bits and pieces...

Firstly, I would like to do a shout out to my mum, Happy mothers day mum, I love you so much, thank you so much for your never ending love and support, I can only hope to be half the mother to my children that you are to me xx

I was going to answer a few more FAQs but truth be told, im too tired to think. We have had a busy few days around here, with Aaliyah suffering what they originally diagnosed as bronchiolitis but ended up being Asthma. Needless to say we have had a few sleepless nights in our house!! Thankfully she is on the mend now and is almost back to her normal happy self.

I just wanted to do a quick summary of just how important wearing a hearing aid is to Aaliyah's development. A couple of months back, starting in February, Aaliyah's hearing aid was broken. It was sent in to be repaired and we were told it would be back within 10 working days (2 weeks). We did not get it back for just over 8 due to an issue with the company that makes the hearing aid having supply issues. During this time we noticed several things.

Firstly, Aaliyah's speech and language development all but stopped. She kept on saying the words she already knew, but only said maybe one or two new words the entire time she was without her aid. This was unusual for her as she was generally coming up with one-two new words EVERY DAY. It was very frustrating knowing what she COULD be doing if only she had her hearing aid. Since the day she got her hearing aid back her speech and language development have taken off again. She is noticing sounds around her easier and is not as startled by sudden noises if she has the aid on. We are so amazed at how significantly unaided unilateral hearing loss can affect a person. And we are so grateful to live in a time where it is recognised enough for her to be able to have a hearing aid (although it is still not recognised by the government as being a disability).

The other thing that we noticed when she was without her hearing aid was how often she lost her balance and fell over. The ear is not only responsible for picking up sound but it also helps with balance. If one side is not working properly this will affect balance. This is what we found with Aaliyah. The poor thing would fall over and seem to loose her balance so much easier. Once she had her aid back her balance has improved so much.

On a different note, in regards to her surgery, many people have asked if the government will assist. The answer is no. They regard her surgery as elective cosmetic surgery, mainly due to the fact that it is unilateral. This means that we are not eligible for any sort of subsidies besides Audiology reviews etc from Australian Hearing. They do not assist us financially in any way towards any of Aaliyah's medical expenses. When she was born, we applied for the carers allowance (a government allowance to assist parents caring for children with a disability, including bilateral hearing loss as well as other disorders such as ADD, it is only a small amount but every bit helps). We were declined. Due to the fact that her condition can be "managed" here in Australia they are also not contributing to any of her medical expenses overseas. Whilst we understand that her condition is not considered major, there are still many unexpected expenses that we are forced to meet. From parking at the hospital for her many appointments to paying for her speech and auditory verbal therapy/assessments. We have also paid for her to see private paediatricians at times when the public wait list was too long. We also pay an annual fee to Australian Hearing for her check ups etc. Whilst these expenses might seem small, they certainly do add up.

Enough rambling for now.. I hope these posts are actually informative and not too long and boring... let me know... feed back is most welcome...