Eric Dotson never knew what loneliness was until he decided to become deaf and mute for a day.
"I could do things myself, but I was very alone. People would kind of drift away when they found out I couldn't talk or hear."But Dotson, a senior at Brigham Young University, knew he could keep going because at the end of the day he could return to a life without obvious handicaps.
"I don't know what I would do if it were permanent," he said.
Dotson and about 400 students and faculty members have taken the dare to be handicapped for a day as part of BYU's Handicapable Week. Those interested in the dare can still sign up through the week.
The program is aimed at helping "students be aware of what it is like to have a real experience" of being handicapped, said Cindy Packer, activities coordinator for Handicapable Week. "We want them to realize the abilities people have instead of disabilities."
In turn, they will know how to treat handicapped people, she said. In the future, as employers, maybe they can feel confident about hiring someone in a wheelchair.
Unlike Dotson, who was dared to be deaf and mute for 10 hours, Cheryl Mackie, a senior, was blind and sophomore Frank Lee was confined to a wheelchair.
Other students and faculty were amputees, most taking their dominant arm and tucking it in a jacket or shirt.
Mackie said many people were willing to lead her around campus, but with an independent personality it was difficult for her to accept that.
"It was very frustrating for me - even though everyone else was cooperative," she said.
Mackie said she became frustrated when she felt like she was missing something, but when others helped her visualize what was happening, her handicap was easier to accept.
"Communication is everything," she said. "You can't bring back their hearing or eye sight, but you can bridge the communication gap."
Lee said he arrived 20 minutes late to his first class because he couldn't take his regular route to class in a wheelchair.
"I had to go out of my way to get to the right elevator and doors that would open for me. It was a real lonely feeling when I couldn't keep up with anybody."
Bumps in the sidewalk suddenly became major setbacks for him as he traveled across campus.
"I was afraid people would be condescending and pity me, but it was not really like that. Many had an upbeat attitude and were willing to say hi to me. With others I would get stared at a mile away."
Lee also found out how inaccessible campus really is to a person in a wheelchair. "You can tell many things are engineered by non-handicapped people. They have good intentions, but obviously they were not handicapped or didn't put thought into it."
If he is ever an engineer, he would take a handicapped person along to help design access to buildings, he said.
All three students said they began thinking of more ways to help the handicapped after their day with a handicap.
"Everyone has their own trials and handicaps and we all have to learn to deal with our inabilities and trials of life," Packer said.
The students suggested everyone step outside their world for awhile to find out what it is like to be handicapped.