January 14th, 2010

Wow! It has been a long time. I was just speaking with Grayson's speech therapist, Rita Ramey, today about the wonderful journey we have been on over the course of this past year. I was telling her how amazed I am at the fact that exactly 1 year ago I was having to be Grayson's interpreter. His speech was so distorted that I had to tell everyone what he was trying to communicate. Today, however, is a completely different story. I do not have to say a word. His speech is clear and other than a few distorted pronunciations he is communicating on the same level as other 5 year old.
Last month we had a routine check up at Arkansas Children's Hospital. Prior to us going Grayson's therapist, Rita Ramey, had mentioned she was concerned that Grayson was no longer able to distinguish between a T and a K sound at the end of words where as before he was doing beautifully. Upon arriving at ACH, I informed his Audiologist Jordan King of our concerns. After completing a full evaluation we were told that 2 of Grayson's 22 electrodes had been damaged in his left implant and shorted out. All they could do is turn off the 2 that were damaged and hope the other 20 would pick up the slack. As of now they seem to be doing just fine. Instead of going 6 months between check ups, we have been asked to come back in 4. There is concern that more electrodes may have been damaged and might be on the verge of shorting out as well. No need to worry about it. If it is going to happen, then it is going to happen.
We did have one small set back last week. Grayson's right processor has failed. CochlearAmerica is sending us a replacement as we send in his damaged one to be repaired. Hopefully it is still under warranty, and is able to be fixed. It is the first processor he received exactly one year ago this month. I am completely stumped as to what caused it to just not turn on but I pray it is something that may be fixed. Not to mention, I also said a little prayer that it is still under warranty. I have noticed that Grayson's confidence has been affected by the loss of one ear. He is no longer able to sense which direction a sound is coming from. If I talk to him and I am out of his line of sight, he spins around trying to locate my general direction. It is really kind of sad. It is nothing that my little "Handsome Smandsome" can't conquer though. I have faith.
I'll keep you posted as to what happens.