Click the image to enlarge the story published in The Inner-West Weekly August 2008
Transcript - Sweet noise to the ears
THE sounds that most of us take for granted shocked Faye Yarroll the day her first cochlear implant was switched on.
I had no idea that flushing the toilet was such a noisy event," she said. "Filling the kitchen sink with water sounded like Niagara Falls."
The 49-year-old (pictured) was born with herediatry hearing loss and has received Cochlear implants in both ears.
The implants have allowed her to hear properly for the first time in nearly 25 years.
Now a volunteer for the Cochlear Awareness network, Ms Yarroll is promoting Hearing Awareness Week.
The annual event aims to raise community awareness about hearing impairement and ways to protect your hearing.
"I can hear better than I have ever heard in my whole life," Ms Yarroll says.
"I have regained my independence and confidence, I can communicate much better at work and at home and I couldn't be happier."
One in six australians suffer from hearing loss. Cochlear implants allow the hearing impaired to detect sound and understand speech. An external section sits behind the ear and a second internal section is surgically placed under the skin.