Entry #3: The Hearing Test
Denial. Such a small word with a complex meaning. So is the word, Hero.
It’s not that I wouldn’t acknowledge there was a problem. It’s that in my mind, there wasn’t enough evidence to show me there was. What’s one or two tests? Doctors have been wrong before. There was no history of deaf or hard of hearing individuals on either side of our families. It just didn’t add up. For the next several months, we went to every conceivable doctor in Southern California, who specialized in hearing loss. House Ear Institute, John Tracy Center, local audiologists and UCLA. We had to keep testing and re-testing for many months and years to finally say—yes she has hearing loss.
According to UCLA, she has high frequency hearing loss in both ears (2500- 3000 MHz right ear, 3000-4000 MHz left ear) At this point, (although this has been debated) there is no need for hearing aids. She needs to be addressed facing the person, loud places can be challenging as is the sensory overload and she cannot hear high frequency consonants such as “f” “s”. Although, my husband and I debate whether or not she can hear, certain preferred items seem to get an immediate response. Hmm…Do you think we should let her watch “Sesame Street” after dinner? A small hand touches my shoulder and a remarkable, excitable shriek hits my ear. Ah, the wonders of the human brain.
HIST1H1E Syndrome 