Deafness Isolated me.
MaryAnn wasn't born deaf. Her hearing loss was discovered when she was about 5 and no one could find a reason. This is MaryAnn's story.
MaryAnn - July 2008
I was the eldest of three children born to our parents in Guildford, 30 miles south of London. My brothers and I all had normal hearing and were ordinary children getting up to all sorts of mischief. But at the age of 5 after getting into constant trouble for not responding to calls, my parents realised I was not hearing. Tests showed I had a moderate to severe hearing loss in both ears and the doctors could find no reason for it.
I was fitted with a hearing aid - these were the days before the nice little behind the ear models and Mum made me a waistcoat which had pockets for a large black hearing aid (or it seemed large to me at that time) and pockets for batteries which had to be kept separate from my aid. Along with the cord from the aid up to my ear mould, this made me feel very self conscious. However, I did like being able to hear again, so I put up with it. Fortunately hearing aids began to get smaller and finally before leaving school at 16 I was given a behind the ear hearing aid which made me feel like a normal teenager because at last no one could see it. Best of all I could go to the hairdresser and have my hair cut without her cutting through the cord!
I was already chattering away before losing my hearing and with trips to the speech therapist, along with Mum's nagging (bless her!) I kept my speech skills, so most people did not know I had a problem at all. This was mainly good, but backfired, many times because I did not always know when people were talking to me when they did not have my attention. Lip reading was also a good help and I used it all the time.
After leaving school I went into the office world and starting at the bottom as office junior eventually working my way up to Secretary for the Chief Accountant, before becoming bored. I then moved to the financial side learning financial management such as profit and loss statements and balance sheets.
During this time I met my husband Alec, who was in the Navy. It took him a few days to figure out what was different about me, but luckily by then it didn't matter - and 30 years later it still doesn't. We were married 8 months later and started travelling wherever the Navy sent us, usually moving every 12-18 months. Eventually we were blessed with three daughters, but unfortunately the oldest two were diagnosed with moderate to severe hearing losses before they were a year old. They both use two hearing aids and are getting along great. Our youngest daughter is fine and does not have a hearing loss.
When Alec retired from the Navy, he was offered the chance of a lifetime, a job in Australia with permanent residency. So of course we took the offer and on the 4th July 1999 arrived to settle in this country. Despite being very excited about the changes, it was an extremely stressful time for all of us, but once the girls were in back in school things settled down and life was simply great. Then! The thing every hearing impaired person dreads I woke up one morning with no hearing at all.
It was a beautiful morning, I could see the blue sky and sun through the windows but lying there in silence I knew something was wrong. It was even quieter than usual. Even without my hearing aid I could hear something in the other ear, but not that day. I tried my hearing aid but it didn't work; changed the batteries but that didn't make any difference; tried another hearing aid and batteries but still no sound. I got out of bed and discovered my balance was affected so I knew something was badly wrong.
Eventually after various tests it was discovered I had Enlarged Vestibular Aqueduct Syndrome which probably accounted for the original loss when I was 5. After being fitted with the most powerful hearing aid we could find, I regained a little hearing in my right ear - but my left ear was not much use. It was a very dark part of my life. I was scared to go out of the house without anyone with me. Shopping was a nightmare, crossing the car park was dangerous, I avoided going to the girls' schools, or to any functions and even avoided friends because it was simply too hard to hear them.
The hearing specialist suggested I consider a Cochlear Implant and eventually I went to Sydney on 1st May 2000 to meet Professor Gibson. He was so kind and patient and after all the tests were done, said I was a potential candidate, but not yet! Things needed to settle down. Not what I wanted to hear at the time, but looking back it was the right decision because I was not in the right state of mind to make the step.
Brains are wonderful things, they seem to adapt with whatever happens to your body and mine eventually did. Lip reading was now vital, but I learnt very quickly to adapt to what I could hear and guesswork came into the equation. I didn't always get it correct and I had lots of embarrassing moments when I didn't get it right but hey, I tried.
I was lucky to land a job where it was accepted that I could not use the telephone. I settled down and tried to live my normal life as before. However my hearing continued to deteriorate. I withdrew. Home felt safe, I was under no pressure and was in control there. I didn't have to meet and struggle to hear other people. I would do my work then bolt home as fast as I could with no stops along the way. The colleagues in my office recognised the stress I was under and agreed for me to work three days a week instead of the usual five. So I was now spending four days at home. My family were concerned as unintentionally I withdrew from them. I could not hear at the dinner table and all conversations had to be one-on-one for me to understand.
My beloved husband was my saviour as he patiently persuaded me to think about a Cochlear Implant again. I agreed to give it one more go but told him if I couldn't have it I was giving up work full stop!
By now there was a SCIC Office in Newcastle and an appointment was arranged. I went along and had a long chat and this gave me renewed hope. Tests showed I was virtually lip reading everything, so it now depended on the surgeon giving me the go ahead. An appointment was scheduled a few days before Christmas 2007 and much as I wanted to go I was scared stiff he would say no. Obviously I did go, met Dr. Eisenberg and yes he gave me that Xmas present, an operation date of 13th February 2008. I left his office smiling!
The operation went well. I stayed overnight in hospital and left the next morning with a headache - probably caffeine withdrawal as I hadn't been able to have my usual coffee quota! Back home I took it easy, or rather tried to as our middle daughter decided it was a good time to have an emergency appendix operation. We got her home the day before my switch on.
Switch on day must be the most remembered day of any CI. I was nervous it wouldn't work, but fairly hopeful it would. On hearing the first sound my face started grinning and by the time all electrodes had been mapped that grin was permanently stuck. It took a few seconds for anything to make sense, speech sounded different, but I didn't care it was working.
The next day I went round the house listening to all the sounds I had been missing and even found new ones I had not heard before. The following weeks were full of discoveries; I can hear my cat purr, clocks tick, birds sing, the water fountain, even my husband shaving (only married 30 years and I did not know that made a noise!). I listen to music, radio and best of all I can use the telephone again. Just 12 weeks after switch on I telephoned my youngest brother, the first time I had spoken to him in 7 years it was so good to hear him again. My husband is frequently on trips for his office and we can now have conversations over the phone every day he is away. We received our first phone bill, since the operation, which was rather big, but he just smiled and said it was worth it!
Life is so good now, I am never at home. Gone are the days of hiding, I am out there talking to people, joining in conversations, listening and actually hearing what is going on. I did give up the job eventually as it was not really what I wanted to do. I was asked if I would like to help out with admin at the SCIC office in Newcastle and jumped at the chance. I am now doing things I would not have dreamt of before and I now have the confidence to try anything once (or most things, I still do not like heights) so I am constantly looking for new things to do.
What next, who knows, maybe an implant in the other ear then watch me go!