Recently there was an article about two 45-year-old Belgian deaf twins who found out that they were going blind. Subsequently, they both decided to end their lives by medically assisted suicide. Fortunately for them, they lived in Belgium, a country where euthanasia is legal. They said goodbye with their family and went into that eternal slumber that people all eventually face.I couldn't help but feel profoundly sad for these two men. One reason is that I simply don't think the life span of a deaf and blind person is worthless. Also because I don't believe that people who are depressed should be permitted to end their lives. Psychiatrists might help both with therapy and medications, if necessary.The main reason I feel sad for these men is that I saw the movie, The Miracle Worker, about Helen Keller. She actually is famous worldwide as a woman who was both deaf and blind who became an author, presenter and political activist, traveling around the globe. If Helen Keller could make a life worth living, why couldn't both of these men?I find it hard to trust that with all of the medical advances out there, they couldn't come up with a treatment for help their deafness or prevent them from going blind.I recently saw a movie about cochlear implants. These devices have allowed children who have been born deaf to hear and be area of the hearing world. However, in this movie, they did say that these implants aren't as successful in adults. The cochlear implant allows them to hear but they don't necessarily know very well what they're hearing so they still depend on lip-reading. Because children's brains are still developing, they are more likely to figure out how to understand and communicate like a hearing person.Let's just assume that these men looked into all the medical likelihood of improving their eyesight and hearing, and there were none. What options are left for them as deaf and blind people?The issue with cochlear implants and solutions for the deaf is that they assume you can see. In the end, the deaf world is full of people who can easily see. https://www.cookprocessor.com/members/pushwheel91/activity/565545/ Likewise, the blind community is full of people who can hear. Someone who is both deaf and blind would have one foot straddling both communities. Yet they would not really be considered a full person in either world.I started to think about all of the difficulties of someone who can neither see nor hear. Then I thought who am I to judge these men on the decision? After all, I am speaking from a position of privilege. I can see, although not and also I used to manage to. I can hear, albeit with some hearing loss.What sort of life would someone deaf and blind live? What would each day in their life be like? When I think about all the things I do on a daily basis that a deaf and blind person wouldn't normally be able to do, I realize why the twins felt so hopeless. But if Helen Keller read, wrote, graduated from Radcliffe College, and made her life worth living, why couldn't they?What would I do every day if I were in their shoes. These men wouldn't normally be able to work. They could not be self-sufficient and would probably be institutionalized or at the very least require a helper with them all or most of the time. Their only chance of having any activity within their life would be should they learn Braille so they could read.I know that being deaf and blind makes communication with the rest of the world difficult, but when you can read and write, there are ways of staying in touch with other people. I've no doubt that people would want to read their opinions and also read a book they wrote about their life experiences and difficulties. In the end, when you think about difficulties they face, you realize how minor your personal problems are.I do not think badly of these men for quitting on life, but I do believe that they had other choices. They could have already been examples of two men who triumphed over two of the biggest disadvantages in life. Ultimately, I am sad concerning the inspiration these men might have been to many people around the world if they had chosen to continue living. After all, I believe among our biggest purposes in life is to inspire others. As long as you be capable of think, speak and write, you can do this. It's important for everyone to remember that.


トップ   編集 編集(GUI) 凍結 差分 バックアップ 添付 複製 名前変更 リロード   新規 一覧 単語検索 最終更新   ヘルプ   最終更新のRSS
Last-modified: 2021-11-18 (木) 16:24:37 (900d)