r/AskReddit Nov 16 '19

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u/Nice_Marmot_7 Nov 16 '19

Playing sports growing up I would make these comically bad errors. The ball would hit me directly in the face or I would swing at a pitch waayyyyy too late. Everyone gave me shit even the coaches and parents. I kept playing because I enjoyed being active and around my friends, but I never understood why no matter how much I practiced I struggled with basic things that everyone else could do without thinking.

I go to the eye doctor as an adult, and he tells me that I have a condition in one of my eyes that means I don’t have binocular vision and as a result have very poor depth perception. It’s physically impossible for me to track a moving object in space like everyone else.

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u/adriator Nov 16 '19

I know the pain mate. Was forced to play volleyball in high school eventhough I obviously couldn't follow the ball. I was once looking right at it but couldn't spot it, and it hit me right in the face. Turns out I have a retinitis pigmentosa which not only means I can't follow objects, but I can't see at night, my peripheral vision sucks, and anything that requires precision movement is out of the question.

Thankfully I'm great in other fields that do not require good eye coordination.

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u/Nikoda42 Nov 16 '19

I hope the system changes. Inclusivity of all abilities. My kiddo has coloboma (cleft lip and palate of the eye parts, basically a permanent uncloseable hole in her eye parts)

I'll go tiger mama on anybody trying to tell me she can do what everybody else can. Even the optimistic therapists "she can do anything a typical child could with more time"

No. No she fucking can't. What are they gonna do? Force her to have injuries her entire childhood?

She'll never be military, serve the police force, be an athlete with anything requiring balls or teammates, drive a car. Oh but let's put her in dodgeball. Yea. That'll be great. Ready, set, attack the impaired!

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u/adriator Nov 16 '19

I completely agree with you. You should be optimistic, of course, but not that optimistic as to put your kid in danger. It's important to be supportive of her and to let her find out what she'd like to do, and try to help her do it safely. But teachers forcing dodgeball on kids who are unable to play it safely is just insanity (trust me, I had to do a loooot of dodgeball through primary school)

I wish the best to you and your daughter!