The Wonders of Modern Technology
Download a copy of Jennie's Story Brochure
Twenty years ago, Jennie Perry Smith of Peregian Springs, Qld, was an influential corporate high flyer at the peak of her career. She was Executive Director of the Information Policy Board for the Queensland Government, Chair of the Queensland Government Telecommunications Strategic Review, Chair of Information Policy and Planning Committee for Griffith University and last but not least, mother of two primary school children.
"I just found it so hard to operate at the level required of me in terms of communication," Jennie says. "This was particularly the case in board meetings as I would miss much of the conversation. I relied heavily on lip-reading and was even videoing meetings so I could watch them afterwards to catch up on the vital information I'd missed."
And hearing aids were offering less and less relief from her isolation. "I can remember sitting in a meeting and having both batteries in both aids go at once," she says. "I excused myself from the room and went to the bathroom and replaced the batteries. Once I realised I was really struggling I just left work."
In 2010, Jennie finally decided to have a cochlear implant on the advice of her audiologist and she is now absolutely delighted with the results. Two weeks after surgery, she was ecstatic when she scored 92% sentence recognition at switch-on. The first sound she heard was her own voice. To her, it initially seemed a little like a foghorn but, almost immediately, she found she had completely adjusted to its loudness. Every morning when she switches on her speech processor, she is reminded of this, as her voice seems a little loud and quickly attenuates to normal.
"The social isolation I was experiencing has now ended due to the wonders of modern technology. I'm able to relax around people and I'm much happier in myself. I still marvel at being able to talk to people in the car, even in the back seat, and can hear when someone speaks to me from another room," she says.
Hearing problems weren't the only challenges Jennie was facing - she also suffered from cataracts. These have now been rectified with intra ocular lenses meaning she doesn't have to wear glasses anymore.
"I now refer to myself as the 'bionic woman'" she laughs. "I've been so lucky to have benefited from these amazing technologies."
"I am not the only who has benefited from this. My family and friends no longer have to make so many allowances and concessions when communicating with me. I now think of myself as hearing impaired, not deaf and I have reconnected with the hearing world."