Pages

Friday 30 September 2011

Things I know - Sosi's hearing

Good morning world! It's Friday again, this week instead of being my usual witty self (LOL), I'll share something about my daughter with you.

Since she was a baby, Sosi has been a bit particular about certain sounds, some noises always seemed to bother her more than others. And by bother I mean freak out, she'd be totally scared by the thing making the noise.

Around the time she was 1, these sounds bothered her: fake animal sounds, particularly horses (like battery operated toys); any toy that moved while playing music; coffee grinder, vacuum cleaner, hair drier, blender.

Most of these can be quite unpleasant sounds to the buddying ears of a baby, so we just thought it was a phase, something she'd outgrow. Now, 3 years on, we are not so sure, as there are other sounds that freak her out so much they have started affecting decisions we make and activities we do.

So, these are some of the things I know bother her at the moment:
  • dogs, because they might bark and the noise freaks her out
  • nearby lawn mowers 
  • miniature railways, partially because of the train whistling, but mostly because of the kids yelling when the train enters a tunnel
here's Kid enjoying a miniature train ride...
I have many many many photos of S covering her ears tightly
  • the electricity meter. I'm not kidding. Sometimes you can hear a vague tick tick noise from our study, if she hears it she panics. But she's fine with clocks.
  • the newest: many people together singing Happy Birthday 
  • we used to go to rollerskating classes but can no longer go, she started getting so freaked out when they turned the music on and people sang (we are talking Wiggles, not heavy metal!) that she would just cover her ears (see above photo), scared, totally petrified, and freeze in the middle of the skating rink. The only thing I could do was pick her up, take her off the rink and cuddle her, then she would relax after 10 or 15 minutes, but still wouldn't go back on the rink if there were kids singing. Which is such a shame because she LOVES rollerskating.

Now, this isn't easy if you also have a very clingy little boy to deal with. Sosi's upset so Casi gets upset so I have both kids in my arms (and remember I have 1/2 an arm less, so carrying a combined 28kg is exhausting) and I'm desperately trying to console and soothe both while trying to keep it together myself. 
So we started avoiding situations that we know will trigger her. Which is really limiting us A LOT.

  • I don't know if it's just a certain frequency or pitch bothering her. 
  • I don't know if she has super hearing that makes some sounds disturbing.
  • I know she can hear the word "chocolate" whispered in another room, so there definitely isn't an issue with hearing loss!
  • I don't know if there's a hearing processing disorder.
  • I don't know if it's something else, because she does have other quirks.
  • I know that in less than 2 weeks she's having her hearing tested and I cannot wait for the results!

Hopefully together with our GP we can shed some light on the matter and help her enjoy her life to the fullest :)

What do you know this week? Go over to the funny Shae at Yay For Home and share your knowledge :)

9 comments:

  1. Oh, dear, Sara. I hope you get it all figured out soon. She's a gorgeous little girl x

    ReplyDelete
  2. I feel for you! And I hope you find some answers soon. All I can suggest (if you're up for it) is to ask your GP about Sensory Integration Disorder. Having 3 members of my extended family with it, these symptoms sound very familiar (and no I am not a doctor, just thought I'd offer a question to ask someone who is qualified!). Here's an interesting link if you felt like a read: http://www.spdaustralia.com.au/about-sensory-processing-disorder/
    Best of luck! Thinking of you. xxx

    ReplyDelete
  3. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  4. We have a little friend the same way. Nobody has ever "diagnosed" him and he has seen plenty of people from every discipline you can think of. He is now 8 and we all just adjust a bit for him. It's harder on his Mum than anyone else, including him I think. He's an otherwise happy kid.

    I hope you have more luck because my friend has spent 5 years dragging him from place to place to try and get a diagnosis so she may actually get a "cure".

    Sorry some hiccup caused my first attempt to delete...

    ReplyDelete
  5. thanks for the lovely words Grace xxx

    Deb, I knew you'd mentioned SPD etc to me but couldn't remember the name (remember, me being busy trying to calm down my kids? ;)
    I just read through the link and there are so many boxes I can tick for Sosi! I'll definitely mention it to our doctor next time we see her, as I'm not sure how versed she is into auditory issues... Thank you xoxox

    ReplyDelete
  6. Thanks Sam, hopefully we'll be more lucky! :)

    ReplyDelete
  7. Hope you get some workable answers fairy wishes and butterfly kisses to you

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hope you get some answers through it all, and thanks for the visit to my blog! :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. I totally understand what you are saying.
    Go to your GP and ask her if she knows of a good OT - occupational therapist.
    They will do a sensory processing assessment and figure out ways to help you work around it. And also help your girl start to accept the sounds more

    Good luck with finding some answers

    ReplyDelete