Cochlear Implants

What’s it to you?

Above is a 29 year old woman, hearing for the first time in her life.

You may not be deaf, no one in your family may be deaf, or maybe you don’t even know one person that is deaf, so why on earth would this topic apply to you?

Kate Locke (not the woman pictured above) was one of many individuals influenced by cochlear implants at the age of 29. She lost her hearing at the age of 11 due to unknown natural causes. The following statement from Locke is just one example of how the remarkable benefits of this procedure can bless an individual’s life: 

“It is a wonderful experience, made bitter sweet by the fact that some deaf people can’t afford to buy hearing aids or cochlear implants. But probably the best thing about the cochlear implant has been calling my mum on the telephone to tell her that I love her. And for the first time since I was very little, I can hear her telling me she loves me back.”

Imagine  having a daughter like Kate and finding out that your child or loved one has just been through the newborn hearing-screening process and reported to have permanent hearing loss: Where do you go from there, do you want your child to hear in their lifetime? How would you communicate with them if they weren't able to hear you?

What are cochlear implants?

As defined by NIH (National Institute on Deafness and other Communication Disorders), “A cochlear implant is a small, electronic device that can help to provide a sense of sound to a person who is profoundly deaf or severely hard-of-hearing.” There are two components to the device, the external microphone worn over the scalp and the implanted receiver which is surgically implanted.

Why the controversy?

Some within the deaf community argue that it is changing the laws of nature or God and it is something that shouldn't be tampered with.

Others argue that if parents choose to give cochlear implants they are taking away a child’s agency, rather than letting that child decide for themselves when they are older one day in the future.

However , one day in the future could already be too late if they want to be involved within the hearing world. If you wait until they are old enough to decide then they have already passed through the most critical stages of speech and language development.

Cochlear implants could very well change your family’s life one day if you were to have a deaf child. It could prevent them from falling behind in school or falling behind socially. It could increase their opportunities within the hearing world by improving their speech/language development and if they wanted to, they could very well still be a part of the deaf community.

From the words of a deaf individual herself, Aurora Moon states, “CIs (cochlear implants) can be wonderful tools for people to use. Just keep in mind that they are not for everyone, and we can get all along just fine.”

If it was your child, what would you do?