Question and Answer

Question and Answer

Future Reflections March/ April 1983, Vol. 2 No. 2
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QUESTION AND ANSWER
Question from Oct/Nov. 1982 issue:
Q. I am the mother of a blind daughter, Nancy,
who is 18 months old. Nancy is having problems
eating. She is still taking her foods completely of
an oatmeal texture. I would like to know if anyone
else had this problem with their children. Another
problem is that Nancy is not crawling yet. We
were very concerned about this and so were her
physical therapist and teacher at school. We took
her to a neurologist, who evaluated her and said
he saw no other problems. He said she just needs
more time.
A: Though my son did not have this problem --I
feel it is entirely due to the way I approached it. In
raising our son and also having twin girls 13 months
younger --I did not want any unnecessary
disruptions. I wanted to keep everything as normal
as possible. So from the very beginning, I introduced
foods to him exactly as I did to my
sighted babies and since I was consistent, he ate
when he got hungry enough. Now, at seven he has
a voracious appetite. In other words, I realized
that though his eyes were blind and things had to
be adapted --his mouth and taste buds were entirely
normal, and if I did not allow him to be sensitized from the beginning that was one hurdle I
wouldn't have to overcome.
... From Nancy Dean, Sacramento, California.
Nancy's blind son is seven years old.
A: First, was Nancy premature? If she was, you
can expect many of her stages of development to
be slower than your other children. Is the reason
Nancy is not eating normal table foods because
she chokes? Is it that she has not learned to chew?
Let her feel your mouth; tell her what you are doing,
even if you know she can't understand all of
what you say; give her things like vanilla wafers
and soda crackers in her hand (not in her mouth).
Sooner or later, her hand will find its way to her
mouth and she will discover that they taste good.
Tell her it is to eat. Yum, yum!
Now about the moving. Perhaps the most important
thing in dealing with a blind child is that you
have to show them everything. You need to get
down there on the floor with her and show Nancy
that she really does want to crawl. Give her a
reason to want to move.
... From Susan Ford of Missouri Susan's blind
son is now an active, competitive seven-year-old.
A: You have to be very persistent and ignore the
gagging. It's best to try table food when they are
very hungry. Try foods with a very tangy taste
like potato chips or pimento cheese sandwich.
Save meats for when he's real good at eating
rough textures. It took us about three months of
trying everyday to get him to eat foods with texture.
As
for crawling, our Nick is just beginning to
move a little. We started out by making a game
out of rocking on his hands and knees. We got
more movement out of him by praising him and encouraging
him than trying to coax him with toys.
... From the Payne's of South Carolina who have
a two-year-old son, Nick, totally blind from birth.
A: The "two-bite-rule" has been in effect in our
home as long as children have been eating. Every
child is required to try two bites of anything that
is served. Over a period of time our children have
learned to eat almost anything set before them. I
don't really know if any one of our children (including
one blind from birth) have had any trouble
with textures. They certainly don't now!
As for the crawling, our son was premature and
didn't crawl well until he was well over a year. He
walked when he was almost two and became potty
trained when almost four. He is an individual and
has developed at his own rate. I feel certain that
as long as a child is encouraged and reinforced for
his efforts he will develop at his own speed and all
the worry or forcing in the world will not make
anything happen any faster. My advise is to keep
your expectations high and work at your goals for
Nancy consistently.
... From Glenda Smith, Idaho. She has a friendly,
outgoing l4-year-old son who will soon have his
Eagle Scout Award.
Q: Our Nicky just turned two and he's not walking.
He's pulling-up and making his way around
his play pen. We need to know how to get him
walking alone. He needs balance in his upper torso
and to loosen up his knees and legs so they aren't
so stiff. Any little tricks we can use will be appreciated.
... From Paula Payne of South Carolina
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