You're exactly right shel. Since I could hear, I could respond to the classmates who were bullying me. When you can't hear, you have no idea what they are saying and can't defend yourself.
You may not think being deaf is the worst thing to experience while in school, but stop and consider the position I was in. I was totally blind and could hear pretty well for most of my life. The people I knew in high school were those I grew up with since kindergarten. Imagine how difficult it is emotionally when you've known your classmates for that long and now they see you not only as someone who is totally blind, but "deaf" as well. No offense, but since you've always worn hearing aids, you've never had to make the adjustment from not wearing them to wearing them.
