“不要害怕寻求帮助， 你永远不是孤单的存在”|宁波诺丁汉大学举办国际残疾人日主题周

Please scroll down for the English version - UNNC calls for awareness of invisible disabilities.

昨天（12月2日），在宁诺英式钟楼前，一群人蒙着眼睛，手上系着一根三十厘米长的绳子，被牵引着歪歪斜斜地在校园内跑步。这是宁诺举办的“黑暗跑团”活动。

“黑暗跑团”

今天是国际残疾人日。宁波诺丁汉大学特别设计了为期一周的关爱体验行动，如“黑暗跑团”、“无声对话”等，聚焦“并非所有的残障都是可见的”，引导人们认知与理解一些不明显的残障，比如精神疾病、慢性疼痛、视力或听力障碍、糖尿病、脑损伤、学习差异和认知功能障碍等。

此次主题周负责人吴声表示：“希望借此让所有教职员工和学生理解——为所有患有有形或无形残疾的人群消除障碍的重要性，也期盼大家共同建设一个平等包容无障碍的校园。”

“这种感受太特别了！”

原来视障人群感觉离我挺遥远的，但当我真的蒙上眼睛后，我发现失去视觉后我会丧失方向感和距离感，有时候车子离我还很远，但声音传到我耳中却像是即将撞到我一样。我才感同身受他们的恐惧和无助。”

一位“黑暗跑团”活动参与者分享到。

“第一次蒙着眼睛跑步，这种感受太特别了。”宁波诺丁汉大学国际学专业大一学生杨丹妮在参加完活动后说，

“其实我对如何帮助盲人不了解，我猜想即便我真的遇到了盲人也会因为经验不足导致无法有效地帮助他。通过这样的训练可以让我们掌握帮助盲人群体的技巧，不会因为基本知识的缺乏而‘越帮越忙’。”

她表示，通过这个活动，她也觉得人与人之间应该要有更多的尊重和包容。

“我在十四岁被诊断出患有克罗恩病，医生对我说，得了这种病是不可能在学业上有所成就的。”昨天下午，作为此次主题周的特邀嘉宾，宁波诺丁汉大学人文社科学院院长Gary Rawnsley还从亲身经历出发，分享他与慢性疼痛长达36年的抗争历程。

讲座中，他以“给儿时自己一封信”的形式讲述了自己与疾病坦然相伴的生活，慢性疲劳、进食困难……种种挫折反而使得他更加热爱生活。他把乐观的精神传递给了现场的每个人：“疾病只是你的生活的一部分，不能定义你是怎样的人，不要害怕寻求帮助， 你永远不是孤单的存在。”

“我需要做的就是比以前更好”

据了解，在宁波诺丁汉大学，大约有百分之五的残障学生。宁诺作为全国范围内极个别单独设立身心健康部门的大学，给予这些学生支持是整个团队一直在做的事。目前办公室配备了来自英国、美国、新加坡等地具有国际资质、经验丰富的全日制心理咨询师，提供心理健康评估、心理疏导、心理干预和治疗支持等服务。去年，学校还斥资50万投入一套设备，用来帮助有听力障碍的同学更好地听清课堂内容。

吴声介绍，宁诺的无障碍通道和无障碍卫生间覆盖了所有的教学区域；新图书馆还专门针对阅读障碍的学生设置了一间无障碍辅助学习室。近几年，办公室还特别与学校各部门联动为每个残障学生量身定制“支持行动计划”。

一位患有语言障碍的学生就说，

因为口吃，在我遇到学校身心健康部门的老师之前，我一直处于抑郁和焦虑中，没有任何解决办法。后来我申请了残障支持，老师们为我定制了一个详细的支持计划，包括生活导师和学术导师的帮助。其中有一位老师告诉我——或许不能做得和其他同学一样好，但我需要做的就是比以前更好。最终我克服了内心深处的恐惧，顺利通过了考试，并且越来越适应学校的学习节奏和强度，所以我非常感谢这样的支持行动。”

身心健康指导中心主任Patti Wallace表示，2020年大家共同经历了许多的不确定，而不确定性让很多人感到恐惧、焦虑、愤怒和悲伤。她希望通过这次主题周，提升公众对于无形残疾及其对精神健康潜在危害的认知，让更多患有无形残疾的人群无惧寻求帮助和支持。

UNNC calls for awareness of invisible disabilities

Today (December 3) is International Day of People with Disabilities. The University of Nottingham Ningbo China is holding a one-week Disability Awareness Campaign, with the theme “Not All Disabilities Are Visible”, to raise public awareness of non-visible disabilities and remind staff and students of the importance of removing barriers for people with disabilities.

The campaign includes a series of activities including "Running in the Dark", "Dialogue in Silence", and workshops delivered by staff from the Wellbeing Office.

“Running in the Dark” is a non-profit social project that aims to change society’s discrimination and stereotypes against marginalised groups by partnering sighted and visually impaired runners to improve mutual understanding through close contact. "It's a unique feeling. We can learn how to help the blind through activities like this, instead of probably making trouble due to a lack of basic knowledge," said one of the participants.

Gary Rawnsley, Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences shared his own experience of fighting Crohn's disease for the last 36 years. All the difficulties he experienced have made him even more passionate about life. He said that he now understands that illness is only a part of life and cannot define who you are. He encouraged students never to be embarrassed to ask for help, as “you are supported".

Currently, around 5% of UNNC students live with a disability that is not immediately apparent. As one of the few universities in China that has a wellbeing service department, UNNC has made various efforts to support its students and establish an accessible campus. The Wellbeing Office has full-time counsellors with international qualifications and rich experience from the UK, the US, Singapore and elsewhere to provide multiple support as well as counselling services to best help students in need.

Over recent years, the Office works with various departments of the University to tailor an individual support plan for each student in need, introduces Jean Wu – Senior Manager of Disability Support and Health Promotion at UNNC. In 2019, the University also invested 500,000 yuan (over 70,000 USD) in technology to improve the classroom experience for students with hearing impairments.

"I was very grateful to Disability Support for helping me to overcome depression and anxiety when I could not find any help,” said a student with a stammer. “I make progress gradually and I am adapting to the pace of life and study at UNNC."

"We have all gone through many uncertainties in 2020, which can lead to feelings such as fear, anxiety, anger and sadness,” said Patti Wallace, Head of Counselling and Wellbeing. She hopes to spread awareness of invisible disabilities such as mental health issues, of the impact they may have on our students’ live, and to empower students to seek help and support without fear.

文字来源 | 曹非凡，张航，Lily Su，ETT

图片来源 | Wellbeing office

Copyright

转载或进一步了解

宁波诺丁汉大学品牌与传媒办公室

commsandmarketing@nottingham.edu.cn

宁波诺丁汉大学

中国第一所中外合作大学

卓越学术 精彩未来