Why adults choose CI's for their children

[rockdrummer]

Shel, you have made some very compelling points and have illustrated a perspective that absolutly must be a consideration in a parents mind when considering a CI. You have showed some of the frustrations growing up as s deaf individual and others in your situation tend to agree with you. The key points I have gathered from yours and other comments are that;

Being deaf is frustrating in many situations

Being deaf could have psycological implactions as you (and others) have mentioned. (depression, the inability to cope, self acceptance etc. )

Being deaf puts you at a dis-advantage in many aspects of life. (Employment, public situations, family gatherings, interpersonal relationships etc.)

The ability to communicate is the key to addressing the above and can be aleviated in a couple of ways.

a.) The hearing population learns to sign.
b.) The deaf population is able to hear.

Please correct me if I have mis-understood something. or if you disagree.

 

[jillio]

No, we are not generalizing but it is good to get all the negative stuff out so parents of small deaf children can read our postive or negative experiences and I would hope they will keep them in mind if their child ever encounters the same experiences or tries to express their feelings of being left out. I expressed my feelings to my mom about the kids making fun of me, feeling left out, and other stuff and my mom brushed off as typical teenaged stuff. If so, then why did I develop a serious depression in my 20s that I needed therapy? I just want parents to be more sensitive and understand their children's deaf needs cuz we have unique needs that separate us from hearing children. That's all.

 

[JeepGirl]

Shel, you have made some very compelling points and have illustrated a perspective that absolutly must be a consideration in a parents mind when considering a CI. You have showed some of the frustrations growing up as s deaf individual and others in your situation tend to agree with you. The key points I have gathered from yours and other comments are that;

Being deaf is frustrating in many situations

Being deaf could have psycological implactions as you (and others) have mentioned. (depression, the inability to cope, self acceptance etc. )

Being deaf puts you at a dis-advantage in many aspects of life. (Employment, public situations, family gatherings, interpersonal relationships etc.)

The ability to communicate is the key to addressing the above and can be aleviated in a couple of ways.

a.) The hearing population learns to sign.
b.) The deaf population is able to hear.

Please correct me if I have mis-understood something. or if you disagree.

Yeah, you're right.. those are true.

 

[jillio]

I see now why deaf people consider themselves a race, I had to look up the dictionary's definition of "race" and it can be in fact interpreted that way. But please understand that because you consider yourselves a different race for the most part the rest of the world doesn't know this except for you and now myself, you assume everyone else on this planet already understands this. For the most part, the rest of this world sees you as handicapped not a race, society sees you as handicapped, not a race, and our laws sees you as handicapped and not a race and you are protected under the umbrella of handicapped laws not racial laws. When a parent has a child that is deaf, they want to make life better for them by doing everything within their power. By inserting CIs they are not in fact denying a childs race, but in fact giving the child every opportunity in life to succeed. Stop putting the parents down because they believe they are doing the right thing.

Deaf people do not consider themselves a different race, they consider themselves to be a cultural and linguistic minority. There is a big difference. Racial difference and cultural difference is not the same thing at all.

The fact that the rest of the world sees Deaf people as handicapped is a huge part of the problem. Deaf people are protected under disabiltiy laws, not handicapped laws. Disability can be interpreted in many different ways and is not reliant on the perspective of disability being a handicap, as you equate it.

No one here is putting a parent down for doing what they believe is the right thing. We are attempting to provide information for parents of young deaf children from the perspective of what it is to have growm up deaf, from the perspective of a hearing parent of a deaf child who has chosen no CI, and early exposure to sign and the Deaf community, from parents who have chosen CI, and numerous other perspectives.

Making the life of a deaf child better is a very subjective concept, and the only way parents will ever be able to make informed choices is through the exchange of information and honest ideas.

Just for the record, what exactly is your connection to the world of deafness? I'm only wondering because your post reads like someone who has never been exposed to deafness at all, much less all of the issues being discussed here.

 

[jillio]

The child is born or became deaf and I gotta agree with Cheri's point in another thread about the child still going back to being deaf when the CIs come off at night. Isnt what the whole point is? The child is deaf ..we are not implanting the child to make him/her deaf, right?

EXCELLENT POST!

 

[jillio]

We have. She is not fooling the teacher, she's doing very well academically...

Just a word of caution, Cloggy--my son was mainstreamed until the 4th grade, and was very proficient at fooling the hearing teachers. He got away with all kinds of stuff, because in the mainstream environment, he learned how to use his difference to manipulate. When he was transferred to an all deaf school, and tried some of the same things, the teachers there-particularly the Deaf teachers-said, "No,no, no! Can't get away with that here! We're deaf, too, remember!"

 

[jillio]

When she starts living by herself, she will have to get equipment to help her compensate for bing deaf. That will be a couple of years.. 4-year old girls do not tend to leave the family home yet

Cloggy, by the the time Lotte and Kayla are old enough to live on their own, the entire implant will be internal, no external parts. They have been working on it for a few years now. I was told it will probably be about another 10 years until they finish it. That means they will be able to hear when swimming, sleeping ect. The battery is what's going to take a while to figure out. I was told (by Kaylas therapist) that they are working on something like a headband to wear at night at bedtime to recharge it.

They've been working on ways to make deaf individuals hearing for centuries! They used to use trephining, and thought that was a wonderful advancement too. Don't get your hopes too high.

 

[rockdrummer]

Originally Posted by rockdrummer
Shel, you have made some very compelling points and have illustrated a perspective that absolutly must be a consideration in a parents mind when considering a CI. You have showed some of the frustrations growing up as s deaf individual and others in your situation tend to agree with you. The key points I have gathered from yours and other comments are that;

Being deaf is frustrating in many situations

Being deaf could have psycological implactions as you (and others) have mentioned. (depression, the inability to cope, self acceptance etc. )

Being deaf puts you at a dis-advantage in many aspects of life. (Employment, public situations, family gatherings, interpersonal relationships etc.)

The ability to communicate is the key to addressing the above and can be aleviated in a couple of ways.

a.) The hearing population learns to sign.
b.) The deaf population is able to hear.

Please correct me if I have mis-understood something. or if you disagree.

Yeah, you're right.. those are true.

Thanks RebelGirl. Anyone else that agrees or dis-agrees please share your opinions. Thank you.

 

[shel90]

Thanks Jillio, Rockdrummer and REbelgirl. I am too brain-dead to really write cuz today was a tough day at work. Kids were hyper for some reason. I am in the mood for reading posts and posting short posts.

 

[rockdrummer]

Thanks Jillio, Rockdrummer and REbelgirl. I am too brain-dead to really write cuz today was a tough day at work. Kids were hyper for some reason. I am in the mood for reading posts and posting short posts.

Lol, Poor ya. Those kids may be able to smell weakness and sensed you were tired and then got all fired up. I have been around hyper kids and oh man... I feel your pain. If you do get a chance please read my comments below and let me know if my perception is accurate.
Thanks.

Originally Posted by rockdrummer
Shel, you have made some very compelling points and have illustrated a perspective that absolutly must be a consideration in a parents mind when considering a CI. You have showed some of the frustrations growing up as s deaf individual and others in your situation tend to agree with you. The key points I have gathered from yours and other comments are that;

Being deaf is frustrating in many situations

Being deaf could have psycological implactions as you (and others) have mentioned. (depression, the inability to cope, self acceptance etc. )

Being deaf puts you at a dis-advantage in many aspects of life. (Employment, public situations, family gatherings, interpersonal relationships etc.)

The ability to communicate is the key to addressing the above and can be aleviated in a couple of ways.

a.) The hearing population learns to sign.
b.) The deaf population is able to hear.

 

[Cloggy]

They've been working on ways to make deaf individuals hearing for centuries! They used to use trephining, and thought that was a wonderful advancement too. Don't get your hopes too high.

Comparing Ci with a trumpet on the ear.....

I heared about trephining... but never for curing deafness.

No, I had hope. Now, looking at my daughter, I have high hopes... and I feel that they are still too low..

 

[jillio]

Comparing Ci with a trumpet on the ear.....

I heared about trephining... but never for curing deafness.

No, I had hope. Now, looking at my daughter, I have high hopes... and I feel that they are still too low..

Your daughter is still young, Cloggy, and you have yet to encounter numerous situaions that will occur as she grows older. I am not attempting to dash your hopes, just cautioning you to remain realistic.

 

[Cloggy]

Your daughter is still young, Cloggy, and you have yet to encounter numerous situaions that will occur as she grows older. I am not attempting to dash your hopes, just cautioning you to remain realistic.

I'm sure we will have them.....
And I know you speak from experience... you must have had them ..

 

[jillio]

I'm sure we will have them.....
And I know you speak from experience... you must have had them ..

Absolutely. That is exactly why I know that you, as well, will enclounter them.

 

[deafdyke]

Just a word of caution, Cloggy--my son was mainstreamed until the 4th grade, and was very proficient at fooling the hearing teachers.

Indeed Jillo!..............MANY if not most dhh (not to mention most other students with "classic" disabilites) kids can do VERY decently in a mainstream (regular school regular classes) sitution, early on. That's b/c early ed stuff is really really easy. That does not mean that it's going to be clear sailing all the way thro!!!! Many dhh kids, including oral deaf kids, start doing not so well as the grades get more advanced. Did you know that part of the reason why oral schools have upper grades, is b/c a lot of kids return b/c they didn't do so well in the mainstream? I remember reading in Volta Voices, (a mid '90s issue so really not that long ago) an advertisiment that said that a lot of kids came/returned to the oral school for middle school/upper grades.
I remember too, that I pretty much fooled my hearing teachers, into thinking that I did fablously.........and I mean, just wait til you request something more then basic accomondations! It can be and is a nightmare. I mean, most mainstream teachers really don't know how to really teach kids like us.
Most of the time, mainstream teachers get a two week unit on basic signs and what an auditory trainer is.
I have a feeling that your daughter is probaly going to have trouble....you've stated she still has significent language issues.......(I didn't, as I'd caught up during preschool....but yet I still had a lot of trouble) and the fact that she has social issues as well.
As for the self contained CI.........that's still very much in the future...I doubt that it will ever become a reality....Most insurance companies won't cover it, b/c all it is, is basicly a cosmetic thing. Sure they could hear 24/7 with it.....but you know, sometimes turning sound off is an awesome thing. I still don't even know how hearing people sleep with all that NOISE!!!!!!!!!!

 

[sr171soars]

As for the self contained CI.........that's still very much in the future...I doubt that it will ever become a reality....Most insurance companies won't cover it, b/c all it is, is basicly a cosmetic thing. Sure they could hear 24/7 with it.....but you know, sometimes turning sound off is an awesome thing. I still don't even know how hearing people sleep with all that NOISE!!!!!!!!!!

Tsk, tsk, tsk...it is not rocket science how the hearing people sleep when they can still hear. It is very simple...their brains have learned to "tune out" noises and thus they can sleep pretty well. Of course, that is all relative. Some people can sleep through a thunderstorm but wake up at the cry of a baby. It depends on what is important to the person and/or bothers them a bit (such as barking dogs) and we all know (or should know) that the brain never really sleeps. It monitors all that stuff while the person is sleeping but not at the same level of awareness as if awake.

 

[jillio]

Indeed Jillo!..............MANY if not most dhh (not to mention most other students with "classic" disabilites) kids can do VERY decently in a mainstream (regular school regular classes) sitution, early on. That's b/c early ed stuff is really really easy. That does not mean that it's going to be clear sailing all the way thro!!!! Many dhh kids, including oral deaf kids, start doing not so well as the grades get more advanced. Did you know that part of the reason why oral schools have upper grades, is b/c a lot of kids return b/c they didn't do so well in the mainstream? I remember reading in Volta Voices, (a mid '90s issue so really not that long ago) an advertisiment that said that a lot of kids came/returned to the oral school for middle school/upper grades.
I remember too, that I pretty much fooled my hearing teachers, into thinking that I did fablously.........and I mean, just wait til you request something more then basic accomondations! It can be and is a nightmare. I mean, most mainstream teachers really don't know how to really teach kids like us.
Most of the time, mainstream teachers get a two week unit on basic signs and what an auditory trainer is.
I have a feeling that your daughter is probaly going to have trouble....you've stated she still has significent language issues.......(I didn't, as I'd caught up during preschool....but yet I still had a lot of trouble) and the fact that she has social issues as well.
As for the self contained CI.........that's still very much in the future...I doubt that it will ever become a reality....Most insurance companies won't cover it, b/c all it is, is basicly a cosmetic thing. Sure they could hear 24/7 with it.....but you know, sometimes turning sound off is an awesome thing. I still don't even know how hearing people sleep with all that NOISE!!!!!!!!!!

Yeah, dd, I did know that about theoral schools. And the traditional Deaf schools normally have higher enrollment in the high schools and the middle than in the elementary grades because these children were mainstreamed untilthey lagged so far behind there was no other option but to send them to a Deaf school. Then the Deaf schools are blamed for having such low academic standards. In reality, they are graduating students that most likely would never have seen a diploma had they remained in the mainstream. The mainstream creates the problem, the Deaf schools attempt to dothe best they can when they receive these students, and then are blamed for having poor academic standards. We have tos top using sign in instruction as a last resort if we are ever going to see success for Deaf students.

 

[eljacam3]

thoughts

I am a hard-of-hearing adult with 3 hearing children. I grew up before IDEA was implemented so I went to public schools all of my life without any support with the exception of speech therapy. I learned to sign when at college but did not become immersed in Deaf culture until I attended Gallaudet. Even though I went to Gallaudet and my preference is for people to commuicate with me using ASL, I consider myself part of the hearing culture. I personally (even though I have too much hearing to even consider it) would not want a CI. If I had children (who were profoundly deaf) I would consider implanting them for the sole purpose of aiding thier reading abiliities. My personal feeling is that if you can read above elementary school level, you can pretty much do whatever you want in your life. Otherwise, I would not try to force my child to be hearing at all- they would probably attend a school for the Deaf where they have visuall accessiblilty to communication. Once that implant comes off, you are deaf, deaf, deaf.... I have been with children who have CIs and it pains me to watch them try so hard to understand what people are saying to them. It also pains me when parents are fooled into believing by those in the medical fields that thier child will be "hearing" just like them. The fact is these children are who they are and we all need to relate to ones who are like us... people tell me when they meet me how wonderful my speech is and there is a wise guy in me that wants to say to them,"thanks, but ask me what I learned for 16 years while sitting in a classroom and comprehending nothing...what is my good speech for then??" I am happy to have stumbled upon this sight- I am curious to read more from parents who have implanted their children and those who chose not to. I just can't imagine the years of therapy it takes for the implant to be truly successful. In my field of working at a school for the deaf, I have seen a few children gotten implants only never to be successful because the parents chose to belieive that the implant would be like getting glasses... not so.. any thoughts??

 

[rockdrummer]

I am a hard-of-hearing adult with 3 hearing children. I grew up before IDEA was implemented so I went to public schools all of my life without any support with the exception of speech therapy. I learned to sign when at college but did not become immersed in Deaf culture until I attended Gallaudet. Even though I went to Gallaudet and my preference is for people to commuicate with me using ASL, I consider myself part of the hearing culture. I personally (even though I have too much hearing to even consider it) would not want a CI. If I had children (who were profoundly deaf) I would consider implanting them for the sole purpose of aiding thier reading abiliities. My personal feeling is that if you can read above elementary school level, you can pretty much do whatever you want in your life. Otherwise, I would not try to force my child to be hearing at all- they would probably attend a school for the Deaf where they have visuall accessiblilty to communication. Once that implant comes off, you are deaf, deaf, deaf.... I have been with children who have CIs and it pains me to watch them try so hard to understand what people are saying to them. It also pains me when parents are fooled into believing by those in the medical fields that thier child will be "hearing" just like them. The fact is these children are who they are and we all need to relate to ones who are like us... people tell me when they meet me how wonderful my speech is and there is a wise guy in me that wants to say to them,"thanks, but ask me what I learned for 16 years while sitting in a classroom and comprehending nothing...what is my good speech for then??" I am happy to have stumbled upon this sight- I am curious to read more from parents who have implanted their children and those who chose not to. I just can't imagine the years of therapy it takes for the implant to be truly successful. In my field of working at a school for the deaf, I have seen a few children gotten implants only never to be successful because the parents chose to belieive that the implant would be like getting glasses... not so.. any thoughts??

Thanks for your input. You will find many CI success stories here and also most of the hearing parents here understand that the CI is not a cure all and doesn't mimic natural hearing. Having said that, there are some wonderful success stories for both children and adults here. In my case, the CI was not successful for my child. As far as expectations for the CI, it's up to the medical community to prepare parents for what to expect in terms of ongoing therapy etc. If the parent is informed and chooses to not participate then they are just lazy bad parents. While I am sure they exist, I don't believe you would find them at sites like this. Here you will find mostly good parents that are doing the best they can given their respective situations.

 

[rockdrummer]

There are also other threads on this site that deal with issues than can impact ones decision. I’ll list a few below and add more as I find them.

The thread below discusses safety considerations.
http://www.alldeaf.com/hearing-aids-cochlear-implants/39082-deaf-ci-ha-safety-issues.html


This one gives some opinions from deaf and hearing alike on how old a child should be before a parent decides.
http://www.alldeaf.com/hearing-aids-cochlear-implants/38495-ci-question-please-help.html


This thread brings out some educational points to consider and some insight into in-equities in the educational system
http://www.alldeaf.com/deaf-education/38393-learning-pace-deaf-vs-hearing-kids.html