A Glimpse of My World as a DHH Teen
By Alyssa Ross, South Carolina H&V
I’m 14 years old and attending ninth grade. I live with my mom, dad, and little brother, AJ, in Columbia, South Carolina. I take honors classes, play the double bass in orchestra, and love hanging out with friends.
I was identified with a mild-moderate hearing loss after the newborn hearing screening at birth.
I wore hearing aids but then my bilateral sensorineural hearing loss progressed to profound deafness. At the age two and three, I received cochlear implants and learned the cause of hearing loss was EVA –Enlarged Vestibular Aqueducts. I did years of speech therapy, and I use American Sign Language (ASL) when I go to deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) camps and use a little at home.
Journey to Self-Advocacy
When I was in elementary school, I had no trouble handing my teachers my FM system (my microphone). When I was younger, I didn’t think much about my CIs. Later in middle school, kids would draw attention to my CIs. I felt very uncomfortable and made sure that my hairstyle covered my ears. Now that I’m in high school, I have learned that I need to accept myself, love myself, and be proud of who I am, including my equipment.
It’s important for me to use my CIs every day. In school, it’s harder for me to hear with all the distractions going on with the teacher talking at the same time. With my remote microphone, I can take notes while listening to the teacher; I don’t have to miss any information just by trying to read the teacher’s lips. Also, I made a video with the help of my DHH teacher to send to the rest of my teachers so they would know what I need in class, hopefully preventing any problems.
What I Love to Do
When I was a kid, I tried lots of different sports, but none of them truly seemed to fit me. I did dance, gymnastics, soccer, and swimming. When I was seven, I tried out basketball. I had found my sport! I’ve been playing basketball for seven years now and plan to continue. Another thing I love is engineering. When I was smaller, I loved hands-on activities, puzzles, and doing all kinds of challenging things. This passion has been with me ever since and now I want to be a Biomedical Engineer and make CIs for DHH people all over the world. This summer, I was accepted into the University of South Carolina Engineering Summer Camp and won first place in the hydraulics hand relay.
Inspiration Station
My mom is the president of South Carolina Hands & Voices, and we go around South Carolina to meet other families. I love it when my mom takes me with her to these “mingles” so I can meet people like me. I don’t see a lot of DHH people around my age where I live, so I love traveling with my mom to meet families with kids like me. I also like leading the craft activities for the younger kids and mentoring them. I hope they see a young person who is proud and happy to be who she is.
One Last (Encouraging) Word
Having a hearing loss is hard. People may bully you. You may be scared of what others think of you. I get it. It can feel like life is harder and more challenging. But guess what? You can do anything you put your mind to. Just know you are not the only one and you have family and friends supporting you in life. I’m the only Deaf person in my school. It IS hard to get along with people who like to ask me weird personal questions or make fun of me at times, but I remember one thing. Being Deaf is my superpower! Believe in yourself; don’t give up on your dreams. One day you will change the world. ~
H&V Communicator – Fall 2024