Read Amelia's story

"When Amelia was born in 2019, she did not pass her hearing screening in the hospital. I didn’t think anything of it at the time, as I was told it could just be fluid in her ears as she was born via C-section.

"We were referred to have another test when she was around 10 days old. Again, she did not pass this and I started to get concerned. Amelia had another appointment which she also did not pass, so we were referred to the Test Centre at The Elizabeth Foundation.

"Amelia had her hearing test while sleeping and the news was delivered that she had a severe to profound sensorineural bilateral hearing loss. My world came crashing down. This is not what you expect for your baby. I cried and I cried a lot! All I could think was what does the future hold for my little girl? Will she talk? How will she communicate? Will she ever hear?

"Amelia received her first set of hearing aids at six weeks old, and the same day we met Julie. She explained about baby group and how beneficial it would be for Amelia and us as a family.

"Going to our first baby group, I was nervous. I didn’t know what to expect, but everyone made me feel very welcome. It felt good to share my concerns and worries with parents going through the same thing. Weeks went by and I noticed a difference in Amelia. Baby group helped the start of Amelia’s hearing journey – she started to babble and notice familiar sounds.

"Amelia moved up to toddler group where she started to find her feet and became more confident. Her language skills really came along, her listening skills were brilliant.

"When Amelia was 2½ years old, she had her cochlear implant surgery and then moved up to preschool. This was a big step for her, but I knew she would take it in her stride. Amelia now attends the preschool two days a week and absolutely loves all the teachers and children.

"Without the help and support from The Elizabeth Foundation, I don’t think Amelia would be as chatty and confident as she is today. As a family, we will be very sad when Amelia leaves to go to school, but I believe she’s had the best start to her education at The Elizabeth Foundation."

Amelia's mother

Amelia's story

"Without the help and support from The Elizabeth Foundation, I don’t think Amelia would be as chatty and confident as she is today."

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