Cochlear’s clear difference

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Sandra King, Caitlin O''Sullivan and Leanne Brooker at the Cochlear Care Centre. Picture: Rebecca Hosking. 195134_01

Geelong’s Dr Andrea Lindsay, 78, lived with hearing loss for 13 years.

Carrying a notebook for people to write what they were saying was her way of ‘hearing’ them.

“I was using top-of-the-range hearing aids but they weren’t enough,” she explains.

“It was only the patience and consideration of colleagues that allowed me to finish my last work contract. Soon after I had to ask people to write down their side of a conversation, and the chance to do useful work was largely taken from me.

“This was very frustrating, especially when I had spent most of my life in work that needed a good deal of conversation.

“I feared I would go completely deaf.”

With her hearing in both ears deteriorating she was referred to a Geelong-based audiologist to be assessed for a cochlear implant.

Within weeks of receiving her first implant she was hearing a few words, then soon after whole conversations and even bird calls.

“It was like getting my life back. I could be useful again,” Dr Lindsay says.

“I spent the next year going around with a big grin on my face.”

Two years later Dr Lindsay lost all hearing in her other ear but a second implant made sounds even clearer

“Now I’m living a full and happy life. I can hear people, which has made life better for family and friends, too.