Post op checks.. continuing the CI journey.. by Eleanor

No need to worry, I am still here!

 I thought I'd better write a lovely blog post to update you all on my Cochlear Implant journey.
It is now exactly 3 weeks since my operation and I'm feeling great. Nothing hurts anymore, nothing aches, nothing throbs or groans or tries to remind me of the fact I have a implant in my head.

However, I am constantly reminded of how deaf I am. I know, I was deaf before the operation, and I'm still deaf now and I will always be deaf. But, having just one hearing aid has hit me rather hard. It's gotten to the point where I don't even notice people chatting away on my right side (the implanted side) until I look round. I'm zoning out all the time because I'm too tired to focus, and I'd much rather be at home in the land of silence and not having to listen to anyone. My world is an oral world, which was why I wanted to take this journey, to be able to access it a little more easily. This isn't forever, I know that, but it doesn't make it any easier in the now. I'm waiting rather impatiently for the switch on date and once I have that, I'll know there's an end to this stage and the start of a new and exciting one.

 Last week I went back to the hospital for a post op check, where I was asked to go to X-ray for a head scan to check the implant was in the right place. I also saw the nurse who checked inside my ear and the wound. Everything is healing so well and I'm amazed by how easy it has all been. It really is just waiting now.

 A few weeks ago there was a programme on Channel 4 called 'Breaking the Silence' which showed 7 people getting their CIs switched on for the first time. It was all filmed live, a brave decision by channel 4. I'm not really sure why they felt they had to show it live, nor why they had to show 7 people getting switched on. Don't get me wrong, it was very interesting and I enjoyed it (apart from the dodgy subtitles...) but couldn't help wishing it had been more of a documentary, showing the journey of CI, from assessments, to switch on, through to a few years later. Hearing is such a difficult thing to explain. I don't know what it is like to be hearing so I couldn't ever be accurate in telling you, but for people who are hearing, that's all they've ever known. How can you explain something that comes so naturally? It's like when you think too much about the way you breathe and suddenly it becomes very overwhelming and you think you've forgotten how to do it.

For anyone interested in Cochlear Implants, Breaking the Silence is a great place to start, but there is oh so much more I could tell you. And pretty soon, I hope there's even more I can tell you, in between listening to your impressions of Donald Duck...

Playing Mum with No Working Hearing Aids.. by Imogene

Hi there again!

I am a Mum to two beautiful young boys (3 & 13 weeks) and they are the centre of my world. Everyday, I am doing things with them, listening to their cries, chants and giggles. They're honestly the most beautiful sounds I hear and I thoroughly appreciate being able to hear them. But what happens on the one day you can't?

Let me explain.
Wednesday last week, I woke as usual to the vibration of Freddie thumping around the bedroom and his (very) high pitched squeal as my hubby is tickling him. It's a normal morning. I sit up and put my hearing aids in and try and hush my lads as my littlest is fast asleep, and well, it's too early to hear such loud noises.
I get up, get dressed and go fetch some breakfast as Noah is still fast asleep. I do love the hectic mornings in this house. It's constantly filled with Freddie shouting he wants more milk with his cereal, or how hubby will be late home that afternoon, or that Noah will want a bottle at 20 past the hour. It's all so normal and it's the thing I wake up to and adore. I like the sound of babbling voices and things lumping around. It's my family.

I however dislike when my hearing aids run out. The tapping really irritates me, and always seem to start at the most inconvenient time! But like everything you tend to do as a parent you just put it to one side and get round to it when you can. My life is busy as a Mum, I'm constantly on the go of feeding and changing, as well as talking and playing. So on the day when one of your hearing aids decides it's finished it's battery life, you think "yeah, OK, I'll change you once I've finish *insert job here*" and this is exactly what I did.
Until my other one decided to start going off too.
Safe to say I rely on my hearing aids A LOT when I'm at home.

Freddie is very much one of them Toddlers that when they want something, they'll want to drag you or keep hanging around the item they want; for example Freddie keeps opening and shutting the pantry door when he wants something to eat. It's probably partly because he's around me most of the time, so knows that will get my attention. Of course he doesn't always do that, he does often shove his face in mine and go "Can I have a biscuit?" "Mummmmmmmmmmmy, I'm huuungry!" or "What time is it? Is it time for Dinner?!"

So on this day my hearing aids were tapping away, driving me up the wall. I had to stop doing everything and find some batteries.
I have many spots around the house and in bags where my battery packs seem to accumulate. In a basket above the microwave, in my handbag, in Noah's changing bag and beside my bedside. I went to all of my usual spots and there were either packets of all used batteries (why these were still here I've no idea!) or there was nothing to find.

Oh Sh*t!

I was a Mum in a house alone with two young, demanding kids and I was completely deaf.
You could imagine how quiet it felt. It felt really odd seeing and looking after my kids but with absolutely no hearing. I managed the best I could and things were OK, I just had to watch everything 10x more than I ever had before. Every move and action had to be accounted for.
A natural thing as a parent is to keep an eye out and look after your child, but there was something about them hours that made me feel like I was doing a terrible job. I know I wasn't really, but it did make me realise that sometimes I rely on my Aids more than I think.

I contacted my mum by text and she tried ringing me, but texting that I can't hear and well, it was a massive miscommunication but finally got to explain that I don't have any batteries!
 As a family we don't have any transport so I couldn't drive to the Hospital, I didn't have any cash on me to get the bus to the Hospital, or a shop to buy any, Chris was at work until 5, which means the shops would be close by the time he finished his shift (not to mention it was 10am in the morning).. It was basically the most annoying situation ever.

My Nan came to my rescue and brought some in Boots for me and brought them to me (Got to love Grandparents who'll do anything for you!). I was saved and all systems were go..
I will never let myself get in that situation ever again. It was hugely frustrating.
It showed me what I am capable of as a Mum, exactly how much I appreciate having Hearing Aids in my life and that I love the sounds my family make. If I didn't have them, I don't know what I'd do!

Getting Ready for Baby #2 by Imogene

I remember when I was first expecting my first son, I was so shocked but also so happy to learn that I was going to be starting a family. It's one of the things I have always wanted and expected that I would have eventually. I have grown up in a big family with 2 brothers and a sister, I also have another half sister. Having such great memories of my childhood and being blessed with amazing relationships with my parents - it's always brought such positive ideas about my own family that i'd have one day.

Naturally I'm quite a laid back person (obviously I have the worry/stress days as well as anyone!) and I found that through-out my first pregnancy I reflected this temperament. I didn't have many worries about whether he could potentially have a disability or anything could go wrong. I think most of that was because of my age, I was only 19 at the time. Also it's probably because I didn't know what to expect being a parent and that the pregnancy didn't become to feel real till I felt my son kick for the first time. It hit me really hard, I was going to actually be a mum. I did have the general little doubts of whether I would be a good mother, know what he needed when he cried, whether i'd cope with the late nights, that I may drop him.. It was really scary, but I was so excited to meet him, despite the doubts. My Husband at the time was in the RAF so I was still at home with my parents but we got married, moved into our own home and even though Chris (husband) was working away most of the time I stayed in our house alone, so most of the time it was just me and Freddie. Through them few months we bonded as he was the other person to talk to through that time - I also went home and saw my family etc but most of the time it was just us. I used to read to him, listen to music and of course nesting ready for his arrival! 

So when he arrived he was already my everything because he's been there a whole 9 months and we only got closer. Now he's nearly 3 and he's still a mummys' boy.

When Freddie got to be a Year Old, both me and my Husband decided we'd like to try for another baby, because we always talked about having a few children and we wanted Freddie to have someone to play and grow up with from an early age. 

Me and my siblings are 2 years apart and I remember the fun and games we used to have from a young age. Being to be able to have other siblings to play with was fantastic, I simply couldn't imagine being an only child.. couldn't imagine how different my life would've been.

It took over a year to finally get pregnant again (the more you seem to want something the more it sometimes seems to get out of reach!) but we did! Currently at 26 weeks and due at the end of April. I'm so excited to meet our other little man, it seems surreal that it's so close. 

It surprised me that during this pregnancy I have thought of all the bigger worries of having a child (the ones you would've suspected me to have first time around!), like him having a disability or a health problem, whether he's happy or not inside me. When I went to the anomaly scan at 20 weeks, I was incredibly nervous and felt sick - I never had this with Freddie but this time it hit me that during pregnancy you don't actually know what's going on inside of you; you know that they're developing into this beautiful human but everything else, you have no knowledge of. People always ask you 'How are you? Are you and bump OK? Is he well?' and when you've not had a scan since 12 weeks, the only thing you can think is 'well yes, i'm good, and I suppose they are too' which is a little scary as a mother to be. So many of my thoughts are a by product of maturing and from being a mother to a energetic lad. I always want the best for Freddie and for 'Archie' and knowing how well Freddie has developed I can only hope and wish that Archie shall be the same. It has also been a bit of a comfort to have regular scans due to being type 1 diabetic where they reassure me that all of his developing is fantastic and everything is really normal. I've been a lot less concerned since the 20 week scan as I know if there was a major issue they would've picked up on it (I have to hope!). It has also been really nice that one of my best friends is pregnant as well, she's a week behind at 25 weeks and it's been lovely to be able to text and meet; talking all things babies and pregnancy. A few times now we've had conversations of 'do you have it where you feel really sick if you bend down?' and it's like 'OMG YES!' - it's nice to know, it's all normal and happens to everyone else too!

This pregnancy has been different compared to my last. Archie has been a lot quieter in his movements compared to Freddie, I have to say that's the biggest difference, but then he probably has a lot to listen to what with Freddie and me talking constantly! I have also had more heartburn and earlier than I did during the last pregnancy. I've also been able to sleep better than last time - I rarely get woken up or feel unsettled - Freddie loved to kick me awake in the early hours!

Shows how different their personalities may be?
I have also been reading a book called 'The Secret Life of the Unborn Child' and it really opened my eyes to how much influence our mind has over the development and general psychology of our little people. It's an amazing book and anyone who is expecting should read it.

As I mentioned earlier that my Freddie is a big mummy's boy that I did wonder how he would behave and react towards having a brother and it's been very positive! I talk to him about when Archie is awake and what he's doing, I show him the scan pictures, I show him all his clothes and everything that we have got him so far. I make him feel included and he seems fairly happy with the idea of saying he's a big brother, kissing and hugging my bump (maybe doing that as it's seen what to do by daddy) and that Archie will be a baby - I guess the real impression will happen once he's born. But how he is generally I feel he'll be fine and that he'll love him (maybe not at being woken up in the middle of the night possibly) but I suppose he's too young to really grasp the whole picture and know what to expect, maybe he will when #3 comes!

Super-bot hearing! by Imogene

Hey there guys! Been a while since I have posted anything. I've been a busy lady, I've recently found out that I'm pregnant with #2 and it's another little boy! Been a very exciting time for me, my family and friends so been enjoying the news together! (Also I'm a Celebrity had taken over my life for the last three weeks that I haven't been able to find time to get onto the laptop and update you all - sorry!)

I wanted to share the latest Deaf related news that I have and that is, that I have got new and improved Hearing Aids! I recently went to Audiology at the Hospital to get new tubes and the woman who fitted them had a moan at me as my Aids were too out of date and my moulds were old. Admittedly I haven't been to Audiology since I was 15 and was told I didn't need to come back unless I had a problem. Neither my moulds or my Hearing Aids have been of any trouble to me. I felt I needed to defend my Aids as they may be old but they have got me this far and I've not done too bad with them! However this one time I was at the Hospital for another appointment so thought I would get tubes redone whilst waiting.
I got a appointment to go back and have a hearing test as the last one was a long time ago (7 years), plus it's always interesting to see how it's all doing. I've never noticed any difference in my hearing at all over the years and it was confirmed in the test - they're exactly the same. I was very pleased, simply because no Deaf person wants to hear their hearing is getting worse! I got some moulds done and was told that I would be sent another appointment to collect them and get some new Aids.
Went back again.. and was told that I need to be updated regardless whether my hearing aids are OK or not, as if they were to break, they wouldn't be able to replace or mend them (personally, I wouldn't have minded until they broke to get some news ones really..) but I took advantage of the offer and admittedly my moulds felt more snug than the old ones, so I did need some really! Then it was time to check out the new Hearing Aids. It was quite a novelty trying out some different and more technology-evolved than my current ones at the time.. I guess I had got so used to having my old hearing aids, that the moulds and Aids were what I needed and used, but at the same time it was naive of me to think that I was the best I can be with hearing aids from 7 years ago! The ones I received last time were the best at the time and was told I was among the first handful to start wearing them all them years ago - but times change!
The new ones unlike the old ones were plugged into the computer and altered according to how I needed them to be. I was also told that were different settings that I could have onto my hearing aids and there were a choice of up to 5! (I orginially thought 'How many do you need!?' But she did go on to explain.) My old ones had only two, background noise and T-Loop, but I decided to keep both of them onto my new ones and include a TV setting, which by the way is by far my favourite one! They tune into the TV and dim down any noises that are in the room, including people talking (haha!) but also makes the voices on the screen clearer and generally more focused which is perfect for me! The only downside to that option is if there is another device such as a laptop playing a video for example, the hearing aids try and mingle the two. Which isn't ideal when you're trying to watch something!
I also have a everyday use option which is what my hearing aid is automatically tuned into as soon as they are switched on. I've found since being home that the everyday use one is really echo-y and its really frustrating when I'm listening to people as their words aren't clearly said, so I'm hoping to get that readjusted. It seemed fine at the appointment but since I got home I've not found it the ideal one. (probably down to the fault of having soundproof rooms!) My noisy background one makes everything quiet apart from the voice or what you're listening out to, but I still find the appointed sound too quiet so I mostly use the TV setting at the moment as it seems to be a mixture of all the three setting together!
I sound like I'm moaning but I'm not really, I love them compared to my old ones, what I do hear is amplified and clearer which is every deaf person dream! I have also been hearing noises that I haven't either A - noticed or B - heard before like keys jangling in my hand or the noises my son ask 'what's that?' and being able to say what it is without feeling a incompetent mother and also I can hear the radio on the volume of 6 in the back of the car.. All in all, I'm feeling like a super-bot with amazing hearing at the moment! It's open my eyes to realise that Hearing Aids are going to be improving just as much as mobile phones and 3D TVs etc - shows how important it is to go regularly to improve the vital things that are needed on a daily basis!

Contagion: A Film Review by Imogene

Contagion

Directed: Steven Soderberg

Starring: Matt Damon, Kate Winslet, Marion Cotillard, Laurence Fishburne, Jude Law, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jennifer Ehle, Elliot Gould

Genre: Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller

Stars: 4.8/5

(Spoilers!)

I remember when this film was first released, I was desperate to see it in the cinema, and however I never did. It somehow got lost in my mind over the years between all the new releases probably.
I noticed how many big names that were in the film from first reading about it – and from most of my experience of films, that’s usually when it’s a pretty decent film to watch!

I couldn’t wait to start this film as I knew I’d enjoy it, and I knew that I would end up doing a review on it. It’s completely my type of movie, I like suspense and the wondering of what happens and I find that I can easily put myself in others shoes so with this film, I felt comfortable. It captured my attention from the first words spoken, not because I’ve been desperate to see it, but because it was so interesting! There was always something happening and so much information gathering to be done! There simply wasn’t time to be bored, well, for me that is.

The film starts with a woman named Beth (Gwyneth Paltrow) who has been away on a business trip (also had sex with her Ex) comes home feeling ill with a mysterious illness which she thinks is the flu. She passed the illness onto her son when she hugged him, after returning home and he then catches the illness too. Beth dies after a seizure in front of her husband and son. Whilst her husband Mitch (Matt Damon) is at the hospital with her, trying to come to terms with her sudden death, their son dies that same afternoon. The doctors are baffled with this mysterious illness.

We then see a variety of people fall down with the same symptoms and also die. Beth’s Ex also falls down with the same illness, which also results in his death. The doctors offer Mitch the chance to have his wife examined through an autopsy to see if they could explain the sudden death – We see the doctors being shocked through the examination whilst looking at her brain, ordering a team member to contact “everyone”.

They take Mitch into quarantine due to worry that he may have the disease and could possibly pass it onto others. We find out that he is somehow immune to the virus.

The film is very good at this point as I got drawn into the symptoms of the illness and I wanted to know more. The film does have a touch of the “Fringe” and “CSI” feel to it, and personally is a massive fan of both tv shows. I also wanted to know the seriousness of the illness, how many people would be affected and if they’d be able to stop it.

Through the most part of the film we saw many doctors try and determined what the disease was. The biggest part was trying to determine the source of the outbreak, and how to defeat it by finding a cure.

It all felt very realistic and how you’d imagine the Health services would deal with this type of situation. It was consistent all through the film which was great for keeping you interested, it was the perfect pace.

Dr. Erin Mears (Kate Winslet) was brought in to determine how deadly the disease is going to be on the population and by every means find an antidote, by Dr. Ellis Cheever. (Laurence Fishburne) She gives a briefing of her knowledge; that the disease was contagious through touch and that they need to work out the rate of people that are carriers and the numbers of who can potentially get infected. The numbers keep rising through the film.

Allan (Jude Law) a blogger journalist comes in contact with the story and has his own conspiracies about the disease and lets everyone knows about them. He believes the government is keeping hold of the cure to make a profit out of the tragedy.

In the background there is doctors working on the cure and testing on live cultures to see if they can make a vaccine. Dr. Sussman (Elliot Gould) makes a stable version of the cultures, which means they can start doing trials for the vaccine. The government says that it could be months before the vaccine could be ready. They call the disease MEV-1.

Meanwhile there are doctors working on the source of the outbreak and find footing of the whereabouts of Beth. We see her in a casino with various people playing at a table. She blows on someone’s chip for luck. We start to understand how the disease spread from Beth throughout the casino and they link to the handful of people that died in the beginning of the film. We see Allan infected with the disease, as he blogs live from his computer and see that he is taking medication called “Forsyitha” and tells the audience that if he is still alive in the morning then, the medication works.

Dr. Erin falls ill with the disease and contacts Dr. Cheever that she has it. He feels responsible for Erin falling ill as he sent her to find out about it, he then proceeds to call his wife and tell her to come to where he is. Aubrey (Cheevers’ Wife) leaves the county and goes shopping for supplies, to be contacted by a friend asking why she’s late for dinner – only to tell the true reason behind her sudden departure.

Allens’ blog becomes a sensation and everyone is desperate to get hold of the medication. We see the world turn into a frenzy and start looting and rioting, the streets become empty. Everyday lives have stopped as people are scared and stay inside, hiding from the disease.

The animal trials are under going but nothing has succeeded, until monkey #57 is successful. There is finally a cure and is currently being produced and is announced that it shall be ready in roughly 90 days. The death toll is currently at a 26 million figure.

It was a relief when they found a cure as we see that the world is in a panic, and just knowing that it could happen to us at any point. The film was done really well and made you think about the important things in life, knowing that people get ill and die every day, obviously the scale was much bigger, but that’s what makes it such a gripping film. It had the "end of the world" feeling.

Allen tells his viewers not to take the medication and someone tells him out to the police and gets arrested. It gets found out that he never had the virus and made it up to get noticed. He has persuaded all his followers against taking the vaccine which could save their lives. He was going to be charged with fraud only to get released on bail, due to the response of his viewers.

Dr. Cheevers get told there's going to be a investigation into the leaking of a message from inside the offices. He told his wife what really happened, and her friend leaked it out, which started the panic.
Meanwhile, as there isn’t enough of the cure made up to heal everyone, there is a lottery of dates where the people in which the birthdays have fallen on the ball, can have the vaccination.
From that moment on, we see everything slowly go back to normal. The death rates have slowed down (obviously people died of other things than the disease) and the world gets back to the state where it once was. Allen continues blogging about his conspiracies on the government, which we know have no ground after his lie on the medication and having the illness in the first place.

We then find out the source of the disease which happens to be Beths' company does a construction where some trees are getting cut down, which makes bats fly from their home, the infected bat bites a banana, flies over to a farmers hut where he drops a piece of the banana skin, which a pig eats, the pig gets killed and taken to the restaurant at the casino where the chef touches the pig with bare hands. He then has the disease on his hands and poses in a picture with Beth, then transferring the disease onto her.

I really enjoyed the loop up at the end, it made it clear where it started and it made sense for us. It did make me wonder where the bat got the disease from though. There’s always a place. I loved everything about this film, the pace, storyline and characters, but mainly the tension that was felt during the film. It was very well played by all the actors and actresses, they made us think and connect to them.

It’s a film I’d definitely watch again, and I think also with the ending, you’d see more about it and understand maybe the language in which they spoke “professionally” as doctors to one another. It was a fantastic film and has become one of my favourites! I highly recommend it!

Immy: Hearing Aids - Part 2

So I went to the Hospital on Tuesday for my eyes (boo, but yay also as there was nothing wrong!). And, whilst I was there I thought I may as well get some batteries and tubes, since I was hanging around waiting for my lift. I went to the front desk - as we previously know not to go to Audiology anymore for these things! AND I took my red book, just to dodge any volunteers who refuse to give me any batteries, just because of a booklet.
Thank heavens I had my sister with me (as I couldn't see due to eye drops) who could see the batteries the lady gave me, and notice that they were the right ones. I took the ones in my handbag to my sister so that she could check and the lady looked confused, so I explained they were the ones that I purchased (the ones from boots - in the other passage) and she was surprised and asked where you get them and how much. I told her that they were £3.59 and she actually gasped and covered her mouth, which seemed a little dramatic    but she said that she never expected them to be so much. (but, really, a normal packet of AA batteries are just as much, if not more!) I gave her an overview of the story about how I wasn't able to get them and she said that you can get batteries from Audiology at anytime, despite the volunteers desk being closed!
I was never told that you could, but I suppose the only reason I really knew of that was because there was a nice woman who spent the time to take an interest in what I was asking. Also, she gave me 4 packets of batteries! (despite the lady next to her telling her that she should only give out two - but she completely disregarded it (YES!))
I also went to Audiology to get some tubes (as they don't have these at volunteer desk! good idea they had there, cos I then had to go to Audiology anyway!) and found out that the service at the local doctors is back, but only for 1 day a month, and only for 2 hours - still that can be a massive inconvenience but, at least there is a actual chance to receive some batteries!
So I am fairly pleased that my services have resumed - but again, I had to go digging! But, at least I know now.

Immy - *Rant* over Hearing Aid Batteries!

I'm sorry, most of you probably don't want to read a post full of moaning. However it's something as a Deaf person, I have to say as it's been getting under my skin!
My local Hospital is a good 6 miles away from my house and I have no transport, so I have to either rely on my parents giving me a lift or getting the bus at £4.10 a return - either way, it's a massive pain to get there. They did have a service where they had people from Audiology come round the villages for things like batteries, clean tubes and anything else you wanted to ask them about. But, last month they got rid of that service (yes, it was only 2 days a month and at the most awkward time, but you always made it so you could go) - due to the funding at the local Doctors. Now, I understand in a way why they may have dispose of that facility as there is probably very few people in the Norfolk villages that are Deaf or wear hearing aids, so if they needed to cut funding on something it may be that. Simply because they think 'well there is a Hospital you can go to' - but they just don't think about us small people who find that difficult!
But saying all that, going to the Hospital isn't that straight forward either as the last time I went up there they altered everything about how you can pick them up, where you can pick them up and well, I was annoyed I hadn't been told. Especially when you have a new system to pick them up! They've got it now so that you have to use a red booklet to collect anything from Audiology - only it's not at Audiology anymore it's at the front desk, where they've plonked volunteers at the desk who don't know nothing about what they're doing. I don't just say that out of being annoyed, they honestly don't know what they're doing.. I asked them (before I had the red booklet, or understood there was a red booklet (and wondering why I was never informed I needed a red booklet)) if I could have some orange batteries and was told "well, are you Deaf? Do you need them?" I tell them yes, as I am Deaf with two hearing aids.. but they looked at me disbelieving so I had to lift my hair up to reveal my aids (it was like I had to prove myself!), then I get asked "Do you have your red book?" I say I don't have a red book nor do I know of a red book needed.. and they point blank refused to give me any batteries. Now, I stood there thinking 'well would I honestly be standing here, asking for batteries, with hearing aids in.. if I didn't actually need them?' Now, would I? Why would I waste my time doing that? Why would anyone?
Anyhow, I got a red book eventually.. and I get A packet of batteries - 1 packet, of 6.. now, why? It'll only mean i'll have to go back in a months time, at my inconvenience (but, I need them to pretty much survive - so..) . I just don't understand why they have to make everything that much more difficult.

The reason that inspired me to do this piece was that on Saturday I had to go buy some batteries as they both went out at the same time. The Hospital 'couldn't cater to this facility' as it was the weekend.. so I had to result in going in Boots and getting some for £3.59 a pack! It seems a lot of money when you can normally have them for nothing.
but I suppose it's NFN. (Normal For Norfolk) - Eleanor Inspired!!

Can you relate to this? Have your Hospital got a new system on the receiving of hearing aid batteries? Do you need a red book? Or feel you have to prove you're Deaf to anyone? We'd love to hear your stories too!! :)