Hearing people, please stop suggesting cochlear implants to deaf people every time some sort of accessibility struggle is mentioned like we’ve never heard of it before. The conversation has been drilled into our heads from the beginning. We know about cochlear implants.

There’s nothing wrong with cochlear implants as tools & no issue with deaf people getting them if they want, it’s a personal decision & their right & I & others support that! The problem is hearing people making that the first suggestion every single time like it’s nothing.

Everyday, I’m pressured intentionally or unintentionally to drop thousands on hearing aids/implants due to pressure from hearing people in my immediate circles. Nobody wants to learn sign language for me. NOBODY! I’m reminded of it everyday. I hate it. It makes me feel worthless.

Why are responsible for communication? Hearing aids/implants are/can be expensive, intrusive, & require more effort once required. You know the easiest, cheapest, & most accessible? ASL! ASL doesn’t make me feel like I’m not important enough. It doesn’t make me cry everyday.

(Obviously, this comment in particular is more about sign language deaf, but still.)

If you see a deaf person talking about considering cochlear implants, then by all means, have a conversation about it! But if it’s not mentioned anywhere in a vent about accessibility struggles, please don’t. Please don’t act like we don’t think/know about it already. Thank you.

And I’m not kidding when I say nobody in my circle wants to learn ASL for me. Every once in a while, there’s talk and “please teach me!” - - (No, I’m still learning myself) - - or, “I’ll do ____” and to this day, I know that doesn’t happen. Actions speak louder than words.

I’ve actually cried on more than one occasion this week about this among other things. I don’t even have the money for this stuff, but I keep feeling that I have to save for them & put in more work and money to make it easier for society... for what? To still struggle in the end?

#COVID19 and isolation, watching everyone have FaceTime and Zoom calls with each other, has been reminding me full throttle of how people actually are, and it’s taking such a huge toll on my mental health.