working. OK, I'm very
happy to be here with Ida La Verde.
She is a Colombian living in
Australia. She has been here for 13
years. She has been working in Australia
in the financial sector and currently is
working as well in the disability sector.
(01:51):
Unfortunately, five years ago, she has
been diagnosed with some
vision loss and
after different treatments and seeing
many doctors,
unfortunately this is, they have no cure.
So Aida now is
getting some support from NDIS through
(02:12):
see differently. And now is
getting support from a guide dog that is
giving you company. And
her name is Wanda. So we got
here Wanda. Hello, Ida. How
are you today?Hello. How are you, Joanna?
Thank you for coming to our show. I I
know that all our listeners will love
(02:34):
your story. So please tell
me a little bit more about you. I know
that you have been here. 13 years,
sorry.
And I will say for those listeners who
don't know, I'm from Colombia as well. So
I feel very connected to to to you
and probably we are, we have a lot of.
things in common in terms of culture.
(02:56):
Yeah. So yeah. So we can say, Hola como
estas?Yes. So which is, how are you
in Spanish?For those who would like to
know that as well. Yeah. Like you say,
I'm from Colombia, living in Australia
for 30 years. Since I arrived
here, I started working in a finance
industry. With that
(03:18):
company, I was working for
12 years. Last year I moved with another
broker and
since 2020 I started
having issues with my vision.
You never notice what is happening
with your vision, yes, when you are going
(03:39):
to check out, it's when you find
out. But after
they discovered that I was having a
disease that is not. It's a
rare disease here in Australia,
so I start linking a few
issues that I have with my vision.
One of those was I was crashing my car
(04:02):
plenty times in the same spot in the
area where I was working. So
this is the point when you start
realizing that your vision has
problems after
so many. tests and
treatments, the doctors decided that it's
(04:22):
nothing to do with my vision. Yeah.
My left eye is not
working, so it's no central vision. The
peripheral vision was the first thing
that I lost.
After the last
decision, the only thing that
the doctor said is I need support from
(04:42):
NDIS if I want to keep
working and be able to
go around to have a normal life,
independence life.
So NDIS
send me which see them differently. They
are the ones that are working with dogs.
(05:04):
So I start doing the training first
before receiving Rwanda. And
that normally takes six months to receive
a dog, umm but my case was completely
different. I put my application
and one month after they already
found the dog perfect for me. You have to
(05:24):
to have the match like how you work,
how is your daily life.
So they have to find the right dog for
you. And Wanda is really active. She
walk like a, you have to run when you are
walking with her. So this was perfect for
me. Yeah. I just wanna go a little bit
(05:45):
back. So I know that you have been in
Australia 13 years. So how was your life
before that you find
out that you were having vision loss?
Like, what were you doing?Like...
Yeah, how was your life and and what was
the reason why you came to Australia in
the first place?I have two kids. They are
(06:05):
not really kids, 30 and 26.
They are still kids. Yes, they are kids.
And I was looking for a better life for
them. Colombia is beautiful, but
the opportunities for them is not
like you can find everywhere.
So I decided to come here with them
(06:26):
And when I arrived, I started working,
like I say, with a finance company.
And you were doing supporting a
broker. That's what you. Yeah, my role
there is office manager, which is you are
still doing it, but in a different
business, right?You are a different
company. Office manager and training the
(06:48):
the team is still doing the training. I'm
using the computers like. I was
doing before, using the same tools,
everything is like a
normal. A few things that I have to stop
doing, but in general, I'm trying to keep
the same. And my boss is really,
really a good person.
(07:09):
He's a... So you are talking about the
new boss?Yes. Yes The name is Mark.
He He was working. We
have like two brokers in the
company, the previous company. So when I
start losing my vision, my
elbows was
(07:30):
different. Like for him was
life is is the same. So I have to keep
going with the role. So he couldn't
understand the situation. Yeah So for
him, this is no existence.
So for me it was difficult, a little bit
overstressed. So what were what were the
symptoms that you were having in that
(07:50):
time when you start start losing the the
the vision you said that you were
crushing a lot your car around your
work area. But you don't notice that like
had a personal vision for you something
normal. Yeah. But when I was
crushing my car I didn't I couldn't
see the the the fence. Yeah
(08:11):
but normally the fence was. The same
fence, the same distance. I was a good
rider. I was riding for 30 years, so
nothing changed. And after I was crashing
my car with a with a back pole that was
always in the same place. Yeah. But
I didn't notice that. Like, who was my
vision?I say maybe I was distracted.
(08:34):
Distracted. Yeah. YeahBut I went to
the optometrist for glasses.
More for looking for a guarantee.
So they say no, you have a test
that is pending more than one year
ago. So they say no, you
need to go for that test. I didn't know
(08:54):
that it was so important that test. OK.
So that is the point when they found out
that it's a small
point in inside of my eyes that they
start going, it's it's fluid and
it start growing so. They say no,
you need to go emergency
now and everything is started
(09:17):
in that point. OK. When I trying to
to have my glasses repaired. Yeah.
OK. So after that, let's
say you you went to that exam, you
got it. They gave you the results. What
happened after that?How long after that
point you got
diagnosed that you couldn't?Can you be
(09:39):
sure that with the specialist here in in
retina?Yeah. This
is a is one of the best in in
Australia and they run
every test, different test for
every disease that they can find. Yeah.
Everything was OK.
(10:00):
I'm always linked this disease with
previously in 2018 I
suffered cancer. In my title. So it was
when you were here in Australia as well.
OK, it was in Australia, yeah. Oh my God.
So yeah. So how old were you when that
happened?When you were diagnosed with
cancer in 2018 and
(10:23):
now I'm not sure was
before my
50s, yes. But yeah, I am. You think that
that will probably come from that as well?
I'm always say that. Something is
related, no, with the cancer, more with
the treatment. Oh, okay. It's
(10:44):
like a radiation a little bit, so you
never know what is causing the damage.
But they say, I have to take that
treatment. Yeah. So nothing to do. If
it's that the result, I
have to do it. So nothing. So
after that,
in 2020,
(11:05):
Two years after, I start having the
issues. The normal, you start saying the
normal. I'm having that I can't read
properly, have blurry vision. At
nine was really scary. I couldn't
see the streets when I was
driving. It was too dark for you. Too
dark for me. So I start just following
(11:26):
the cars. That was a little bit
dangerous, but I thought that my car was
having issues with the lights, so I
always. put that excuse.
And when I start doing the
tests and the treatments, one day my
daughter came from Sydney and I
drive her to the airport. When I
(11:48):
stop, she say, Please promise me
that you are not driving anymore. I
say, Why?She said that I was driving
in zigzag. But for me,
I was driving straight. Completely
straight. So,
so you were very lucky that they gave you
(12:09):
that diagnosis. So you you didn't
crash or kill yourself on the road as
well. They started reducing the area
where you are driving like with all the
people. Yeah, they told me that I have to
stop doing long ways or
driving at 9:00. So I was doing that.
But after that they
(12:32):
they decided. I'm not
able to to have my driver's license
anymore. OK. One day they were doing
another test and she said, are you
still driving?One of the nurses said
yes. And she said no, you can. And she
want to tell the doctor that
I have to stop driving. OK. So after
(12:53):
this, obviously you got sent to
NDIS and you went through the process
with getting. It's a long process. OK,
I was first with Guide Dogs. They
helped me a little bit with the NDIS.
You have to prove everything that is
happening. Doctors,
(13:15):
documents, everything. They
after one year I received first
and a small support, but my vision is
deteriorating with the time and it's like
a quick no. It's
another case in Melbourne, I know for
my daughter.
She's having this issue for 10
(13:37):
years, but the deterioration of the
vision was like a slow, you
know, like quick. I use one is going
faster. So this is why
everything have to move quick to
have Wanda. The first thing that I
received was the thetraining with a
(13:59):
white cane. And I have to
tell you that when I went out of my
home for the first time with the cane, I
start crying. What do you mean with the
cane?The white cane that we used
to walk. But you didn't
have the dog yet?No. That is
(14:19):
the first step that you
have. And at that point, my vision was
not that bad. But I still I
was falling
sometimes. Yeah, I lose the
the perception. So the
streets and the steps are so
difficult to recognize. So
(14:40):
This is why you fall everywhere.
And yes, for me, that
that is to show the world that
I have something. I'm losing my vision.
Yeah. And I'm really independent. I'm
really, I'm trying to be strong. Yeah.
And you are very strong. And my style is
(15:01):
no. with the cane. So
that was a big problem when I was working
with the cane. I said, oh my god, oh my
god. I look like an
older, older lady. Yeah
I I sort of can say
that obviously it's not only impacting
(15:21):
how you perform, but also
physically and mentally totally.
Yeah. So you have to grieve. Yes, it's
a losing. So you have to grieve
what you are losing going through. Yeah.
And the vision is one of the more
important sense in your life.
(15:42):
You can. Yes, of course you can lose your
hearing, but the the vision is
is more than the 60% of
your sense. So losing your vision is
really, really complicated. Yeah.
Yeah, so after that, after using the
cane, you you were transferred
(16:03):
to... Yes, I was declared legally
blind. Okay. And I'm living
in my home by myself.
So they're trying to make my
life secure and easy. So the
option was to have... Would see
differently. Yes. So for
them, for me will be better if I can
(16:25):
have Wanda with me. So I
started doing the training, like I said
before to receive Wanda.
I can like, sorry, but I just
looking like right face, right face. Oh
my God, she's like that. She's so cute by
the way, but I know that I can.
(16:46):
She's working at the moment, so let's
keep going. We have everywhere where
say don't pet. Yeah, but it's like she's
just staring at me like, why are you
telling to my Ida?
Yeah. So
when I applied for health, which
definitely they are doing the the
(17:06):
questionnaire like what do you
expect for a dog?So
my first. And the only one request was to
have a medium-sized dog. I'm
living in a small unit, so for me to have
a small dog. And of course you got
a medium-sized dog. Yes.
(17:27):
So how big is
Wanda?How How many kilos?
38. 38 kilos. It's a big dog. Yes.
Beautiful, by the way. She's really
beautiful. And the trainer, they say,
please think that she's medium. She's
medium. But yes, she's fabulous.
So the reason why
(17:48):
she was born with you,
with me is what I say. I'm walking
a good worker. So we walk really fast.
Normally like we are in a
marathon. Yeah. And she's really
active. So for a person that is not able
to take her out, it's a little bit
(18:09):
complicated. Hmm Yeah, what
I understood from our previous
interview with... Daisy. Daisy from
See Differently is that
what See Differently does is that they
try to match the dog with the needs of
the patient. And also some of the
(18:29):
things they... organize the things
inside the house so your life
is easier, right?Yes, the first visit is
to have the idea what I was,
what expect from my dog. And look in
my home, how big the space
is, if I have the space for one.
(18:51):
After they are coming to my home with a
dog, demo dog, they
call that. Yeah. He's a
nice dog. I
got already a cat, so we need
another dog to try to see if my
cat is able to have
another... Pet next to
(19:13):
me. It's not pet. Yeah, okay. Yes, a
doctor. A doctor. But
my cat is... perfectly happy with. Now,
at the beginning was like, ohh
I don't want to see that dog in the
house. No, she's really cute, she's
really sweet, so she's always trying to
approach him, to play with him, to kiss
(19:34):
him, so he's not dumb.
He is the cat. What is the name of the
cat?Misifu. Misifu. Yes. Which is
a male dog, right?It's a male cat. A
cat, sorry. Yeah. Okay.
They are now really, really, they are
living really well, like they
share spaces, they are meh.
(19:57):
I'm happy with. So
now to go more into what you
currently are doing. So I understand that
you currently are working in the finance
industry as a
office manager and you're working as well
in the disability sector, which I I
is like. It's great that you
(20:19):
have this disability problem, but have
never stopped you to to keep going and
you know like achieving things which
is very remarkable and
nice for our audience to see if some of
our audience listeners are in the same
situation. So what would you say about
that?I know that your
(20:39):
life have changed in different ways and
how you live it, but what-- I have to say
that... to
be where I am now, I have to
pass for different ups and downs. Yeah
The downs are really downs, like
trying to accept what is happening,
trying to accept that people need to help
(21:01):
you, trying
to accept that your life is changing,
like you are not able to do the job that
you are doing in the same way that you
were doing. But I'm always
from Colombia. So we are
trying to fight with
(21:22):
everything. So Mark
was at the time trying to be
independent to grow the company, so he
was not able to give me... Your current
boss?Yes, give me the full-time
employment. But he said, No, Ida,
you have to work with me. I don't want
to lose you. So he offered me two days
(21:44):
per week. And the rest of the week I was
start going crazy. I was not
able to stay at home, just
crying for my grief.
So I start looking. She definitely
helped me to find a job. I passed through
so many interviews. I have to say, in
(22:05):
my life, I never
been in so many interviews. My first
interview for a job was here in
Australia. Yeah Now, not before. I
just, my first job here in Australia,
yes. My boss farming in a
church and he asked me if I was able to
(22:26):
work, I said yes and that's it. But I
have to go through interviews. Yeah, and
that was recently, right?Yes, Yes last
year with no vision.
It was not easy. So what do you currently
do in the disability sector?I'm the
database administrator. For which
business?The business is Blue
(22:48):
Star Care. They are
disability providers. Okay.
So they are really nice people.
This is like a challenge for me,
trying to to keep doing
everything through the computer.
(23:09):
But I like that kind of challenges.
Hopefully, hopefully I have
like a 20% in my left eye.
Yeah Hopefully that can stay for long
period while I'm learning
in the new company. After that,
I'm using a few tools that the
(23:31):
government provides you to keep
you're able to work. They call Job
Access. So you have the opportunity
to keep working with different
tools. So I'm learning and I'm still
learning. It's like this
year is a difficult one. I'm
losing more vision. Umm So I'm
(23:53):
start training again with Wanda. I'm
start working with
different software this year to
be able to keep working. Okay.
So what would be one of the
suggestions or any advice that you will
give to the listeners that are in the
same situations or the families that are,
(24:14):
that have someone in the family that have
a similar situation as you in regards to
like having a support guide dog,
like anything. It's to keep
fighting. It's like, yes, you
have to have the time to breathe, but
still you are able to do everything
thatYou are thinking you can do it.
(24:37):
So I have to
to be honest, in Colombia, this
will stop me to be able
to work, to live, wherever it is. Just
be inside of my home. That's it. Yeah. So
This is why I'm so happy to be here in
Australia. The support that you've
received from the government is
(24:58):
incredible. And I will say as
well that having a good circle of.
Family members or friends is very
important. I will say because I
know you through friends as well and I
feel that that's very important for you
to be able to always like keep
socialising, get support if you need
(25:19):
because I know that you don't have any
family here in Australia so it's hard to.
Yes, my kids are in Sydney so when it's
an emergency they they have
to come. But the rest I have a big friend
that she is looking for me. I don't know
for how long, but hopefully for life.
Yeah, but she's a big support for me.
(25:40):
So what are the future plans
for IDA?Keep
working,
just to learn how to
use the tools, the new tools.
My future is not to have,
not be able to to see in a
(26:02):
screen or in my phone. Everything have to
be read it, everything have to be to
voice. So one of the
big challenges is my accent.
So imagine I have to speak with the
computer, I have to speak with Siri
with this accent. I know. You've got a
beautiful accent, but I know that there
(26:23):
are words that are have to be recognized
by AI. Yeah, but
no for the software that you have in
the computer. Sometimes I want to fight
with the guy that is behind that.
So is all of these programs that you're
using right now, are they
(26:43):
like AI technology,
sophisticated, or not really?
iPhone is working. I'm taking
training with iPhone, with Apple, and
they provide. training
for free. It's incredible the things that
you start realizing that they are
(27:05):
for free. So they are teaching me how
to use VoiceOver and the
training with the software that currently
maybe in the future they will introduce
AI, but for now it's just the
software that they already have. Okay.
OK. That's great to hear that you will be
(27:26):
able to have some support of technology
to be able to keep working. Yeah. And I
also heard that you recently bought a
house. So that's something very
positive that's coming up as well. Yeah.
You know, it's incredible that I say
I'm not yet able to to buy a house.
I never will buy a house with
(27:49):
with this condition. Yeah, it's
impossible. But look what Mark.
My boss was doing to me. To support
you. Okay. Miracles, yes. He said, You
can do it. What is stopping you?
And you got it. Yes. So congratulations.
Hopefully I will move in at the end of
this year or the beginning of the 2026.
Congratulations, Ida on all those
(28:11):
achievements. You have been a strong
woman and I know that you will
keep fighting this and with the
support of friends and family, of
course, I think you will bedoing great
things. So thank you for having you here.
I love to have Wanda here and to be able
to share these stories with our listeners
(28:32):
because this is a way for us to to share
and to to give knowledge to people that
probably are looking for some sort of
support on this regard. Happy to
help you with that. Thank you. Thank you,
Ida. Thank you so much for tuning into
this episode of The Postman's Companions.
If you have any further questions for our
(28:53):
experts,feel free to leave them in the
show notes or reach out to me directly.
And if you are a pet expert who loves to
continue to this podcast, we will be
thrilled to hear from you. Don't forget
to follow us and if you enjoyed today's
episode, we will really appreciate a
five-star review. Thanks again and we
(29:13):
will see you at the next episode.
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