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Would you trade in your deafness for another disabilty?
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I remember my mum saying to me years ago, that she would rather be blind than deaf..she was neither.
Thinking about it, a blind person would have a much harder time than us deafies. We can see and lead relatively independent lives, whereas blind people generally cannot.
I know there are some exceptions to the rule like David Blunkett. But still he misses out on all the beautiful things we can see and admire.
Of all disabilities out there, I think deafness is the least debilating don't you? -
Perhaps you should research Helen Keller.
I'm too cross to answer the 'deafness is the least debilitating' disability. Sorry, but I can't see the point of this degrees of disability argument, although I know it fascinates some people.
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But the Government discriminates between degrees of disability. I was once in a discussion with a deaf-blind man about the sheer inconvenience of his life and he said that he found deafness to be more disempowering than sight-loss because deafness cut him off from others.
When you apply for DLA if you are a sign-user then you can get DLA at lower and middle rates. If you are a lip reader they will refuse the lower rate saying that lipreaders are more able to communicate than signers. Really? At night?
So there is a differential whether we like it or not. It shouldn't be there but it is and we should be talking about getting even handed treatment all round for DLA applicants.This is a reply to this message.
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I think deafness is a really bad disability to have it efects everything in your life from start to finish.
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I know all about Helen Keller.
My post was to be philosophical about our disability.
As a deafened person myself, I agree it is a royal pain in the A.
I have seen my earnings from my career nosedive as my hearing did and go to pot. I understand the frustrations of not being able to hear music, communicating without lip-reading etc.
But, I was wondering if people ever stop and think for a minute about those who have worse disabilities than themselves?
I mean if us deafies were in a room with other disabled folk and they heard us moaning about our communication problems, I wouldn't be surprised to hear someone yell at us to shut up lol!
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Deafness is a socially isolating disability. It's a lifetime of being sent to Coventry. That's what gets people down.
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I couldn't agree more, my social life is non existent, who wants to talk to someone who can't hear them? nobody
I am so thankful for my computer, which enable me to communicate on level terms, the only time I canThis is a reply to this message.
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I'd trade deafness for practically any other disabilty frankly. I would cheerfully lose an arm for hearing. I cannot see one positive in it (Apart from being blissfuly unaware of X factor contestants, and modern 'pop music' masquerading as talent and innovation)
It's just a daily and relenteless battle at the rim of sanity really....This is a reply to this message.
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Agree with the sentiments of those who have already posted. It seems to me that the blind are somewhat content with their lot. I watched 9against my initial misgivings) a program about a 'millionaire' who gave money away. She was born with a congenital defect that meant she lost her sight in her teens (I think). But she was happy and made a million building a tele-marketing company (for sure one thing that will not bother us folk!).
I think those with normal hearing take it for granted so much so that they don't even know it is there (if that makes any sense?).
As for worse disabilities I do wonder how I would feel if I were wounded like those guys who come back with only one arm left. Another example was Katie who was blinded in one eye and her face completely destroyed by an acid attack.
The Britians missing top model did try to address this point as there were 2 deaf girls and the others had various disabilities. No simple answer in my opinion.This is a reply to this message.
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Yeah, I saw that program Secret Millionaire with the blind businesswoman..was very interesting when she almost broke down upon being in a blind group dancing to music. It seemed that she had been indenial about her blindness. Furthermore she refused to use a walking stick and as a result kept bumping into things lol.
I too have thought about those poor young naive soldiers who have lost limbs. They will since face a life of unbelivable hardship...was it worth it? Prior to being injured, they said they just didn't think about it happening to them. Some even thought they were bullet proof. I do respect them for putting their lives on the line for our country though.
The people that threw acid in that girls face were just pure evil. I saw the docmentary and I just felt so angry for her. How could someone be so cruel?This is a reply to this message.
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Contrary to popular opinion many deaf are successful in what they do, the difference is their 'bottom line' what IF you could end this disability tomorrow ? Many say "I would stay deaf" they say this because the certainty at this time is there is no 'cure' anywhere on the horizon, so 'staying as you are' is an opt out really, until you actually GET a cure offered, there is little way of knowing how you will react.
I had an hearing upbringing, so naturally going back to that would suit me fine, and the reason why deafness is a disability to me, because it deprives me of what I had. One can understand sheer TERROR to a born deaf person, for whom hearing is totally alien an environment. I read one deaf person who said he would feel severely disabled by gaining full hearing...and felt his peers would desert him.This is a reply to this message.
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Talking in terms of being cured.
It would depend on a number of factors as you've pointed out.
The younger, the better one could adapt to a world of sound.
Deafened folk like MM and I, would adapt quickly to what we had before.
But, we're talking wishful thinking here lol.
Ain't convinced that stem therapy will be available in our life-time.This is a reply to this message.
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I have always thought that being blind would be the worst disability I did see the programme about the blind millionaire and was suprised how well she adapted perhaps she had a small amount of sight I dont Know ?
My brother has MS and is in a wheelchair I would swap with him anyday if i could hear !
I can understand deaf people who were born deaf would be scared of being hearing as they have not realised what they have missed and I think thats why they are against cochlear implants too ...This is a reply to this message.
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Bluesky,
If you 'know all about Helen Keller', then you know that, in her opinion, deafness was worse than blindness because, as was mentioned by another poster, deafness affects communication. It cuts you off from people - and communication with others is what humans are all about.
I'm sure anyone with a disability considers others who also have a disability. Being deaf doesn't stop a person from having compassion for others. But judging whether or not one disability is worse than another is surely a personal thing.
And I'm pretty sure that people, disabled or not, would yell at a group of deafies to shut up because they would be so loud, they'd interfere with everyone else's conversation! (unless they were all silently signing of course)
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helen Keller famously answered this question by saying,
"Blindness cuts you off from things: Deafness cuts you off from people"
There's your answer,This is a reply to this message.
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on Yahoo answers they polled, which would you prefer being, deaf, blind, or dead...? it was was a close call between the 3.... oh well back to the drawing board for deaf awareness lol....
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