CI vs Deaf

This is a hot debate in the deaf community. There is a lot of controversy between the older generation and the younger about CI or cochlear implants. Many of the people in the younger generations get the cochlear implants and live life like a hearing person. This can cause problems in the Deaf Community. The older people in the Deaf Community do not generally like the idea of the cochlear implants.

The newer generation of people who are deaf generally like the idea of the cochlear implant. It is a very helpful tool for them to communicate with other people that do not know sign language. It also can help them “fit in” better with kids in their school, if they are mainstreamed into an all hearing school. There is also more of a chance for them to make friends at a younger age. Kids are very judgmental and can shun other kids or cast them off as weird for the stupidest things. They have many good arguments for why they should get them, but a lot of the time that does not matter to the older generation of deaf people.

The older generation generally fears the cochlear implants. The people that don’t want them have a good reason. They fear their culture will be ruined. The center of every culture is a language, without the language the culture begins to fade away. A lot of the deaf culture is based around sign language, like with storytelling, art, and even their own music. It is thought of as very beautiful by many people, and the older generation fears of losing that beauty. Deaf people also tend to be very close knit in their groups.

A lot of parents that are hearing who have deaf kids tend to want them to get cochlear implants at a young age. This could be what the child wants, but also might not be. That is a very large debate going on in the Deaf Community also. They can get the procedure done with the child at about one year of age in the United States. It varies in other countries and from doctor to doctor. But this is a huge deal because they cannot tell you whether they don’t want one or do want one. The parents tend to want the child to get one for reasons similar to the new generation. The other reason is that they want to be able to talk to their child and generally don’t have an accurate perception of what it means to be deaf.

I don’t think this debate will ever be solved, mainly because it is completely based on a personal opinion. You cannot tell someone that they cannot get a new technology if they want to and are an adult. You also cannot tell someone how to raise their child. It is all a matter of opinion. Everyone has a stance on the issues if they are deaf because it is such a hot topic, but there will never be a right or wrong answer.

Are Worms and Baths the Key?

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/worms-hot-baths-secret-to-treating-autism/

Gallaudet Football

Gallaudet University is doing great in its football program this year. They have finally figured out how to work together and become a team. No team can function with cliques especially as strong as the previous ones Gallaudet had in its football locker room. They learned how to respect each other’s differences and make it work to their advantage. Being a deaf and hard of hearing football team has its pros and cons, but as they have shown this year it can be very effective.

Gallaudet used to be ranked two hundred thirty four out of two hundred thirty eight when they first started. They struggle to find deaf and hard of hearing football players. It really limits who can play and the ability of the players when they come in to the team. That will probably always be something they will struggle with, but their skill level can improve if more coaches learn sign language for their player. This year they turned everything around and ended up winning the Eastern Collegiate Football Conference. They have shown a lot of improvement over the past few years. A lot of their success is due to their new found bonding of their team.

Before this year Gallaudet’s football team was very separated by people who are hard of hearing and people who are deaf. They stayed in their little social groups and were not acting like a team should. This year they really stepped it up and changed all of that. They are acting more like a team and have mixed up the groups a little more, so it is not divided by who can hear and who cannot. That has shown to be very effective for them.

On the field they use sign language to communicate what play will be going on. This does not need to be done in a huddle so it is not visible by the other team because they are not deaf or hard of hearing so they do not know sign language. I think it is both very effective, and hilarious. One of the players in the video I watched actually suggests that football players learn sign language because they will eventually run out of made up gestures to use on the field.

Being deaf or hard of hearing can be moderately difficult because you cannot really hear a whistle blow to know a play is beginning or over, and most coaches do not know sign language so it would be difficult to find a coach and a team. They are not very many players which is sad because a lot of little boys want to grow up to be a football player, if there were more players who were deaf and it was more talked about maybe little boys that were deaf would realize that they could have that dream and accomplish it too. Being deaf also has its advantages as well. If you are deaf you can sign your plays, your vision improves, and you are more aware of your surroundings. There is also less of a distraction of fans yelling, which is a great bonus. There are a lot of pros and cons but one thing is for sure, players at Gallaudet prove that it can be done, and done well.

TOTAL FAKE!!

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/dec/12/nelson-mandela-sign-language-interpreter-error-south-africa-government

This is an insane thing to have happened at such a large event held by the government. I cannot believe that this happened at Nelson Mandela’s funeral of all places. I feel very bad for the deaf people that attended and had no idea what was being said because of him. His services were requested specifically for the deaf community in South Africa to be able to understand the funeral of this important figure. He was also hired by the government, which means they have some explaining to do. A lot of people in the deaf community have complained about him signing before at other important events he has been hired for and signed nonsense at.

He claims he has schizophrenia, which I don’t believe because I have dealt with many people with it and they are not anywhere near that calm when having an episode. In the newspaper he said “Anyone who doesn't understand this illness will think that I'm just making this up" This is completely untrue both people who do know the illness and who don’t will know it is a lie.

If he really does have schizophrenia my question is why would he be allowed to perform at such an important service with such important people there? That disease is not controlled very well in most people and in high pressure situations, like interoperating your country’s most important figure’s funeral, they could get violent quickly. If they are violent and are so close to all of those important figures they could harm them before security could stop them. They also have very little warning before they get violent. This could create a very bad situation for people. So the way I look at it if he has schizophrenia or not he still should not have been up there and the government still has to come up with a good reason why he was hired.

Does a Bacteria Cause Autism?

http://esciencenews.com/articles/2013/12/08/probiotic.therapy.alleviates.autism.behaviors.mice

 

If they can give Autism to someone then, in theory, they should be able to cure it. If you know what causes something you should be able to prevent it or find a way to prevent it. If they found out that this bacteria caused Autism then they would be able to find a prevention for it or a cure for it. This could mean a big step towards finding a cure for it. It also brings researchers closer to finding out why and how it happens.

I do not personally think that the bacteria is what causes autism because there are so many different forms of it. I think that they can use the bacteria to come up with different ways to help cope with the disorder. It might cause some forms of it, but Autism is a broad term for something that we do not fully understand, so there is a possibility that there are other things that could cause it.

This is still a huge discovery to me because it can help us develop drugs to help with the symptoms and side effects from the disorder.

Helpful Holiday Tips

Having all of your family together can be a very stressful time for anyone, especially if you have autism or any other disabilities. Some family members are very open to it and welcoming, while others might not be. There are a lot of extra stimuli around during this time and extra people, making it very hard to find a place to calm down.

During the holidays everything in a person’s environment changes both inside the home and outside it. There are added lights, decorations, sometimes smells, if there are candles, and the weather is changing around this time. Someone with autism would be very on edge with all of these changes.

There are some things you can do to help prevent a bad situation. You could help by making it more routine. Make Christmas day seem like a normal day by creating a loose schedule of events so the child does not get upset. Try to stick to as much of a normal routine as you can.

Putting the decorations little by little would also help, so that everything in their environment does not change all at once.

Autism Speaks has some great tips on how to minimize issues during the holiday. They had some I would not have ever thought of. Some I agree with and actually used, while others I would not suggest. One of the main ones I could see causing problems is having them open presents early or practicing opening presents as they put it. I could see a child wondering why they could not open all of their presents then or expecting more on days it was not a holiday.

http://www.autismspeaks.org/news/news-item/holiday-tips

Celebrate the Holidays

Silent Santa is a great way to help kids with autism be more like kids without the disability. It offers a quiet place with less stimulating things, so they will not be as likely to get upset. The kids can go see Santa like any other child would and have just as good of an experience. They try to limit the noise, waiting time, and other things that could cause overstimulation. It can create great memories for the whole family.

They are starting to do things similar to Silent Santa in multiple towns, in different states, all around the United Sates. Some different malls hold different special events especially for this, while others are held in churches, schools, or activity centers.

Activities like this are relatively easy to plan. If someone wanted to they could organize a Silent Santa in their town. All they would have to do is rent out a place, have someone dress up as Santa, get a backdrop, and a photographer. They could charge however much the mall does per picture to get the money back and do whatever they want with the rest they earn.

There are other ways to keep a child feeling normal during the holidays. A parent or relative or friend can plan activities to do with them. There are many different holiday activities that you can do with a person with disabilities. It also depends on how severely their disability affects them. There are light shows for adults or teenagers with disabilities.

 http://abcnews.go.com/Lifestyle/quiet-santa-events-coup-kids-autism/story?id=21075139