How To Communicate About Individuals With Intellectual Disabilities Properly

By Daphne Bowen


Words, whether they're written or spoken, can affect an individual tremendously. Like any person, individuals with intellectual disabilities can be affected negatively or be hurt just by the way one talks about them. Many at times, topics or subjects about these vulnerable people are handled carelessly.

To make this clearer, mental illness is different from intellectual disability. If one has not too good scholarly capacity coupled with impedance to adjust to their surroundings, then it is said that that person has intellectual disability. Some of the reasons attributed to such conditions might include hindered development from infancy or brain damage. Mental health issues occurs usually during pre-adulthood, particularly during challenging moments of one's life. It is possible for individuals with mental challenges to have excellent academic records and may even lead a simple life.

Education is key to be able to talk about intellectually challenged individuals. If you genuinely want to protect and uplift the morale of this challenged group, there are many ways. This article is not just for journalists but for anyone who has access to social media or who can have a conversation with others. Read: Everyone. Here are some pointers, collated by various organizations, on how to properly talk about persons with intellectual disability.

When writing or talking about these people, try not to use words like: "insane, abnormal, mentally ill, retarded" or any other phrases that sound similar to the ones mentioned. Ones someone is called retarded, he or she is normally taken to be a burden or nuisance. This is not true because a lot of people who have intellectual challenges, try their possible best to perform well in school.

Adults and children with intellectual disabilities are not the same. They're still in a different area and must be treated respectfully as such. When a journalist is writing an article about an intellectually challenged adult, he must use the full name of that individual such as John Doe instead of just using John.

An existence of a mentally challenge individual is generally seen or depicted as excessively sensational, melancholic and brimming with affliction particularly from the family's point of view. Numerous families don't experience this. Intellectually disabled persons have a consistent positive association with their families and guardians.

Just a fraction of people in a particular community know a family that has a person who is intellectually challenged. It is also the responsibility of social media users and writers to enlighten the society and portray these persons in every aspect of life, i. E at work, being part of a crowd or at home. It does not help their image much keeping them in the hospitals or associating them with those treatment facilities for long term.

Try as much as possible not to use words or phrase that will weaken their spirits during write-ups. This is due to the fact that intellectual challenge is no sickness. Also, the negative connotation that comes along with it is just the way outsiders see them and not the way they see themselves.

All these warning signs may be very limiting but everyone is encouraged to talk and write about them more. Now, they tend to reflect how society chooses them to be - neglected and in order to lift them up and to encourage them more, it is better to talk and write about them in a positive matter.




About the Author:



No comments:

Post a Comment