Melissa and Sherry are back for a refreshingly honest and powerful conversation about breath, breathing, and being grounded while living with sensory loss and chronic illness. They begin with a brief update on Sherry’s immunoglobulin intravenous treatment, Melissa’s update on her experience learning ASL, and an explanation as to why it’s so crucial for ASL instructors to be part of the Deaf community themselves. They go on to share their thoughts on Facebook potentially becoming a virtual reality community, and acknowledge that, while technology has offered us many incredible advantages - particularly for those living with sensory loss - it can also have a scary side.

Next Melissa talks about having implantable collamer lenses in her eyes, and Sherry discusses her own vision issues, as well as the experience of temporarily losing her sense of taste and smell due to COVID last year. Our hosts explore the importance of breathing, and Melissa breaks down how it affects the way we perceive the world around us from a biological standpoint. They also chat about flare-ups related to food, regulating cravings, and living with a balance of moderation. Finally, you’ll hear a moving reading of the poem “A Blessing For One Who Is Exhausted” by John O'Donohue, Sherry and Melissa’s passionate discussion about learning to break the rules, and a closing breathing exercise that will leave you feeling a warm, comforting glow from within.

This podcast is not psychotherapy and does not contain medical advice, but is simply a recording of two friends talking.

Episode Highlights:

• Melissa and Sherry begin with an update on Sherry’s immunoglobulin intravenous treatment
• Melissa’s experience learning ASL and enrollment in a Queer ASL class
• ASL instructors are typically Deaf or hard of hearing themselves as it is crucial for them to truly understand the Deaf experience and culture
• Facial expressions are very important when communicating through sign language
• “Ready Player One” and the possibility of Facebook becoming a virtual reality community
• Technology has so many incredible advantages, especially for those with sensory loss, but it can also have a scary side
• Melissa shares that she has implantable collamer lenses in her eyes
• Sherry discusses her own experience with vision problems and temporarily losing her sense of taste and smell due to COVID
• Sherry uses her ears to see and Melissa uses her eyes to hear
• Staying grounded while living with sensory loss
• Breathing is crucial - it’s Sherry’s connection to the higher self 
• Melissa gives a fascinating breakdown of how our breath can change the way we perceive the world around us
• Sherry’s experience with anxiety and panic
• Melissa’s flare-up after eating bread and trying to regulate cravings
• A reading of the poem “A Blessing For One Who Is Exhausted” by John O'Donohue
• How Melissa overcame the belief that she couldn’t meditate due to the ringing in her ears
• Breaking the rules and focusing on your breath
• The rules do not take sensory loss into consideration
• Guided breathing exercise

Quotes:

“I'm actually learning more than I did in any of those other classes.”

“That's why I always say the universe has your back.”

“I'm also glad that I didn't get into the immersion program, because it seemed like it was going to have a lot of ableist problems.”

“I think it's sort of frowned upon for hearing people to teach ASL… It feels wrong for hearing people to learn it from other hearing people for fun or something when it's a whole culture.”

“Yeah, I have implantable collamer lenses in my eyes.”

“I'm using my ears...