Latest update

James had a recent hearing test that showed incredible results. He is hearing tones at the level hoped for in his right ear, and a level considered "normal" in his left!!!

The process of hearing is complex and multi-faceted, but generally comes down to two major components - hearing tones (low to high pitch) and understanding language or sounds associated with those tones.

The "Speech Banana" diagram (see pic) shows at what tones/volumes we hear different sounds, both verbal and environmental sounds. Having James able to hear within the range of most speech/sound is a HUGE win. It means he is now capable of learning how to understand those sounds.

Because he is able to hear tones, his big focus now is language comprehension and sound recreation. He is currently in the language phase that a toddler/preschooler would be. We need to speak slowly to him, repeat things, have him say back what he heard. He responds like a preschooler would, and as his sentence structure complexity goes up, it's so fun to hear him be able to express his thoughts, ideas and feelings.

That said, it's such an effort for him. I think it's easy to take for granted the natural process we go through learning how to hear. Babies and little kids with typical hearing have years to develop language skills, as well as the emotional and social skills that go with them.

Now that he is being bombarded with sounds, his brain has to work overtime to figure out how to interpret it all. He is overwhelmed with this new sharpening auditory and sensory input many days. He struggles to play with hearing kids because they are light years ahead of him in their use of language, and he is still learning how to advocate for himself to ask people to repeat, or slow down their speech. He is often left out because it's hard to keep up. He works so hard every day, and it's easy for him to get frustrated, overwhelmed, or tired.

But he keeps going. Every day we see him progress, and we are in awe of his tenacity and joy.

As we walk through this phase with him, we are so thankful for the amazing team of experts at his school working with him at every level to ensure his success. We can't wait to see what life will look like for him in the coming months!