[stylist] Does anyone want to be blind?

Thu Mar 26 17:49:10 UTC 2009

Perhaps the medical community should be educated so that kids born with 
little vision also receive braille and mobility instruction in spite of 
their remaining vision.  If the vision is cured then the child will have 
these skills which certainly won't hurt.  I don' know how many kids are 
cured from limitted vision to totally sighted but the answer doesn't matter. 
Since the child will quickly learn that they are different, this approach 
makes the most sense.  Judith  Since every situation is different.
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "helene ryles" <dreamavdb at googlemail.com>
To: "NFBnet Writer's Division Mailing List" <stylist at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Thursday, March 26, 2009 11:43 AM
Subject: Re: [stylist] Does anyone want to be blind?


> Judith and Alan:
> Thanks for the advise. Dad was better then he was last year, but there
> is still a long way to go. I've accepted blindness.
>
> Yes, I think doctor's have got it wrong. I think that they see
> blindness as something to be cured from (if possible) because their
> perseption of blindness is of a severe disability which it isn't. With
> the right kind of training a blind person only has a minor disability
> not a severe one.
>
> Say take a child who is born with ROP who has EVERYTHING done to save
> what little vision they've got. They spend their childhood struggling
> with very severe sight loss but since the parents put such a lot of
> effort into saving that little sight, they want the child to be as
> 'normal' as possible which means no braille, no no cane. That kid is
> relying on their weakest sense. Then their retina detaches itself
> completely. They are no longer at the stage where braille can be
> learnt quite as easily. They are say in 11th grade and are supposed to
> be studying but now they have this problem of not being able use
> vision any more. Having to learn braille by touch. Having to learn
> long cane, all that on top of studying. If they fail then they might
> blame this on the sight lose, but that wouldn't be true. They failed
> because the family and their doctor clung too much on their sight. So
> once it went. Their whole way of life went too.
>
> If Their parents hadn't done that. Hadn't spent so much time and
> effort at the eye doctors to make the child have better vision. Put
> all that effort into learning braille, long cane, daily living etc...
> They really wouldn't have needed to fail.
>
> Of course a 3rd option could have been to have the best of both
> worlds. But that's another problem. The fact that so few low vision
> kids learn braille or other blind skills.
>
> Helene.
>
> On 26/03/2009, Judith Bron <jbron at optonline.net> wrote:
>> Perhaps we should be sending this thread to doctors.  As medical
>> professionals they are committed to saving as much sight as possible.
>> According to this thread some of their treatments and procedures are 
>> wrong.
>> Do any of us have the right to tell them not to do what they strive to 
>> do?
>> Judith
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "James Canaday M.A. N6YR" <n6yr at sunflower.com>
>> To: "NFBnet Writer's Division Mailing List" <stylist at nfbnet.org>
>> Sent: Wednesday, March 25, 2009 10:29 PM
>> Subject: Re: [stylist] Does anyone want to be blind?
>>
>>
>>> yes,
>>> reading with my one squinty eye gave me headaches too.
>>> personally I think far far too often the educrats resort to "sight 
>>> saving"
>>>
>>> techniques when they should push braille and other blindness methods and
>>> skills.
>>> jc
>>>
>>> Jim Canaday M.A.
>>> Lawrence, KS
>>>
>>> At 07:06 PM 3/25/2009, you wrote:
>>>>Jim: I can identify with that since I was glad to lose the rest of my
>>>>hearing for similar reasons. Being presurized into verbal
>>>>communication methods that I struggled with with powerful migrane
>>>>inducing hearing aids. Phew! I was glad when that was over.
>>>>
>>>>Helene
>>>>
>>>>On 26/03/2009, James Canaday M.A.  N6YR <n6yr at sunflower.com> wrote:
>>>> > once I became blind I was then taught braille and the audio reading
>>>> > methods.  that made reading much much more pleasurable and
>>>> > easier!  "sight saving" meant I was reading with my one squinty eye
>>>> > peering through jewelers' loop magnification lenses that came down in
>>>> > front of my glasses lense.  I would not have gone to college if I had
>>>> > not lost my sight at age thirteen.
>>>> > jc
>>>> >
>>>> > Jim Canaday M.A.
>>>> > Lawrence, KS
>>>> >
>>>> > At 06:38 PM 3/25/2009, you wrote:
>>>> >>I wasn't really thinking of people already blind although I've heard
>>>> >>of blind people saying that blindness was the best thing that 
>>>> >>happened
>>>> >>to them. Wasn't that a line at the end of one of Robert's thought
>>>> >>provokers?
>>>> >>
>>>> >>I was thinking more of sighted people with a disorder called BIID
>>>> >>where people want to be disabled: Usually amputee's but I've heard
>>>> >>some of them wanting to be deaf or blind.
>>>> >>
>>>> >>Also I know of someone who was born blind, regained his sight and is
>>>> >>now losing it again due to Glycoma and he says he is glad to be blind
>>>> >>as he says he was meant to be blind.
>>>> >>
>>>> >>As for me, I make deafblindness part of my lifestyle. It's been a
>>>> >>concious choice for me to fully embrace being a deafblind person and
>>>> >>move on. It's not easy to begin with, but once one fully adapts it's
>>>> >>no big deal. I believe that humans are a very adaptible species that
>>>> >>can manage perfectly well minus one or two senses. It's not the
>>>> >>tragedy that people make of it. It's no worse or better then being
>>>> >>sighted. Just differance and it's the differances that are hard at
>>>> >>first, not the blindness
>>>> >>
>>>> >>Helene
>>>> >>
>>>> >>On 25/03/2009, LoriStay at aol.com <LoriStay at aol.com> wrote:
>>>> >> > Not if they aren't there already.   What does wanting have to do
>>>> >> > with
>>>> >> > it?
>>>> >> > Lori
>>>> >> > In a message dated 3/24/09 8:15:48 PM, timber_wolf899 at yahoo.com
>>>> >> > writes:
>>>> >> >
>>>> >> >
>>>> >> >>
>>>> >> >> does anyone want to be blind?
>>>> >> >>
>>>> >> >>
>>>> >> >>
>>>> >> >
>>>> >> >
>>>> >> >
>>>> >> >
>>>> >> > **************
>>>> >> > Feeling the pinch at the grocery store?  Make dinner for $10 or
>>>> >> > less. 
>>>> >> > (http://food.aol.com/frugal-feasts?ncid=emlcntusfood00000001)
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>>>> >>
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>>
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>
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