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**Usogwdkb** · 05-01-2007, 10:24 PM

I'll be the dissenter.

What the parents are doing is not harmless. Their daughter can't communicate pain and fear or desire. They are subjecting her to surgery and hormone therapy which cause physical pain and emotional changes, expose her to needless risk of infection and anesthesia accidents... for their convenience in her prolonged care.

Mrs. M proposes the justification that the parents would necessarily have to commit their daughter for care if she were allowed to grow up. That's not true, it is more convenient for the care giver...not a necessity.

I don't pass judgement on institutionalizing someone like this. It is a horrible choice. I was on the fence about Terry Schaivo and I'm on the fence about abortion.

But I do judge this case as a deception and one that is no less offensive than abortion - perhaps even moreso. This is not a fetus, it is a living, breathing, feeling, functioning girl who is being subjected to the equivalent of medical experimentation and robbed of one of the few things that provide stimulation - her own physical changes.

Thinking about it another way, what if your darling 3 month old baby were permanently stunted in ALL growth, cute forever - would you subject them to unnecessary surgery for ANY reason? Would you give them drugs that did nothing for THEM but helped you cope?

What's happened to this family is sad but isn't that part of life too? Like this strange affliction - isn't it part of life?

The child evidently communicates pain, fear and desire the way any three month old child does, by crying. While she is a living and breathing girl, she's not cognitive enough to have many feelings beyond hunger, pain and contentment. As for functioning, yes, her body functions but to what degree? She can't walk, talk or even think at the age of 9!
I don't know how many of you have ever taken care of an adult invalid but I know from experience, it's not an easy thing. Women are exceptionally difficult due to menstrual cycles and often end up, for a lack of a better word, smelly. They develop yeast infections easily (vaginal and under the breast) because they tend to have to take antibiotics more often.
You speak of the hormone therapy causing physical and emotional changes but without the therapy, her natural hormones would do the same thing.
Yes, it's more convenient for the family if this child stays child-sized, but it also provides her with a better quality of life, IMO, because she can actually receive better care and doesn't have to go through all the crap that women go through each month.

BTW, I didn't say that this child would definitely end up in an institution but that it often happens as they get older.

05-01-2007, 10:24 PM	#23
Usogwdkb Join Date Oct 2005 Posts 420 Senior Member	I'll be the dissenter. What the parents are doing is not harmless. Their daughter can't communicate pain and fear or desire. They are subjecting her to surgery and hormone therapy which cause physical pain and emotional changes, expose her to needless risk of infection and anesthesia accidents... for their convenience in her prolonged care. Mrs. M proposes the justification that the parents would necessarily have to commit their daughter for care if she were allowed to grow up. That's not true, it is more convenient for the care giver...not a necessity. I don't pass judgement on institutionalizing someone like this. It is a horrible choice. I was on the fence about Terry Schaivo and I'm on the fence about abortion. But I do judge this case as a deception and one that is no less offensive than abortion - perhaps even moreso. This is not a fetus, it is a living, breathing, feeling, functioning girl who is being subjected to the equivalent of medical experimentation and robbed of one of the few things that provide stimulation - her own physical changes. Thinking about it another way, what if your darling 3 month old baby were permanently stunted in ALL growth, cute forever - would you subject them to unnecessary surgery for ANY reason? Would you give them drugs that did nothing for THEM but helped you cope? What's happened to this family is sad but isn't that part of life too? Like this strange affliction - isn't it part of life? The child evidently communicates pain, fear and desire the way any three month old child does, by crying. While she is a living and breathing girl, she's not cognitive enough to have many feelings beyond hunger, pain and contentment. As for functioning, yes, her body functions but to what degree? She can't walk, talk or even think at the age of 9! I don't know how many of you have ever taken care of an adult invalid but I know from experience, it's not an easy thing. Women are exceptionally difficult due to menstrual cycles and often end up, for a lack of a better word, smelly. They develop yeast infections easily (vaginal and under the breast) because they tend to have to take antibiotics more often. You speak of the hormone therapy causing physical and emotional changes but without the therapy, her natural hormones would do the same thing. Yes, it's more convenient for the family if this child stays child-sized, but it also provides her with a better quality of life, IMO, because she can actually receive better care and doesn't have to go through all the crap that women go through each month. BTW, I didn't say that this child would definitely end up in an institution but that it often happens as they get older.
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