12 of 55

Write now Article Tools

I am the mother of a 9yr old child who was diagnosed with a mild form of Cerebral Palsy as a baby. Over the years I have heard numerous people label not only my child, but other children with special needs. Their problem is that they think they know what every child's actual disability is without having a clue of what their actual medical diagnosis is. They have no idea what these children are dealing with. This is even more bothersome when these people don't even have any type of medical background or a degree close enough to remark at all. What gives them the right to do so? Who do they really think they are?

I know for a fact that some people have been known to put some children in a mental disability category when there is for a fact, no mental disability in them. Other children are put in a physical disability category when there is no physical disability present. The worst is when they put children in a category of multiple disabilities when there is very minor disability, if anything at all.

A perfect example of this is in the school system itself. When my son was about five years old he was placed in a regular school that had a "special needs" class. This worked out fine for me as my son seemed quite comfortable and excited to go to his class everyday. I was even well pleased with his teacher, her assistant, the therapists that worked with him, as well as the aides they placed him with. They worked wonders with him and he made exceptional progress. However, this quickly changed after that school semester was over. The "Child Study Team" or whomever thought was in charge of making the final decisions, suddenly decided and for some reason came up with the conclusion that my son not only had one disability, but "multiple" disabilities. They insisted that I place him in an "institution' type school for children with medical handicaps.

For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about, what this actually means is that they place these children in a facility that has the feel and look of a "mental ward". I mean anyone can go in there feeling completely fine and then come back out feeling totally depressed. This happened to both me and my mother when we just visited the place. In my opinion every child I saw in there seemed sad and really disturbed. A lot of the kids were sitting in chairs alone in some rooms. In other rooms there were children with their noses running and crying and no one was paying any attention to them. In one particular room when I looked in, I really got the feel of a "mental ward'. There was a child lying on the floor with a woman beside him sticking a needle in him and he was crying hysterically. I really got the "spooks" after going there.

Another thing is that I hate it when people use the word "mental retardation" for any special need child whom they feel they fall into that category. However, not all children are "mentally retarded" just because they have some form of special need or disability. Actually to use that word at all, I feel is wrong. I think something more like "mentally unstable" sounds more appropriate. People in the medical field use this term a lot for children with some kind of brain injury, etc.

Learn more about this author, Betsy Ninan.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.

Add your voice

Know something about The dangers of labeling a child ?
We want to hear your view. Write now!