Lily Gets Comfortable on the Computer Again

July 20, 2016

As computers become more and more integral to our world, the skills required to use them have, for many of us, become second nature and something we take for granted. For Lily, this was not the case, yet she was able to find help through the Neil Squire Society’s Computer Comfort program.

“I’ve definitely learned a lot,” Lily says. “I’m much better.”

When Lily was diagnosed with a tumour (new window) in her liver (new window), she needed a liver transplant (new window). However, it wasn’t only her liver that was affected. “The liver being such an important organ affected all the functions of my body, including my brain,” she explains. “I had a lot of cognitive problems in terms of not being able to think clearly, not being able to speak, do anything for myself, and just basically becoming completely helpless.”

This made it incredibly difficult for Lily to use the computer, and do tasks she once felt were simple. Her occupational therapist (new window) realized that Lily needed a dedicated program to become comfortable on the computer again, and regain her independence. Her therapist recommended the Neil Squire Society, where Lily found the Computer Comfort program. “I just wanted to be able to use my computer the way I used to before I became sick,” she says.

She began the program and initially it was quite challenging. “In the beginning it was very difficult for me to remember everything I was learning,” she notes. “The big challenge was just being able to retain and remember all the things that I was being taught.”

But she started to make progress. Lily found a new way of writing notes so that she could understand them later. She found out about speech recognition (new window) software. The thing she’s most proud of though, is being able to do the kinds of tasks that seemed easy before her disability, and help take care of her family.

Excel (new window), that’s probably where I’ve come the most. I’ve been able to plan my family’s budget, keep track of expenses, and track how we compare to the last year, so I’m really proud of that.”

Now, Lily is thankful for her time in Computer Comfort. “People who have not considered Neil Squire as a source of support, in terms of helping them gain better computer skills, they should definitely consider it,” she says. “I think it’s a great organization.”

Watch Lily’s video about her Computer Comfort experience: