[blindkid] How Sighted Family members treat their Blind Relatives

[Arielle Silverman]

I had similar experiences with all three of my living grandparents
growing up. It's unfortunate because I think if they had understood
blindness and nonvisual skills better, I would have had better
relationships with them before they died. While my grandparents lived
close and saw my parents and me a lot, these things often happened
when I was staying in their homes without my parents to intervene or
correct. For example, I recall when I was 11 years old, my grandfather
not believing that I could dial the telephone independently while I
was visiting his house, and my grandmother (on the other side of the
family) doubting my ability to take a shower independently around the
same age. Without my parents, my grandparents had authority, and it
was very difficult for me as a child to educate them. I think
blindness can be even more confusing for family members who don't see
the blind child frequently. I know it may be a challenge to educate
grandparents and other more distant family members, but I do think it
is a worthwhile thing to try to do in order to help the relative build
a strong loving relationship with the child. It is very hard to have a
good relationship with someone who doubts your ability to do things,
even (and especially) when that person is a family member.

Arielle

On 10/28/15, Traci Wilkerson via blindkid <blindkid at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> Easy, my MIL will still try to spoon feed my 9 and 10 year old!!!  I
> promptly tell her to put the spoon down!  She is not comfortable with their
> blindness, does not encourage canes, drags them around, etc.  Makes me
> crazy.  Not someone who will ever get it, but I talk about it all the time
> with my kids that b/c she has a problem, does not make it their problem and
> they need to keep doing what they do!  :)
>
> Traci
>
> On Tue, Oct 27, 2015 at 3:29 PM, Roanna Bacchus via blindkid <
> blindkid at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>
>> Dear Parents,
>>
>> The subject of this email stems from something that happened to me a few
>> Summers ago.  My grandmother from Canada was vsisting us for a few weeks.
>> One day when I went to heat my lunch up, she called my older sister into
>> the kitchen to heat my food up for me.  After that she explained that she
>> had forgotten that I could heat up my food in the microwave.  My sighted
>> family members do not treat me like I am two years old.  Most of them have
>> no problem letting me do things on my own.  I find that many sighted
>> people
>> want to learn about how blind individuals accomplish certain things.  I'd
>> love to hear your thoughts on this topic.
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> blindkid mailing list
>> blindkid at nfbnet.org
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/blindkid_nfbnet.org
>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>> blindkid:
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/blindkid_nfbnet.org/traci.mwd%40gmail.com
>>
>
>
>
> --
> Traci Wilkerson
> Cell – 919-971-6526
> _______________________________________________
> blindkid mailing list
> blindkid at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/blindkid_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
> blindkid:
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/blindkid_nfbnet.org/arielle71%40gmail.com
>