A solution for those who dont like talking on the phone

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A great solution for those with phone issues is to use a TDD which is used for deaf ppl to communicate over the phone.
The way it works is you type on the TDD device and it is sent to an opperator who then speaks to the person you want to talk to. Then when the person speaks back, the operator types what they said and it is send to your machine.

I think since we have an easier time communicating in writing, this will help those of us who have trouble talking on the phone.

Jojo

jojobean: It is a good idea... Does it work well for you? Have you (or anyone else applying this idea) had any difficult situations in which you're put into a position of having to explain that, well...you're not deaf after all? Using tdd or Sign or demonstrating any behavior/action (other than 'immediate' audio-receptivity/reciprocity) that could contribute to others' concluding you're deaf seems to bring about its own set of unique 'problems'... Further suggestions/solutions?

Now I know what a TDD does. Sounds good for people who don't like talking on the phone. A question, though: wouldn't you have to be able to type quickly? 'Cause even with years of practice, I'm not a very fast typer.

That seems like more trouble than its worth to me.......I guess its good for people who cannot talk on the phone at all. talking on the phone just makes me uncomfortable though but I can still do it I just prefer not to as much as I can. Texting works great for me however since I even have a phone with a keyboard.

I just try to avoid answering the phone if I don't know who it is and what they want. Unexpected calls about important thing, if I take them, more often than not end up in miscommunication and/or bad decisions.

Geez, this just happened to me a couple of days ago. I got a call on my cell while driving to work. I thought it was the cable company asking for directions to a service call, and it turned out to be someone from the school district proposing a change to my sons IEP. I took it, verbally approved the proposed change, thinking it seemed simple enough. When I came home and told my wife what I'd done, she explained why the change would be a bad one.

Now I have to send an email to the guy explaining why it isn't going to work. I've told these people numerous times not to call me about decisions like this. I've told them repeatedly to WRITE to me so I can take the time to read, think and discuss it with my wife.

I know they do it because they think it's quicker and saves time, but it DOESN'T. It causes me to feel pressured into making decisions on the spot, and it usually ends up being the wrong one. By the time I get back to them in writing, they've already started making preparations based on the phone call, and they have to undo them. How does that save time?

It doesn't.

^This. I hate being put on the spot over the telephone. I only answer if I know who it is and feel comfortable talking to them.

The relay system is an okay, but not great, solution for those who cannot speak or cannot hear. But to suggest it for those who just do not like talking on the phone, that is a really bad idea. For a number of reasons. This service costs a tremendous amount of money both for the machines themselves and to operate the relay centers. To use up state TDD funding when you do not really need it is wrong.

It takes doctor certification to get access to the relay system in the United States, because of the funding required and because the relay system is reserved for people who actually need to use it. It is unlikely that anyone who is able to use phones would qualify for TDD services, regardless of the person's dislike or anxiety of phones.

In addition, using a TTY is not at all as simple as just typing. It is much more complicated than that. I suggest you talk to someone who has experience using the relay system to get a better idea of how it works. Most Deaf people that I know don't even use TTY much anymore because there are much easier and much simpler ways of communicating that work much better for most situations.

It is hardly accurate to suggest that those with a phone 'issue' but who are not deaf don't 'need' such a service as the TTY. Further, citing expenses (that are actually considerably lower than before) as justification for denying others such a service is more a mimicking of 'unfriendly' bureaucracy than a true exploration of communicative alternatives.

The TTY service is STILL being used by more people/agencies than is commonly made known. That usage is, primarily, due to financial inability of funding other/newer communicative systems (among other accessibility issues). And, it could be easily imagined that current TTY users would hope for more continuing support of the TTY so that it will not be rendered 'obsolete' (often an euphemism used by those with an agenda of 'guiding' would-be consumers into purchasing the 'latest' in electronics) - which would either force them into a communication system for which they either have inadequate funding for or a system of which they don't wish to participate/use (much like many older, hearing folks who don't/can't learn 'texting' for any of the varied reasons and like the many people - regardless of age or past experience - who really can't 'hang' with instant messaging which seems to have an escalated expectation of IMMEDIATE/snappy response-time of interactants).

Because the TTY service IS available (whether on an individual basis or at a 'center' of a sort -- some of those centers including Aspie 'clients') and because not being forced into any particular form of speech is a RIGHT (not a 'privilege'), TTY does remain an option for those with phone 'issues'...even if just theoretically. Limiting communicative options is what's the 'bad idea'.

My earlier question remains: How have others 'dealt with'/resolved situations arising from one's decision to not allow others to force one into the expected mode of communication?

I like to turn off the ringer on my home phone. I like to turn off my cell phone.

I did not say TTY was only for deaf people. I qualified because I am nonverbal, and so have a diagnosed speech impairment, not because I am deaf.

Refer to the title and the original post that I was replying to, where the OP said : "A solution for those who dont like talking on the phone" and "I think since we have an easier time communicating in writing, this will help those of us who have trouble talking on the phone."

What the OP said is not true. The main, but not only, reason is the high cost in comparison to the (text-based) alternatives. The TDD will not pay for a TTY system without a diagnosis of a speech impairment or deafness. My 8-month-old TTY machine cost about $600 just for the device itself. Then one needs access to the relay system and special training to use the device (it is not like typing on a computer at all). Most of the (text-based) alternatives I use are much less costly and much easier to use for me and for the receiving person.

I only use my TTY as a last resort and I've been told by those who'd know that that is the case for most Deaf people also. The alternatives are easier and cheaper to use (again, meaning text-based only, I do not have any speech ability so I know nothing of speech-based communication methods).

It is almost always more efficient and effective to mail a written letter through the postal service than to try calling with the TTY. If I can get a mailing address for the business I need to contact, I will not use the TTY.

Sometimes I must ask a speaking person to call the business to educate them about the relay system and let them know to expect a TTY call before I can get a relay call to work. That is hardly a good method, I have done this only when I expect to be making multiple calls to that business.

The biggest benefit of a TTY for me is that just like a regular "land line" phone, it can be linked to a physical address in the local emergency responders system.

Thanks for the clarifications. I'm glad to see it hadn't actually been misunderstood that 'those who don't like to talk' wasn't necessarily just a reference to some people's WHIMS. ... btw, it's too bad your unit cost so much. I've seen two different instances where 'pre-owneds' were offered for under $200. I'm also sorry to hear that it doesn't go as smoothly as it 'should' when you use TTY. Another example of how dynamics are in place to speed the device into obsolescence (much like an actual current gripe of mine: I must purchase a 'converter' unit to get all of my VHS movies onto some form of disc - or face losing hundreds of titles since I can no longer purchase [or get repairs for] VHS players once they're 'worn&torn'...obsolescence keeps being built faster and with more frequency into electronic 'goods') and force others into paying initially-higher communicative (start-up) costs (as opposed to using a system already in place - whether via an agency-provided service or via home unit)...not to mention any accompanying aggravating 'learning curves' of using an unfamiliar method. Personally, I'm very much liking the latest in VRS 'stuff' and like typing formats (such as we have here on WP) even more ...but still have a lot of empathy for those who don't/can't/can hardly bear financing and/or learning yet one more system. Hopefully, you have/will have a system more conducive to your needs at some point in your life. I wish the same for others, as well.

Has absolutely nothing to do with speeding devices into obsolescence. It is not a conspiracy to make people stop using the relay system, as you seem to be implying, and has nothing to do with how quickly electronic devices become obsolete.

The problems with the relay system have always existed, and will continue to be problems as long as it is used. It is because the relay system requires specialized training for the operator, the receiver, and the relay person as well as expensive devices. Any system with such requirements will have the same problems.

As I have said before, there are many good alternatives to voice telephones. TTY just is not one of them.

Riiiight.

There's also IP-Relay.

My problem is, how do you explain difficulty using the phone when you're not physically impaired? Even if I'm going to use the phone, it would make things a lot simpler if I could explain possible communication issues to the person on the other end rather than giving the wrong impression or being hung up on.

I would have thought a cheaper way would be to use instant messaging rather than paying a typist, if you can use a keyboard reasonably well. I've had some success using IM.....I was surprised how well I could keep up with the flow of the thing. With phone calls I often want desperately to hang up before I say anything stupid. But how well I know the other person, and how comfy I feel about them, has a bigger effect than the actual medium we use.

Texting is nice because you can usually give yourself several minutes to think of a good answer.

I've also noticed that I become more articulate in immediate conversation when I've been doing a lot of ordinary posting or using any communication method - even talking to myself to excess seems to help. It just becomes easier to think of the right words quickly. If you don't normally use language much, you're not likely to be able to just burst into good conversation. Better to get obsessional about language and communicate a lot, I think.