I was scanning the AP wire at work this morning and read the story. It made me very uneasy, though I do understand what the parents are dealing with. I'm not sure this is exactly the correct forum, but I am curious about your thoughts.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/S/STUNTED_DAUGHTER?SITE=ORBEN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
2007-01-05 09:51:43 · 11 answers · asked by milomax 6 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
The part that gets to me is how helpless this child is. She can't even hold a toy. She has the mind of a 3 month old, barely makes eye contact! She cannot move herself.
If I was her parent I would also be at my wit's end trying to care for her. The fact that her parents used surgery to cope with their condition bothers me too. But I suppose that this is an extreme case I would not make any moral generalizations based on it.
2007-01-05 10:04:26 · answer #1 · answered by Dr. D 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
My aunt had a son. His name was Morrie. His brain never developed and he could not physically do anything for himself. He smiled when he saw us. We all pitched in. We tickled him to make him laugh. We diapered him and fed him and carried him around. Oh, how we loved him! At age 18, he became too big for us to handle. The cost of having 24 hour help made getting an assistant out of the question. We had to institutionalize him. The attendants were paid minimum wage and could have cared less whether or not he was comfortable or whether he was in any way stimulated. Nobody loved him there. We visited him and tried to let him know that we loved him. After he had been there three months, the spark was no longer in his eyes. At five months, he died. The autopsy did not reveal any medical cause for his death. Personally I believe he just gave up. A tender loving touch and a loving word are what keeps someone alive.
2007-01-05 18:34:23 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Perhaps if we were to walk in the parents shoes we would get a better understanding than what a few paragraphs are telling us about the situation.
2007-01-05 18:14:24 · answer #3 · answered by mmcada 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
What if the child gets better? I am sure she would appreciate her mother's love. Not!
What bothers me is not the stupidity of the parents but the fact they get doctors to go along with it.
2007-01-05 17:55:39 · answer #4 · answered by Fish <>< 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
These parents are doing what they believe is right for their situation. How are they supposed to care for someone as an adult with an infant's mind? We should leave them alone.
2007-01-05 17:56:23 · answer #5 · answered by judirose2001 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
It seems pretty wrong that the parents have done that to her.. It almost seems like they are treating "Ashley" like some sort of science experiment and they are playing "God". Pretty sickening actually.
2007-01-05 17:56:17 · answer #6 · answered by tchem75 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I think a great mind is trying to speak out!
2007-01-05 17:56:42 · answer #7 · answered by Faika R 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think that as long as no one is forcing me to do it to my child, I don't really care.
2007-01-05 17:59:27 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Troubling. Very very troubling, indeed.
2007-01-05 17:57:18 · answer #9 · answered by Sick Puppy 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Is this a religious or a spiritual question?
2007-01-05 17:54:31 · answer #10 · answered by neil s 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋