Cloggy,
I understand your situation. You have to weigh two things: putting a machine in your child's head versus allowing your child to remain deaf.Or, giving a child sound vs letting the child be deaf.
From the perspective that the hearing world is more beneficial (in any way) than the deaf world, someone would choose the CI.
If not, then ask yourself, why even consider a CI in the first place?
because it would allow my child to hear.
However, go a step further and think about the pros and cons.
We did. Researched d/Deaf culture, researched CI. Tried to dee her deaf in the future, see her hearing...
Consider your child in the future - perhaps fulfilling more potential in the hearing world, but potentially disturbed that he/she has a machine in his/her head.The "machine" aspect is nonsense. You seem to be fixated on this, and it looks it comes from a very negative experience.
When I look at my daughter, I see a person. Not a machine. She has a CI that allows her to hear. She is defined by it.
What if your child wants to be a scuba diver (below 100 meters) or an astronaut? What about possibilities that cannot be fulfilled now because of the CI?Tell me. How many people are divers below 100m, how many are astronauts... Now add the two, divide it by 6 billion.... Nothing...
Divide by the number of deaf poeple... nothing...
CI prevents (hardly?) no possibilities, and gives many additional possibilities...
What if your child eventually feels like others modified his/her body in a way that is irreversible except through intensive surgery?Why would it feel like that.?? The object will not be foreign. She enjoys using it. Show me a child that did not go through puberty and suddenly hated everything, and thought her parents were as dumb as shit.......
A greater love might be to consider the child's feelings rather than yours. Is it you, rather, that is afraid that the child won't be able to accomplish as much in the deaf world versus the hearing world?I can honestly say NO.
This argument is really boring, since it accuses the parent of NOT loving the child. The insinuation will allways be there, ad especially with parents that just had a deaf child, it HURTS.
I have been through that, I know that it's just a shittyy argument. An argument based on nothing, layed out there to function as a loose argument.
Are you afraid that your child's intelligence will be lower as a consequence of being deaf? Look at me, I have been 100% deaf since 2 years old, but I score higher on standardized tests than 99.99% of the nation.Deafness has nothing to do with IQ.
I wanted my child to be able to speak dutch with her grandparents, norwegian with her friends at school, english with other friends, signlanguage with deaf people... She's well on her way, speaking dutch, norwegian and sign... At age 4-1/2, with 2 years of CI... I would think that had she not liked it... it would have shown..
Intelligence can be relative to how the child is raised, methods of being taught, and the creativity and intelligence of the parents themselves.One's limitations are defined by one's communications....
I was given a CI on the left side when I was 3 years old, and a CI on the right side when I was 16 years old. Most of it was my parent's decision rather than mine, yet it was my own body.Meaning.... 3 years is an age where the parents decide. 16 is questionable... Still, I am sure that your parents did it for you. You might feel different.....
I was never able to distinguish consonants and vowels apart from each other. Yet my parents did it "out of love" in their own best interests, thinking it would also be in my own best interest.So, the outcome was not what you wanted it to be. Who's fault was that?.... At least you got a good oppportunity. Be grateful, accept that it didn't work, thanks your parents and move on...
But I enjoy being deaf. There is nothing wrong with it. If my CI allowed me to distinguish between consonants and vowels, maybe I would've seen the benefits, and enjoyed life more, but in the end it would've limited me in other ways and still been an imposing of their will on my body that may as well be irreversible.Again, you are disappointed... that is what motivates you. Try to change that into something positive..
The benefits of hearing may be numerous, but is it worth a child being used in a way that is irreversible?Ireversable... From deaf going to hearing.... or deaf... thats not irreversable. And the electrode can be removed.... if really wanted...
You'll hear many deaf children being very happy with their CI - but you also have to think about the child's feelings about having a CI in the body, whether it's had positive or negative results.Yep... why do you think it's a hard decision. Your remark comes from the assumption that it is "just done"... it is not. It's a proces. The argument is so lame.... Parents LOVE their children... unconditionally.
I can tell you that I wish my parents had never forced a CI into my body, and let me make the decision at a later age despite what the doctors say that putting in a CI is more likely to be successful at a young age.You should accept the decision they made at age 3. The decision at 16 is different. Were you so pissed at them that you decided that you were going to MAKE it FAIL??
Because then it would've been my own decision, not theirs. It would've been my own decision about my own body.At age 16 - I agree.
Listen to what a deaf child (your child) may have to say, more than what the parent (you) think. Respect how the child may feel and let the child find acceptance through being deaf; if the child wishes to have a CI later, let the child do it at an age when he/she is capable of making an educated decision.And there you go with another argument that is rediculous... Waiting is limiting the potential outcome. My daughter is doing so well BECAUSE we decided early. When she wants to go through life deaf, she can still do that. The revers is not true.
NOT choosing for CI, leting the child choose, is giving the child less possibilities...
This is my point of view, as well as that of many deaf children and adults out there. Which would be the greater love: to listen to them or to listen to yourself?
