Our diagnosis story
Our precious baby boy arrived overdue after a 3-day induction. It was a very easy pregnancy. We spent five nights in the hospital after I developed sepsis. George’s newborn hearing test failed during this period, and we were sent to an outpatient appointment.
We were feeling a little frustrated when we brought George to his first appointment after leaving the hospital. We wanted to enjoy our new baby and didn’t want this “pointless appointment” as our baby was able to hear perfectly. We were told to go back to the hospital and have a different test done. He failed it again. I asked the woman, “Do we have to do this testing?” I would know if my child was deaf. We were told the same thing… that it is probably fluid, but it is better to intervene early if there are problems.
After a few more weeks, we had to wait for our next appointment. We were watching him closely for any signs of hearing loss. We noted that his left ear was worse than his other ear but were confident that he could still hear.
They wired George and started the test at the scheduled time. Then they went through the different frequencies, etc., and gave us the same result every time: “no response.” We were devastated. The audiologist said that he had a bilateral severe to profound sensorineural hearing impairment and would require hearing aids initially. Still, in the long run, he may need a cochlear implant if we choose to go with this option.
I cried the whole way to my parent’s house, knowing that I had to tell our family about George’s deafness. My family has been supportive and assured us that George is still the perfect baby boy he always was. This diagnosis does not change him and makes him more special.
Daniel had to return to work the following day. I spent that morning with George, just crying. I was grieving for the baby I thought would be mine, the opportunities he wouldn’t have, and the fact that I might never tell him, “I love you.”
After I had wallowing myself in self-pity for a while, I started to research everything. I found comfort in various social media profiles and the National Deaf Children’s Society’s Family Blogs. They all showed babies and children with hearing loss living happy lives.
Now, I understand that part of the process is to give yourself time to grieve. George’s hearing loss diagnosis came as a complete shock to us. We have no family history, and George was hearing perfectly well before his diagnosis. Eight months later, I can say with honesty that we wouldn’t have changed George’s diagnosis for anything. We’re grateful to be on his amazing journey!
