Focus on the End Goal - A Parent's Perspective
As we are still going through the ups and downs of our child's hearing journey, there are good days and bad days. We try to be as optimistic and faithful that all will be well in the end, but admittedly there are times we feel helpless. It is a blessing therefore that we are able to connect with families, especially parents like us who have come before us, who have already grown in this journey, and whose children are inspirations themselves to our still growing-in-hearing children.
When Johann was still a baby, we are fortunate to meet the Canon family. They have inspired us and sparked in us the hope every young family with a child with hearing loss needs. The Canon's boys, Nate and Elij both have hearing loss, and are amplified by CI and HAs. We met them when they were elementary school age, but now they are thriving teenagers, indeed an inspiration for us with younger children.
Here are some of Mommy Kristine's insightful thoughts for us, parents, to help us focus on the end goal for our children. That of better hearing, speech, and overall development.
What advice can you give to parents (of children with hearing loss) who are just starting out?
My basic advice would be to educate yourself with the type of device you have chosen (whether CIs or HAs) so you can maximize its full potential. Many families get the device without fully understanding its power and nasasayang tuloy ang device. It requires commitment too, in practicing consistent monitoring so be ready for those.
How do you keep motivated to move forward despite tough times (broken devices, stalled speech development, etc.)?
During tough times we had to be patient, and trust in the process, that we are already doing all we can in terms of intervention but time and growth we have no control of, we just had to wait for our kids to respond to whatever intervention we try.
How did your whole family benefit from your children's cochlear implants?
The cochlear implant is an amazing technological breakthrough that allowed our family to establish close relationships through natural communication involving hearing and spoken language.
What is your hope for your children now that they have been successfully implanted and have surpassed developmental milestones growing up?
That they will be able to be as competitive as their peers in whatever field they enter, it is our hope that the disability is not their identity anymore, but a source of inspiration for them to strive hard in life and achieve more than what is expected of them. Most of all that they will be happy and God fearing individuals who will contribute to our society.
Thank you for these words of hope, inspiration, and courage Mommy Kristine!
