Read this. Then you will understand why I feel the need to comment here.
. . .
Drew's Dad stumbled upon this blog post today about "Turn On My Ears" and he made the mistake tonight of letting me read it. I can not ignore this blog post, and feel the need to comment here.
I can imagine how "startled" I would feel if I simply read a few posts of someones blog and then proceeded to make assumptions and assertions from simply a few pieces of information.
First, if you would like to know where we came up with the name "Turn On My Ears," you can read this post. I personally like the name, as we are going to have the opportunity to take our perfect little boy and turn on his hearing, a moment that we will be able to witness (and video tape) for the first time!
Secondly, we started this blog when Drew was a little over six weeks old in November, 2006. He is, as I write this post, a little over seven months old, awaiting his simultaneous cochlear implant surgery. He will be eight months at the time of surgery and nine months when he is "turned on" for the first time. He will be eleven months old on August 24, 2007.
If you would like to know how a cochlear implant works (note it is cochlear implant, not cochlea implant), then you can read this.
Furthermore, we have taken all of the advice and education we have received from the specialists that are working with Drew. As we have learned from our teacher of the deaf through the Regional Infant Hearing Program, our therapists through Auditory Oral Children's Center and Columbus Children's Hospital, there is a lot of research that shows sign language is a great bridge to oral communication if established at birth. If you are interested in the communication, a.k.a. sign language, we have established to date with Drew, then read this.
Also, we have been quite clear and have understood from the very beginning that the cochlear implants alone will not allow Drew to communicate orally. It will take years of hard work and therapy to ensure that Drew will communicate orally and mainstream with his hearing peers. You can read posts on this subject here, here and here.
More than anything, Drew's Dad and I have made the decision to have Drew join the hearing world. We are his parents and we have to make decisions for both of our children that will give them the best opportunity to be all they can in this lifetime. We want him to hear us say "I love you". We want him to hear his big sister call him "Dew". We want our dog Eddie to wake him up with a bark. But more than anything we just want him to have all the abilities he needs to do what he wishes in this life. And "Turning On His Ears" will do that.
9 comments:
I'm more irritated that she took the energy to almost attack your choices through a blog post. She should have emailed you directly or chosen to leave a comment - but to write an entire post about you, without your knowledge? That seems rather rude to me - regardless of whether or not she agrees with your choices.
(Found you recently - don't remember how. I'm mom to a fantastic 14 month old boy with a CHD. Two surgeries down, one more to go. I really seem to connect now to bloggers with "special needs" (I hate that term) kids and am looking forward to following Drew's story.)
One more thing - and then I think I might read up a bit on her site and see what she's all about. Not to attack, more out of curiosity -
Anyway - that one more thing. Having Sammy has really taught me that you simply cannot judge another parent's choices for his/her child. Every case is so unique, every child is so unique, every family is so unique. It's easy to look in from the outside and say, "How could they do that?" But when you're in the middle of it, it's a completely different story.
Ok, I'll stop now.
Oh my.
It took a lot of restraint on my part not to post a comment in response to her post.
If she chooses to be ill-informed, that is her option.
None are more self righteous than the ignorant.
Reading that post, I had to remind myself that this is all about helping DREW, and not about pointing out the stupidity in uneducated people's comments and observations.
If she would have read through the posts, as she claims, she wouldn't be calling certain aspects of the CI "some wire or some this or some that"... educate yourself and please refrain from casting judgment on people who are doing the absolute best for their child.
And don't EVER let people who don't know what they're talking about make you second-guess yourselves in anyway. Everyone who KNOWS you (ie, not just by reading a post or two) knows that you two have gone above and beyond with Drew (and Avery) and will continue to do so.
Cheers to the people who post comments on here that are actually intelligent and purposeful.
Wow, that post knocked the wind out of my sails, so I can't even imagine how you must have felt. Like Mom to Toes, it takes a great deal of restraint to keep my mouth shut on her comment board. I read through the very well written comments from many I recognize from Ci Circle and felt satisfied. Drew's aunt however left me feeling the most "vindicated".
Cheers to you both for being tireless advocators for your children.
When I was bought up, my parents agonized over the choice of subjecting me to the "Deaf" world vs. "normalizing" me. I have one response to this....thank God for the best parents anyone could ever have. For me, it was the right decision. For Drew, I am sure you are making the right decisions.
I am sorry. I really am. I just reread the post I made then, and I can see that it is totally inappropriate. I don’t know what I was thinking. I had no right to write about your blog or question your decision the way I did and I should have got a lot more information on the situation in the US before posting anything at all. I definitely used the wrong words and I apologize. I will delete the entry and in the future not post withouth thinking beforehand. Sorry.
Hello from Tennessee. . .I was unable to read the post but just wanted to tell you that you are making the right decision for Drew. I learned to hear and speak orally with hearing aids and Drew will be able to do the same with cochlear implants. Yes, it will be hard work but SOOOOO worth it! I look forward to hearing about his progress!
Have a Happy Mother's Day. . .God gave you your children because he knew that you would be the BEST parents for them!
I just got to hear about this link. Alas the post you mentioned is not showing, but as an implantee I can tell you -it's a world of difference. The title says it all - my ears are finally functioning again. I am of course different from little Drew as I am an adult but it does not make things one iota less beneficial. Good luck - it won't be easy but it will really be worth it.
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