My life and why Sign language is vital

Like way too many deaf people, sign language wasn't considered necessary for me. After all I was 'only a little hard of hearing'. My father also has a forty decibel hearing loss but a persons decibel range isn't everything. Especially from an intermittent loss stemming from nerve deafness. The fact is that signing would have been very useful since I didn't speak until I was three and all too often I was punished without knowing why.

The Milan robbery of Sign language has affected too many deaf and hard of hearing lives : https://www.deafhistory.eu/index.php/component/zoo/item/1880

It will carry on negatively affecting the lives until the oral only approach has been banned.

I was born premature Asperger and had an under active thyroid. Limited hearing was detected at 4. At 11 I started wearing hearing aids. By 30 my hearing was gone it came as a major relief since I hated wearing Powerful hearing aids

Like way too many deaf people I was deprived of sign language. Since I was just hard of hearing sign language would not considered important. Despite the fact I didn't speak until I was 3.

At 12 was my first eating disorder. Also self harm. At 13 temporal lobe epilepsy was detected. 17 I started having problems with my sight. It was diagnosed as psychological. But my eye doctor told me not to worry it would soon come back. I am now 52 and I am still deafblind. They still seem to assume it's psychological and so is everything else because once you're assumed to have psychological problems your health care takes a nose dive.

Since then I won 2 awards, had 2 adorable guide dogs, rescued rats, worked as a volunteer masseur at a day centre, did 7 to 9 bungee jumps and spend time at a mental health unit for the deaf twice.

I am also lesbian vegan and pro life. Welcome to my life!