The Incredible Aging Suit, Take 2!

[AnneLine]

SORRY GUYS.... It again auto-archived.   Grrrrrr.   It will let me edit, but no one can comment.... Maybe soon....    AnneLine

 

 

Tried to post this yesterday, and it 'aged' very quickly (ie., was one of the auto-archived threads).

 

 

I was intrigued by the idea, and intrigued by how it is affecting some merchants.   I'll be curious to know what the Phatmassers think of it:

 

 

THIS is a fascinating video... of a way of experiencing first hand what it is like to be elderly and/or have physical limitations.....

 

 

and as someone who has from time to time struggled with a bad back and other limitations, I think it is very insightful.  

I'd be curious to know what others think of this... 

 

[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PXLVLSgX3Ig&feature=player_embedded[/media]

 

 

Edited July 22, 2013 by AnneLine

[ChristinaTherese]

I'm not sure....

 

On the one hand, the vision seems like it should be able to be aided in large part by glasses and doesn't really need to be artificially blurred and younger people are going to be stronger and more able to handle the limitations given by the suit. They aren't going to be able to really feel the same pain and weakness, and they won't have to worry about bones breaking or other problems from falling, just that their mobility is restricted and it might be hard to get up again. (The not worrying about breaking bones when falling bit is good, BTW.) It seems like a problematic simulation, and the same affects could be had by just helping a grandparent or other person. In some ways, I think that helping someone might give a more realistic view, and it would be good for more people to lend a hand when needed, particularly to their own parents/grandparents/other relatives.

 

On the other hand, it seems like it might be reasonable. It simulates limitations that people don't have so that they can have some idea of the difficulty involved. It sounds particularly good for executives to use in their own stores, where they might be able to make improvements. If people don't have relatives to help, it does sound like it might be the next best solution and be appreciated very much. But there are random things involved in making things handicapped accessible that make me wonder just how many things might be missed by just having a simulation and not experiencing it from interactions with real people.

[Luigi]

My college used to have a disAbilities Awareness Week, and they had a number of activities like this. Students from various classes or clubs would volunteer to use a wheelchair all day, or be Deaf all day (achieved by wearing ear buds attached to a radio-like thing that produced white noise). They simulated lack of fine motor control in the hands by having someone wear thick gloves - hard to get change out of your pocket, count it out to the cashier in the cafeteria, hold a pencil, etc. 

 

At the beginning of the day, the organizers admitted some of the stuff that Christina Therese mentions - it's only a simulation, not an exact replica of the real experience; people who are experiencing a disability for the first time will struggle more than people who have lived with it every day and learned to adapt to it somewhat; but another point they made was that, at the end of the day, you'll take off the devices and go back to being yourself - the exercise may give you some insight, but it's not like living with a disability every day.

 

I think these kinds of exercises are quite useful to make people understand - from the inside out rather than from the outside - what it's like to have a disability.  

[AnneLine]

Thanks for commenting.  I worked in a Disabled access program at one point, and we also did the disability awareness exercises.  But this was a little different because I have never seen one specifically for the issues and concerns that the elderly experience as part of everyday life.

 

Being in my mid-50's.. .(yowwie, how did THAT happen), increasingly I am aware that the things I did without thinking even 5 or 10 years ago... I just can't quite manage, or manage now but with a lot more awareness that... I am not moving as well as I did a few years back. 

 

Suddenly my joints ache more... and stuff seems higher and lower.  It isn't quite as easy to get off the floor once I get on it... (and I used to LOVE to sit on the floor... and pray on the floor... but increasingly, not as much.

 

And increasingly I am starting to realize that, as I am not able to drive and probably won't ever be able to drive because of some visual limitations, I'm increasingly getting less and less able to do stuff for myself.  And it is a little unnerving.

 

I was also struck by the 'look' of the guy once he had the suit on and was starting to move.  Because I have SEEN those motions in elderly people... and never realized that they were just part of the normal lessening of range of motion in the elderly.  It is a HUGE wake-up call to me to start those stretching exercises and keep what I have.   I've always walked a lot... and used to do close to 20 miles a week.  Last few months, I've been slackening off to 12 to 15... because it hurts.  But I'm going to start pushing myself again, because I don't want to lose the range of motion I have.

 

I realize a lot of you are younger... but think of your older friends and relatives....Anyone else look at the video through THOSE lenses?