Journeys with Autism

For those of you who have difficulty speaking and listening, here are some of the alternative communication technologies I’ve discovered.

TTY Relay Service
If you obtain your own TTY number, you can call any phone number and communicate via a relay operator. Using your computer, iPhone, or iPod Touch, you type your part of the conversation. The relay operator speaks your words to the person at the other end, and then types the person’s response for you. This service is wonderful and has allowed me to make phone calls again—and this time, without difficulty and exhaustion. And best of all, it’s free!

You can immediately obtain a TTY number through Purple Communications’ IP-Relay for use on your computer, iPhone, or iPod Touch at www.ip-relay.com. You can also obtain a TTY number for use on your computer through NexTalk at www.nextalk.com. It takes a while to obtain the number through NexTalk, but you can begin making outgoing calls right away. I find that using my iPod Touch is good for leaving short messages. If I want to have a longer conversation, I use my computer. If someone calls when I’m not online and leaves a voicemail message, I receive the message by email.

Text-to-Speech Synthesizers
Speak It! is a very nice little text-to-speech synthesizer for use on your computer, iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch. It costs $1.99 and is available through iTunes.

For use on your computer alone, you might want to try NaturalReader at www.naturalreaders.com or SpeakComputer.com’s TTS (Text to Speech) Software at tts.speakcomputer.com. Both are free.

Text-to-Text Devices
If you find yourself in a place with your laptop, a wireless connection, and another person with a laptop, Skype and IM are great ways to communicate in a text-to-text fashion. However, in situations in which a wireless connection is not available, I use SComm’s Ubi-Duo, a portable text-to-text device consisting of two consoles with their own wireless connection. So far, I have used the Ubi-Duo at my doctor’s office and my attorney’s office, with great results. You can even save the text of each conversation; my doctor finds this feature very helpful, because I can print the entire contents of our appointment and she doesn’t need to take notes. I plan to start using the Ubi-Duo at my Voc Rehab appointments as well. You can find more information about this device at www.scomm.com.

The only drawback to the Ubi-Duo is its steep price: $1,995.

I am very glad to have found all these technologies, because it’s now official: I have an auditory processing disorder. I’ll write more about my appointment with the audiologist when I receive her full report.

© 2010 by Rachel Cohen-Rottenberg