As a baby, Channae initially failed the newborn hearing test. But when she passed the second time, her mother didn’t give this too much thought. Then Channae’s behaviour started to change and her mum wondered whether hearing issues might be the culprit.
Her mum, Kailin, noticed that Channae struggled with her speech and tended to withdraw from large groups of people.
Getting checked
Kailin took her daughter to visit an Ear, Nose and Throat specialist who referred Channae to Hearing Australia. After a routine hearing assessment, it was clear that Channae had a hearing loss and would need hearing aids.
Initially, Kailin worried that this would have far-reaching implications. I was concerned that Channae had already missed out on many early intervention programs and there would be some delays in her speech development. But Hearing Australia was so helpful in getting us appointments quickly and fitting Channae with hearing aids right away, Kailin says.
A world of difference
After just two weeks of wearing hearing aids, Kailin saw a dramatic improvement in Channae’s speech, listening skills and overall confidence.
Kailin explains, Before wearing hearing aids, Channae would only sing the same three words from the Let It Go song in the movie Frozen. But after two weeks of wearing hearing aids, she learned the song from start to finish!
Loud and proud
When Channae started her first day of school, she was more than happy to proudly present her bright pink hearing aids to the other students at show-and-tell.
Through Hearing Australia’s program, Channae also recently received a fully subsidised wireless microphone system to help her hear better in the classroom. The wireless microphone is worn by Channae’s teacher and transmits the teacher’s voice directly to her hearing aids.
“Channae’s really come out of her shell since wearing hearing aids. She’s playing more with other kids, getting her sounds right and very enthusiastic about learning new things,” Kailin says.
