Wow, this one really snuck up on me. I texted my family about Sutton’s Cochlear Implant’s birthday and my mom pointed out its her “golden” birthday- 5 years of her CI on the 5th! To be completely honest, I thought on the five year anniversary of Sutton’s cochlear implant I’d have something more profound to say. But it’s been a very regular day. She went to mainstream 2nd grade, where her teacher diligently wears her remote Roger microphone. She had speech therapy, which they are actively considering dismissing from her IEP. She came home, had a snack, played with a friend, and helped me decorate her cochlear implant’s birthday cake.
Tonight, we have our annual tradition planned of eating Arroz Con Pollo, celebrating with some sort of dessert (this year she chose GF cookie cake), and having a low key night at home with our family of five.
Sometimes I think if I had a time machine, I’d like to go back and give my 2019/2020 self a big hug. There was so much I didn’t know, and Suttons diagnosis, combined with having an infant, potentially moving to Miami, and top that all off with Covid-19- it was a wild ride. Looking back, I am proud of where we are and all that we’ve done!! There are times when people comment to me and don’t even realize Sutton is deaf. If you can’t see her processors (depending on her hair style), then it is really easy to miss her disability. This isn’t just a magical happenstance accident. This is the result of hours of hard work: Programming Appointments, Speech Therapy, Auditory Verbal Therapy, and an intense mental load (where are the CI’s? did we pack the batteries? did we pack the charger? where are the water covers? )The list goes on…
Thinking back, we would not be where we are today without the support and care of an endless team of individuals accross four different states. South Carolina first steps, our parent advocate, Allison, our first Speech Therapist, the team at Lakeside Audiology, Dr. Jabbour at Charlotte ENT, Margaret-Sutton’s first AVT, the UM Debbie School, Ms. Angie, Domi, Ms. Alina, Dr. Holcomb, the entire team at UM Children’s Hearing Program, (special shout out to Alex for giving me my job and helping me to find a new teaching passion), Howard Drive Elementary- her incredible Pre-K and K Teachers, Norton Audiology- Dr. Moats, and KY Hands and Voices. I know this list will continue to grow, and I’ve definitely left professionals off by accident. I am grateful for every single person who has had a hand in getting Sutton (& us) to this point where I can say, most days are just typical days.
Thats why I can sit here and say, this 5 year CI birthday really snuck up on me. I’m looking forward to the next 5 years and where we will be with a 13 year old CI user….
PS. I’d also like a pat on the back for only losing ONE CI processor over the last five years. Really proud of us for that one!
From Sutton:
Over the last five years of having my Cochlear Implant, I thought that it would be really hard. But all the people that helped me were really generous and kind. I would never have thought I would hear again. It feels really cool and nice, and I really like telling people about my Cochlears. It’s like telling a story that is apart of me.
Find You Here 