Writings about Ataxia, being DeafBlind, family life. The best life can offer!


Parental differences

Oh no, this is not a topic about the usual difference, men are from Mars and women are from Venus… You all know that!

No, this is about the differences within my family.

I am Deaf-Blind, I can’t hear plus my vision is weak, I miss a lot.

Whereas, my wife of 16 years (May 2002), is of good hearing and vision.  And so, beyond that difference, how do my children interact with us is vastly different.

When I am alone with my boys, they tend to be less chatty, more expressive with ASL, my main method of communication.

But, when my wife gets home, they blah blah blah about almost anything, they do not try to sign and use my wife to explain things in ASL

If my wife is late for dinner and I cook, I try to engage my kids in idle chit chat, but get very limited responses.

I believe my children think ASL is a survivor skill, how to survive with Daddy!  Chuckle!

I hope this will change soon, by “hope” I mean I need to re-launch the Signing Time after school…

Your thoughts?

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About the author

Craig MacLean is DeafBlind with ataxia, a rare condition called CAPOS. He & his wife of 22 years have two sons, the oldest of which has CAPOS as well.

Craig uses American Sign Language to communicate. He is an avid writer, friend, Hot Wheel collector and intervenor advocate.

Craig sits on many committees, boards and associations as a DeafBlind rep. He graduated university with a BA in psychology in 2000.