Sara Catherine's Hearing

Today we took Sara Catherine to see an audiologist. We have always wondered about her hearing, but we have always been told everything was ok. Well, let me go back to her birth. Sara Catherine did not pass her hearing test in the hospital when she born. So, they checked her hearing at all of her appointments up until she was 6 months old, and she did not pass any of them. They then sent us to the ENT for more testing. When she was 6 months old she passed her hearing test. They told us that because she was a c-section baby she probably had fluid still her ears and that is why she did not pass. They also cleaned her ears out and said she had a lot of wax build up. Around a year and a half she had ear infection after ear infection. Dr. E sent us to the ENT to talk about getting tubes. The ENT told us that everything looked great, and she did not have fluid or an ear infection. Last winter (around February) we told Dr. E that we had some concerns about her hearing. Sara Catherine has a great vocabulary, sings, and makes sentences just like any other child her age. However, she does things that concerns us. For example, you can walk into a room when she has her back turned towards you and call her name. She will not respond. The closer and louder you get, she will eventually realize you are calling her and jump up with excitement that you are there. Sometimes she may even watch you lips. So, when we told Dr. E about our concerns, he sent us back to the ENT. Again the ENT cleaned out her ears an then said she had fluid in one of her ears and gave us some medicine. He still thought she could her and that the wax build up and the fuild was probably the cause. So, we felt better...for a couple of months. We still notice things that seem odd. For example, she is taking dance. The teacher can tell the girls to do something, and she waits to see what the other girls are doing and then follows along. She also gets you to repeat what you are saying all of the time. She will say "huh," "ma'am," or "sir," constantly. A couple of weeks back her daycare teachers asked me if we had ever had her hearing checked. I told them the whole story and then when I got in the car I broke down! I felt like this has been an issue for 3 years now, and I wanted peace and closure. If something is the matter, I want to fix the problem! So, I called Dr. E's office in a panic! I told them about daycare asking about her hearing and that I didn't care how far I had to drive, I wanted to see the best of the best when it came to ENTs. Well, they told me to go back to the one she had been seeing. No way! I atleast wanted a second opinion! So, I got Ronnie to call back to make sure Dr. E would refer SC if we found one on our own. I called friends and did my research. I have a friend that is a speech pathologist, and she told me to go to an audiologist, Dr. Wilkes, in Enterprise. So, I made the appointment, and today we went. She performed to different types of test on SC. The first one, we were very familiar with. It is the same type they do on newborns and small children. SC failed that test in both ears. Then, she put SC in a sound booth and would ask her to say things like "airplane" "cupcake" "hotdog." She also would have SC turn her head when she heard a beeping noise. To "reward" SC, Mickey Mouse or Tigger would light up everytime she turned her head. After doing a series of test like those, she told us that she was concerned about SC's hearing. She said that the normal range is 0-15. SC scored 45 in one ear and 55 in the other. Of course, I got tears in my eyes. I did not cry, but I wanted to. I really wanted to hear that her hearing was fine, and SC must be a stubborn little girl and is just not answering us because she doesn't want to! So, what now? Dr. Wilkes wants us to go to her Dothan office on Tuesday where she and another audiologist will do more testing. After they both test her, if they think she cooperated and still failed, then we will go to an ENT. The ENT will do blood test and other test to see if they can figure out why she is having hearing problems. Then, we will talk about hearing aids. As a parent, of course, I want everything to be fine! However, I hope that if there is a problem they catch it now! I do not want her to have any type of speech or development delays! My prayer before today was that she would be ok, but if not, they would not turn us away if there was a problem. I feel like my prayer was answered. No, they did not tell us everything was ok, but they are doing more test and are getting to the bottom of this problem. Please say a little prayer for Sara Catherine. Pray that everything will be fine Tuesday, but if not, they are able to find and fix the problem!