[blindkid] rocking

hpscheffer at aol.com hpscheffer at aol.com
Mon Apr 30 14:59:14 UTC 2012


Thank you Arielle, this was very interesting. I know we are "missing" a piece here, and we actually have been talking about gestures, and body language, she has great movement and some postures that are very natural to her. I think I will explain to her your view, I'm sure it will make sense to her. 
I appreciate your feedback.


Heidi



-----Original Message-----
From: Arielle Silverman <arielle71 at gmail.com>
To: Blind Kid Mailing List, (for parents of blind children) <blindkid at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Mon, Apr 30, 2012 10:45 am
Subject: Re: [blindkid] rocking


Hi Heidi and all,
I've posted on this topic before and I have some unconventional views
on the rocking issue. I don't think rocking while excited is an issue
of vestibular stimulation. Rather, we know that all people (blind and
sighted alike, of all ages) tend to instinctively move about in some
way when they get excited or passionate about something. However,
sighted people learn to express their feelings in specific ways by
watching those around them, such as using hand or body gestures. Those
of us who have been born blind have never seen these movements and so
instead of copying others around us, we engage in movements that make
instinctive sense. Rocking is an easy repetitive motion that requires
no observation in order to learn, so blind children pick it up. You're
right that reminders are not very effective because the rocking
happens just as automatically as "talking with one's hands" does. My
suggestion would be to talk with Heidi about this and try to teach her
something specific to do with her hands or body when she gets excited.
You could teach her some basic gestures to use while talking, or
perhaps she can learn to do some discreet movement, like wiggling her
toes, when she is excited or bored. Have her practice during normal
conversation. It will take a while but eventually she may start to
automatically use the new movements when she gets excited. Above all,
teaching blind children they aren't allowed to move their bodies at
all while in conversation is unrealistic and only sets them up for
shame or frustration. But giving them a real alternative to rocking
will address the underlying issue and empower them to overcome the
issue themselves. Best of luck.
Arielle

On 4/30/12, hpscheffer at aol.com <hpscheffer at aol.com> wrote:
> Hi, I'm looking for suggestions or your feedback on how to help my daughter
> to stop rocking. She is gotten a lot better, but as some of you may know,
> when she gets excited or really into something she will do it without
> realizing it. I'm thinking we are missing something, because just reminding
> her does not do it. I've heard about the vestibular stimulation rocking will
> do for a blind person, but her OT and her PT have never worked with a blind
> child and they do not seem to have an answer. She is 12 and soon to be 13,
> she is blind from ROP.
>
>
> Any information will be appreciated.
>
>
> Heidi
>
>
>
>
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