People have questions, we have some answers

Sometimes when we are out and about, people will ask questions about Chance's implants.  This has been the case from the beginning.  People are curious at the park, the store, the zoo, the restaurant.....we have been approached in all of these places.

I am glad that people feel comfortable asking about Chance and his implants.  They usually have a personal interest for doing so such as their grandchild just got diagnosed with hearing loss, or they have a friend whose child is deaf etc.  Sometimes, people are just curious.  Most of the time they are hesitant at first, trying not to offend, but it has never been a big deal for our family.

My children once took advantage of the fact that a grandfather approached me in the frozen food section of the grocery store to ask about implants, and added items I don't usually buy into our cart. Chance was in on the deal too.

This grandfather had just found out that his grand daughter was deaf and wanted to know how I felt about the implants and if they had really helped Chance.  

Chance has implants and many people out there don't know exactly what they are and how they work.  Or if they really work that well at all.

Chance takes it all in stride.  He takes them off his head so people can see them or just talks to them and answers questions.  

I have asked Chance and it does not bother him to talk to people about  his implants.

I don't feel people are being rude when they ask about the implants, I would rather have them ask then just stare and wonder. Especially people who have young children in their lives who have hearing loss as most of us know next to nothing about hearing loss and deafness when the diagnosis is handed down to our families.

This week, Chance was at a college basketball game with some family and friends, when the people sitting in the row behind him, noticed Chance had implants and asked him how long he had had them.

When Chance told them six years, they said,"Wow! Only six years.  You talk great!"

It turns out this family has 5 year old triplets, two of which have implants.  They got their implants at six months of age.

The triplets were not at the game, but Chance talked to their parents about his implants and how he liked them.

It was always nice for us to see kids that were a little bit older with hearing aids and implants when Chance was younger so that we could get a glimpse of what the future may hold for Chance.  

Chance is now at a stage where he can give parents of little kids with deafness a glimpse of what the future of their implanted kids may hold.

And the possibilities are amazing!