An Answer I Never Knew

I’ve been deaf in my left ear for all my life.

I now know why I still have deafness. In one ear.

My dear mother birthed me, but a mere day or two after I was born she hemorrhaged. That means blood was coming out of her uterus and she didn’t know how to make it stop. (I spoke of this in my book, Memoir of an Unimagined Career which was mostly about my work for Mennonite Media, but in the first chapter I wrote about this hemorrhaging.)

Yesterday I learned that the fact that I was deaf in one ear, changed my life. I’m grateful that I’m not totally deaf but now I know why one ear is deaf. I can hear pretty good, but all things considered, I am excited to know that there is a reason. It is called congenital, and is “a disease or physical condition, present from birth.” That means this problem was present when I was in mother’s tummy and she didn’t know it and doctors didn’t pay much attention to that 75 years ago. I knew I had deafness, but didn’t know why or when or whatever.

Mom always thought and told me that I may have gotten deaf in one ear because of mumps or some other disease or issue. (She did take me to other doctors when I was a teenager, in order to find out if anything could be done. No, not much, the professionals always said.) I also know that she discovered my deafness when I was a little girl, maybe age 3-4. She would try to get my attention when we were sitting in church and since I was normally a very obedient child, she wondered why I didn’t listen to her in church. I would just ignore her trying to whisper to me.

Going back a few years, she also told me Dad had to work the day she was hemorrhaging and she couldn’t contact him. (No cell phone back then, I’m afraid!) Mom claimed I was such a good baby that I wasn’t crying while she was hemorrhaging. I don’t know if that would have changed my one ear deafness (if I was quiet) but I can’t tell you how happy and grateful to know this information. We went to a doctor/or Audiology professional in Richmond Va. the other day, (about 100 miles away) and he steered me to continue using my hearing aid, rather than going the route of trying the Cochlear Implant route, because it wouldn’t be as good a route for me. You can read more about Cochlear implants elsewhere, and I wish it could help me, but he was a long-time professional and had no reason to not guide me well.

I’m happy I can still write, which I do frequently! I wish I could write a letter to my mother telling her our discovery regarding why I had/have a deaf ear. I maybe need to know more, but I’m happy to know more of my story!

If the doctor had guided me otherwise, there would be a lot more humps to get over in the Cochlear implant route. I may regret that sometime, but for now, I’m just happy to put my hearing aid in my ear every day, and enjoy sleeping without an aid in my ear.

What do you think, or know? Tell me any stories you know or have heard!