Re: (unknown)

[Guest guest]

At 07:43 AM 12/22/01 -0800, shelljb51@... wrote:

>This is really an active group! I'll make an effort

>to log on more often; I've been getting so upset at

>work everyday that I don't always have the energy to

>sit down at the computer.

Hi, I don't recall if I responded to an earlier message,

I only vaguely recall your earlier messages of a few

weeks ago, but I went back and read a few, and found this

interesting:

>I was surprised when I started working and found that

>almost the entire staff was " in recovery " with no

>formal training or education, and there is a great

>deal of resentment toward me by some of the other

> " counselors. " I really get the feeling that I am not

>wanted there, but was hired as a last resort to

>satisfy new, stricter licensing requirements.

I find that last senntence funny (they're essentially running a

religious indoctrination program, and now they're told to hire

someone 'qualified' - but by their standards, you're the one not

qualified). Do you know anything about the new, stricter licensing

requirements? I'd suspect they were originated by, or are at least

promoted by, insurance companies, who have been complaining for

many years or even decades about relapse rates and such.

I wonder - does anyone know of any stepper influence, or of

unusually high stepper employment rates in the health insurance

industry? Perhaps it's just a conspiracy theory idea on my part,

but it seems they would be loathe to pay out as much claim money

has they have in recent decades - if they had even partial

knowledge and an unbiased opinion of what was going on, they

might think it cost-effective to fund research into alternative

treatment methods.

>The more I know about 12-step programs and the rehab

>centers that push them, the more convinced I am that

>they are counter-productive and dangerous. I've been

>reading state codes and realize that these people

>don't even care if what they are doing is legal.

I'm sure you've heard them say that 12-step programs are not

religious, but these people do have a " Higher Purpose " . There

are county courthouses in the southern US that have the Ten

Commamdments in public view on the wall. The people who put them

there have a " Higher Purpose " that pre-empts " Man's Law " , and

the steppers are the same.

>Most

>alarming to me is the way they coerce prospective

>clients to go off of their psychotropic medications

>(cold-turkey). Is this standard procedure in this

>type of facility?

It is standard procedure for 12-step programs, which that type

of treatment facility effectively is. There are microscopic

differences between AA, NA, and treatment centers, but one saying from

treatment centers I heard (I only heard this in 'liberal' AA meetings,

meaning they allowed people to talk about drugs as well as alcohol)

is " A drug is a drug is a drug " , often followed by " and alcohol is a

drug. " Add black-and-white thinking, which steppers already have, and

it is believed that even prescription medications, taken as prescribed,

are " a drug " and will lead directly to relapse.

>I'd appreciate info and feedback on

>this from any of you that have experienced it.

>

>Thanks again to everyone--your messages are very

>helpful!

We're generally motivated to tell anyone who will listen, and there

seems to be so few who will...

>

----------

http://listen.to/benbradley

[Guest guest]

-

Never heard of rehab personnel forcing a patient to stop medication. Rehabs that I know of work with a patient's doctor who would have that control. Janice shelljb51@... wrote: This is really an active group! I'll make an effortto log on more often; I've been getting so upset atwork everyday that I don't always have the energy tosit down at the computer.The more I know about 12-step programs and the rehabcenters that push them, the more convinced I am thatthey are counter-productive and dangerous. I've beenreading state codes and realize that these peopledon't even care if what they are doing is legal. Mostalarming to me is the way they coerce prospectiveclients to go off of their psychotropic medications(cold-turkey). Is this standard procedure in thistype of facility? I'd appreciate info and feedback onthis from any of you that have experienced it. Thanks again to everyone--your messages are veryhelpful! __________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

" We're generally motivated to tell anyone who will listen, and thereseems to be so few who will..."

To all:

Well, we've got to start someplace, so how about connections at a psychology research institute? My stepson, who this past year received his Masters in physcholgy and now works at a rather large psychology institute, just left my house with the whole "The Real AA: Behind the Myth..." book which I printed out for my own reading. He didn't know until today that I left AA and was extremely interested in what I had to say about it. Over the years, he has had some work experience with addicts/alcoholics (gee, I wonder why he was interested) and has had offers for jobs counselling in that area. Don't know what if anything will come of it, but the way I look at it, it's one more voice.

Janice

Ben Bradley wrote: At 07:43 AM 12/22/01 -0800, shelljb51@... wrote:>This is really an active group! I'll make an effort>to log on more often; I've been getting so upset at>work everyday that I don't always have the energy to>sit down at the computer. Hi, I don't recall if I responded to an earlier message,I only vaguely recall your earlier messages of a fewweeks ago, but I went back and read a few, and found thisinteresting:>I was surprised when I started working and found that>almost the entire staff was "in recovery" with no>formal training or education, and there is a great >deal of resentment toward me by some of the other >"counselors." I really get the feeling that I am not >wanted there, but was hired as a last resort to>satisfy new, stricter licensing requirements. I find that last senntence funny (they're essentially running areligious indoctrination program, and now they're told to hiresomeone 'qualified' - but by their standards, you're the one notqualified). Do you know anything about the new, stricter licensing requirements? I'd suspect they were originated by, or are at leastpromoted by, insurance companies, who have been complaining formany years or even decades about relapse rates and such. I wonder - does anyone know of any stepper influence, or ofunusually high stepper employment rates in the health insuranceindustry? Perhaps it's just a conspiracy theory idea on my part,but it seems they would be loathe to pay out as much claim moneyhas they have in recent decades - if they had even partialknowledge and an unbiased opinion of what was going on, theymight think it cost-effective to fund research into alternativetreatment methods.>The more I know about 12-step programs and the rehab>centers that push them, the more convinced I am that>they are counter-productive and dangerous. I've been>reading state codes and realize that these people>don't even care if what they are doing is legal. I'm sure you've heard them say that 12-step programs are notreligious, but these people do have a "Higher Purpose". Thereare county courthouses in the southern US that have the TenCommamdments in public view on the wall. The people who put themthere have a "Higher Purpose" that pre-empts "Man's Law", andthe steppers are the same.>Most>alarming to me is the way they coerce prospective>clients to go off of their psychotropic medications>(cold-turkey). Is this standard procedure in this>type of facility? It is standard procedure for 12-step programs, which that typeof treatment facility effectively is. There are microscopicdifferences between AA, NA, and treatment centers, but one saying fromtreatment centers I heard (I only heard this in 'liberal' AA meetings,meaning they allowed people to talk about drugs as well as alcohol)is "A drug is a drug is a drug", often followed by "and alcohol is adrug." Add black-and-white thinking, which steppers already have, andit is believed that even prescription medications, taken as prescribed,are "a drug" and will lead directly to relapse.>I'd appreciate info and feedback on>this from any of you that have experienced it. >>Thanks again to everyone--your messages are very>helpful! We're generally motivated to tell anyone who will listen, and thereseems to be so few who will...> ----------http://listen.to/benbradley

[Guest guest]

>

> -

> Never heard of rehab personnel forcing a patient to stop

medication. Rehabs that I know of work with a patient's doctor who

would have that control.

The rehab that I was in, in realiity the owner of the rehab, puts

immense pressure on ppl not to use meds for mood disorders, such as

depression, both unipolar and bipolar. As himself and MD his clout is

even greater than regular professional stepprers. That is one of my

major grievances and I think extremely dangerous.

P.

[Guest guest]

What they do here is tell people at admission that they can't be in

the program if they continue on their meds. Most of the time, they

give into the false authority, especially those that are court-

ordered or in fear of incarceration if they do not stay in and

conform. I overheard a " counselor " with no college degree whatsoever

discuss the use of antidepressants with a newcomer as if she were a

pharmicist or a Dr. My understanding is that anyone going off of

antidepressents, etc. must be systematically weaned off under medical

supervison. Of course, new clients are made to have a physical the

first few weeks, but I'm pretty sure they all are sent to their Dr.

The worst part is, I'm not only talking about antidepressants. If

this is commonly accepted practice everywhere, I am really frightened.

>

> The rehab that I was in, in realiity the owner of the rehab, puts

> immense pressure on ppl not to use meds for mood disorders, such as

> depression, both unipolar and bipolar. As himself and MD his clout

is

> even greater than regular professional stepprers. That is one of

my

> major grievances and I think extremely dangerous.

>

> P.

[Guest guest]

Pete -

You are reminding me of a couple of persons I knew from the rooms who exhibited pretty obvious signs of depression (having been there) over a rather long period of time but wouldn't see a doctor because of feedback from a few opinionated steppers who viewed taking pills for any reason as not being sober. I would think that a doctor, stepper or not, could be sued for malpractice in the event that patient hurt himself or anyone else as the result of withholding medication for any reason other than that patient exhibiting signs of being "cured" of his illness. The more I am finding out about rehabs, though, I guess I shouldn't be surprised.

Janice watts_pete wrote: > > -> Never heard of rehab personnel forcing a patient to stop medication. Rehabs that I know of work with a patient's doctor who would have that control. The rehab that I was in, in realiity the owner of the rehab, puts immense pressure on ppl not to use meds for mood disorders, such as depression, both unipolar and bipolar. As himself and MD his clout is even greater than regular professional stepprers. That is one of my major grievances and I think extremely dangerous.P.

[Guest guest]

-

"What they do here is tell people at admission that they can't be in the program if they continue on their meds."

I can't understand that thinking at all, unless there are no doctors on call who can prescribe needed medications. Even in Hazelden NY, more a halfway house than a rehab, they make sure that your prescribed medications are available to you and that you pick them up (will dole them out as prescribed) at the appropriate time or times. Being sucked in with the "no pills" lunacy, I tried going off my antidepressant, cold turkey, and within a couple of days, knew it was a mistake BIG TIME and went back on it. At least I recognized that to continue without it was leading to disaster. I love it when someone else decides what's best for you based on apparently moral (that person's morality) rather than medical principles. Reminds me of when my father tried to pull me out of the waiting room of a hospital (needed detoxing) because he didn't want anyone to find out why I was there. Fought with my friend who drove me there who was pulling on one arm while my father was pulling on the other. After I was admitted, my husband came to see me at the same time as my father. Bad timing. Again, my father the moralist almost hit my husband on the head with his cane (I was sitting between them) because my husband favored my staying at the hospital for rehab purposes. Geeze. Such fun.

Janice

wrote:

What they do here is tell people at admission that they can't be in the program if they continue on their meds. Most of the time, they give into the false authority, especially those that are court-ordered or in fear of incarceration if they do not stay in and conform. I overheard a "counselor" with no college degree whatsoever discuss the use of antidepressants with a newcomer as if she were a pharmicist or a Dr. My understanding is that anyone going off of antidepressents, etc. must be systematically weaned off under medical supervison. Of course, new clients are made to have a physical the first few weeks, but I'm pretty sure they all are sent to their Dr. The worst part is, I'm not only talking about antidepressants. If this is commonly accepted practice everywhere, I am really frightened. > > The rehab that I was in, in realiity the owner of the rehab, puts > immense pressure on ppl not to use meds for mood disorders, such as > depression, both unipolar and bipolar. As himself and MD his clout is > even greater than regular professional stepprers. That is one of my > major grievances and I think extremely dangerous.> > P.

[Guest guest]

Hi Fiona (beautiful name) Welcome to our group. I am glad led you

to us. I am so sorry to hear your father has been suffering for so long.

Is he on any regular maintenance medications now? I would suggest he try

the zyrtec/zantac combination. What have his doctors ruled out as causes

for his hives? There are a million reasons. Like thyroid, dental

infections, hpylori, in my daughters case a rare blood disorder called

mastocytosis.

He should avoid alcohal as it is known to make hiving worse (a mast cell

degranulator)

I am not familiar with the light therapy and I hope someone wiser will jump

in and let you know what they think. Much Love,~Alena's Mom

(unknown)

> Hi Everyone,

>

> I was recommended this sight by from Michigan, thank

> . Her's we I have joined.

> My name is Fiona Rennie and I am writing from Glasgow in

> Scotland.

> I am writing with regards to my dad , he is 55 years old and

> suffers from chronic hives. He has had this throughout his life at

> various stages. Doctors at first put this down to stress, such as

> when he retired, hives reoccurred etc. He had them at first when

> he was 25 and then at various stages throughout. He is at

> present studying for a degree at Glasgow University and having

> the time of his life, it is his final year next year and I would hate to

> see him give it all up at this late stage. He has had hives for the

> last 4 months and is at the end of his tether. He has been

> through it all and tried everything. From starving himself and

> introducing foods one by one, he gave up dairy products years

> ago, he has tried herbal remedies, Chinese medicine,

> acupuncture, hypnotherapy, all the antihistamines on the market.

> It seems to be getting worse, he telephoned the emergency

> doctor last week because he was so desperate and was given a

> steroid injection, this has not helped at all. He is seeing a

> specialist at the moment who has put him on a drug for leprosy,

> this is also not working, the next plan is ultra violet light for so

> many weeks, if there is no response with this they will be giving

> him a plasma (haemoglobin) change. Has anyone heard of

> this? As you can imagine I am a very worried 27 year old

> daughter, who feels helpless. It seems that so many people

> suffer from all sorts of hives and uticaria and have no idea of

> what is causing it. My dad now has it all over his face and neck

> his entire body is covered, his lips and eyes are all swollen, he

> can't sleep and he is constantly boiling hot, although strange as

> it sounds he never seems to sweat anymore. The only thing that

> seems to take it away is alcohol and this is a road that he just

> doesn't want to go down.

> I would be so grateful if you could reply back to me with any

> information at all. Thank you so much for taking the time to read

> my e-mail.

>

> Kind regards.

>

> Fiona.

>

> p.s Today he is starting ultra violet light therapy, which he will be

> going to three times a week over the next few months, has

> anyone ever tried this before?

> I will be recommending that my dad logs on to your support

> group, having read some of your messgages, i think it is just

> what he needs.

>

>

>

> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

> If you do wish to unsubscribe then you can click on the following link:

> urticaria-unsubscribe

> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

>

> This list is in the service of those who suffer from Chronic Urticaria

(hives). We strive to support and lift each other as a worldwide

cyber-family.

>

> We share whatever needs to be shared to help one another in our struggle

with Chronic Urticria. Information provided in this forum is not to be taken

as medical advice. Always consult your health professional before trying

anything new.

>

> Any posting that is off the main topic of Chronic Urticaria, we post with

a prefix of NCU -. This is done out of respect for those who do not wish to

read such postings.

>

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Fiona (beautiful name) Welcome to our group. I am glad led you

to us. I am so sorry to hear your father has been suffering for so long.

Is he on any regular maintenance medications now? I would suggest he try

the zyrtec/zantac combination. What have his doctors ruled out as causes

for his hives? There are a million reasons. Like thyroid, dental

infections, hpylori, in my daughters case a rare blood disorder called

mastocytosis.

He should avoid alcohal as it is known to make hiving worse (a mast cell

degranulator)

I am not familiar with the light therapy and I hope someone wiser will jump

in and let you know what they think. Much Love,~Alena's Mom

(unknown)

> Hi Everyone,

>

> I was recommended this sight by from Michigan, thank

> . Her's we I have joined.

> My name is Fiona Rennie and I am writing from Glasgow in

> Scotland.

> I am writing with regards to my dad , he is 55 years old and

> suffers from chronic hives. He has had this throughout his life at

> various stages. Doctors at first put this down to stress, such as

> when he retired, hives reoccurred etc. He had them at first when

> he was 25 and then at various stages throughout. He is at

> present studying for a degree at Glasgow University and having

> the time of his life, it is his final year next year and I would hate to

> see him give it all up at this late stage. He has had hives for the

> last 4 months and is at the end of his tether. He has been

> through it all and tried everything. From starving himself and

> introducing foods one by one, he gave up dairy products years

> ago, he has tried herbal remedies, Chinese medicine,

> acupuncture, hypnotherapy, all the antihistamines on the market.

> It seems to be getting worse, he telephoned the emergency

> doctor last week because he was so desperate and was given a

> steroid injection, this has not helped at all. He is seeing a

> specialist at the moment who has put him on a drug for leprosy,

> this is also not working, the next plan is ultra violet light for so

> many weeks, if there is no response with this they will be giving

> him a plasma (haemoglobin) change. Has anyone heard of

> this? As you can imagine I am a very worried 27 year old

> daughter, who feels helpless. It seems that so many people

> suffer from all sorts of hives and uticaria and have no idea of

> what is causing it. My dad now has it all over his face and neck

> his entire body is covered, his lips and eyes are all swollen, he

> can't sleep and he is constantly boiling hot, although strange as

> it sounds he never seems to sweat anymore. The only thing that

> seems to take it away is alcohol and this is a road that he just

> doesn't want to go down.

> I would be so grateful if you could reply back to me with any

> information at all. Thank you so much for taking the time to read

> my e-mail.

>

> Kind regards.

>

> Fiona.

>

> p.s Today he is starting ultra violet light therapy, which he will be

> going to three times a week over the next few months, has

> anyone ever tried this before?

> I will be recommending that my dad logs on to your support

> group, having read some of your messgages, i think it is just

> what he needs.

>

>

>

> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

> If you do wish to unsubscribe then you can click on the following link:

> urticaria-unsubscribe

> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

>

> This list is in the service of those who suffer from Chronic Urticaria

(hives). We strive to support and lift each other as a worldwide

cyber-family.

>

> We share whatever needs to be shared to help one another in our struggle

with Chronic Urticria. Information provided in this forum is not to be taken

as medical advice. Always consult your health professional before trying

anything new.

>

> Any posting that is off the main topic of Chronic Urticaria, we post with

a prefix of NCU -. This is done out of respect for those who do not wish to

read such postings.

>

>

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

My son Blaise, who was two in December, went through a very similar phase at about 18 months. He must have broken his hearing aid twice within a three month period. During this phase, I let him go without his aid when it didn't matter too much. For instance, when he was playing on his own or with his sisters.

When we would work with him alone or with his speech therapist, I insisted that he wear it. I would stay within arms reach to stop him from damaging the aid. Your son needs to realize that the aid really helps; perhaps if you talk low enough and try explain to your son, "Put on your hearing aid so that you can hear me," he will eventually comply. Perhaps even a little negotiation could start the process. Reward him for wearing his aid. Right know he feels he is in control and isn't that what all two and three year olds want... control and the need to do things their way.

Although Blaise is very communicative, he also has a lot of problems with many pronounciations. He uses a "G" or "T" sound for "B" and "P" and his "M" sounds like "N." He doesn't like to put his lips together.

Do you work with a speech therapist? The professionals can work with your son and give you advice on what techniques to try.

Hang in there, it will all work itself out.

Hillary

(unknown)

hello,

i have only just subscribed tothis group. i am from pakistan and my son ahaz who is two and a half yearsold has bilateral atresia\microtia.we ordered a bone conduction hearing aid for him from US and he used it from three months of age till one and a half years. after that he became aggressive towards the aid and used to throw it or try to smash it. the result was that we stopped using it .....and now he hears and speaks without it.

he cannot pronounce sounds like Rrrr and Shhhh and ceeee. as his mom i am quite worried, he is going to join a play group soon.need some advice on this issue.

regars,

sonya

[Guest guest]

<< He turned six this

year and we are having a rib graft reconstructive surgery done by Dr. Brent

starting this summer. >>

Welcome

As you said yourself after reading emails from this group you can feel

confident in your choice with Dr. Brent. There are plenty members here to

answer any questions. Please keep us updated on your sons surgery. The

information you can provide the groups is priceless, especially to those of

us with little ones.

Autumn

[Guest guest]

You probably have to cut and paste the two lines back together (since it wrapped

around) rather than just clicking on it from the e-mail message

http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/craniofacial/References/Links.cfm?Category=All

Sheri

[Guest guest]

hi julie..

thanks for the links - but i cannot seem to open it successfully! is it

perhaps just me??

(mom to ella)

(unknown)

A friend just sent me the link below which lists a fairly

comprehensive list of craniofacial websites. Thought I'd share it.

http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/craniofacial/References/Links.cfm?

Category=All

[Guest guest]

,

For some reason, I can't get the whole thing to paste in as a link.

It worked for me by copying the whole thing

(including " catergory=all " ) and then pasted it into my browser.

Alternatively, go to http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/craniofacial and

then click on references, then on links.

Let me know if this doesn't work, and I'll try to figure something

else out.

(mom to Miles, unilateral microtia/atresia)

> hi julie..

>

> thanks for the links - but i cannot seem to open it successfully!

is it

> perhaps just me??

>

> (mom to ella)

>

> (unknown)

>

>

> A friend just sent me the link below which lists a fairly

> comprehensive list of craniofacial websites. Thought I'd share it.

>

> http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/craniofacial/References/Links.cfm?

> Category=All

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Sheri,

You're way ahead of me, I should have read ahead! This worked for me.

Thanks!

>

> You probably have to cut and paste the two lines back together

(since it wrapped around) rather than just clicking on it from the e-

mail message

>

> http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/craniofacial/References/Links.cfm?

Category=All

>

> Sheri

[Guest guest]

thanks sheri - i will give it a try! (it seems like 'america is still

sleeping - as it is just you and me typing away! it is 10.40pm now on

sunday evening!

Re: (unknown)

You probably have to cut and paste the two lines back together (since it

wrapped around) rather than just clicking on it from the e-mail message

http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/craniofacial/References/Links.cfm?Category=Al

l

Sheri

[Guest guest]

yep! sheri is on the ball! well done sheri!

(unknown)

>

>

> A friend just sent me the link below which lists a fairly

> comprehensive list of craniofacial websites. Thought I'd share it.

>

> http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/craniofacial/References/Links.cfm?

> Category=All

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

My son wears a hearing aid since he was 6 months

Good. But is it a Bone Conduction Hearing aid? or a more typical air conduction hearing aid?

but my son hears less in the left side then the right side with or with out hearing aid. In this year the Speech therapy found out that something is wrong with pronounciations. There fore I would like to know if his hearing that won't let him pronounce it right or is it something inside his mouth that is not letting him say right.

I am not a speech therapist, but I think it is rare that speech problems are due to something inside the mouth. It is very common for hard of hearing children to have some troubles with certain sounds. This is due to the fact that they cannot hear the high frequencies as well, and thus sounds like 'th' and 'sh' sound the same. I they sound the same to him, it is only natural that he would use the same sound for both. This is just an example, but this type of sound substitution is common in HOH children. It is good that your son is seeing a speech therapist, and he will get help with correcting these sounds.

About Sign Language the Lexington School said that my son or us do not need any Sign Language because my son is not deaf, that only those that are very profound in hearing they need Sign Language, but he has some difficulty in pronouncing some words.

I think the key word here is "NEED". They are right, USUALLY, only people with a profound hearing loss "NEED" ASL. However, the other side of this is (in my opinion) any Hard of Hearing child could benefit from Sign Language.

My son is Hard of Hearing (Bilateral Atresia). He is now 7 years old, and functions as a hearing child. In most day-to-day situations, he does not need, nor does he use sign language. However, my wife happened to know sign before he was born, and I started to learn a little after he was born. At this point, I know enough sign language that I can get my point across (very clumsily to someone who really signs), but I know enough to communicate with my son when he is not wearing his hearing aids, or if we are in a loud environment.

I really want to learn Sign Language so I could show my kids so we could understand each other.

Great! Go for it! You could all take sign language courses and learn together. The best way to learn is to use it. If there are a few of you learning it together, you could help each other by practicing.

I've never heard of ASL until the Atresia Microtia Group my new friends wrote down on this website and I am so greatful for all the info I receive from you guys and please lets keep helping one another because only like that we could help each other and help our kids.

Just so you know, ASL is "American Sign Language", it has it's own syntax, sentence structure etc. It is it's own language.

There is also Signed English. This shares the syntax etc. with English, and there is just a sign for each word.

There is also many other forms of sign language (French Sign, German Sign etc. etc). The most commonly used in the deaf community (at least here in North America) is ASL.

Steve (Father to , Bilateral Atresia/Microtia, finished 1st stage of BAHA)

[Guest guest]

Hi, ! <<<<<<

>>>>>>>> Just wanted to comment on this

b/c it sounds so simlair to me. It is quite difficult

for many deaf and HOH kids to remember how to make

sounds(some of which they can't hear) and put all

those sounds together into words. I still have major

trouble with pronouncication. As a matter of fact I

tend to pronounce words by the way they look

About Sign Language the Lexington School said that my

son or us do not need any Sign Language because my son

is not deaf, that only those that are very profound in

hearing they need Sign Language, but he has some

difficulty in pronouncing some words. I really want to

learn Sign Language so I could show my kids so we

could understand each other.>>>>>First of all, that

ROCKS that you want to learn ASL! I commend you for

that! Learning ASL is one of the BEST things you can

do for your deaf/HOH kid. It gives them COUNTLESS

advantages! I absolutly HATE that attitude from some

hearies that ASL is only for deaf/HOH people who

function too poorly to speak. I know FAR too many

oral-only " sucesses " (myself included) who grew up

without exposure to ASL/deaf culture and even in some

cases other deaf people around their age, who

discovered ASL late in life, and wish they'd been

exposed to it as kids. Very luckliy there's a lot of

resources for learning ASL out there. Besides the

conventional resources (community college classes etc)

you may want to see if there is a deaf school in your

area. They may have outreach services so you guys can

learn ASL. See if there are local deaf/HOH service

agencies where you live. Very often they offer classes

(I took some a couple of summers ago at my local

deaf/HOH service agency and the Deaf community where

I live is pretty small, even compared to the Deaf

community out in Western MA

where I

attend college. You might want to do some research and

maybe send your child (if they are old enough)to a

summer camp sponsered by a school for the Deaf. They

may even have family sessions or family camp where the

whole family can learn ASL. See if anyone who you know

is fluent in ASL. You never know. A friend or a

teacher might be a CODA (child of Deaf adults) or have

a Deaf friend or sibling. Even if your town is small,

there is always a chance that there's someone out

there. The area where I grew up is VERY small. The

high school I attended had less then a thousand

students and no formal deaf-ed program. (in fact I was

the ONLY kid with a hearing loss in the school and one

of less then five or ten deaf/HOH in the ENTIRE school

district, which encompassed six schools!) Yet my jr.

high shop teacher was a CODA, a girl in my class had a

Deaf sister (whole family was fluent in ASL!) and

another girl in my brother's class was bilingal!

(Spoken English AND ASL!) Even at summer camp (YMCA

mainstream less then 100 kids at a session, in NH on

Lake Winnipesaki) where I was the FIRST deaf/HOH kid,

one of the CITS was fluent in ASL, as one of her best

buds was Deaf.

Hope this helps you!!!!!

Got to run......5 days til I LEAVE for school!

YAHOOO!!!

=====

Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me.

" Deaf people can do anything except hear! " Dr. I.King Jordan

" I'd found myself becoming more immobile, when I'd think a little girl in the

world can't do anything. A distant nation my community, a street person my

responsbilty. If I have a care in the world, I have a gift to bring " - " Hammer & a

Nail " Indigo Girls

Waste some time looking at my webpage!:

http://www.angelfire.com/grrl/deafgrrl/indextwo.html

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

First of all, that

ROCKS that you want to learn ASL! I commend you for

that! Learning ASL is one of the BEST things you can

do for your deaf/HOH kid. It gives them COUNTLESS

advantages! I absolutly HATE that attitude from some

hearies that ASL is only for deaf/HOH people who

function too poorly to speak. I know FAR too many

oral-only "sucesses" (myself included) who grew up

without exposure to ASL/deaf culture and even in some

cases other deaf people around their age, who

discovered ASL late in life, and wish they'd been

exposed to it as kids. Very luckliy there's a lot of

resources for learning ASL out there. Besides the

conventional resources (community college classes etc)

you may want to see if there is a deaf school in your

area. They may have outreach services so you guys can

learn ASL.

what an incredible letter...

i have missed a lot, and had i the need to do this all over again, i would have added ASL to my aresenal, and that of all my kids as well.

jack

[Guest guest]

,

I've just sent you the pics.

Poly

[Guest guest]

,

I've just sent you the pics.

Poly

[Guest guest]

,

I've just sent you the pics.

Poly

[Guest guest]

,

You wrote:

I was wondering if maybe this method should be posted somewhere on the interenet considering Ddr March is the one that recommended it.

Ok! Would you like to write up this method that Dr March recommends and post it on the site under files?

Poly