A Tsunami Experience and CI Moment

Questions for the deaf and hearing impaired:

• Are you prepared for emergencies and major alerts when traveling, especially when it comes to hotel accommodations?
• Do you let airline personnel and agents know that you would appreciate alerts for boarding times, gate changes, delays, etc.?
• When checking into a hotel, do you request an ADA kit and let the staff know that you may need special assistance or notifications during emergencies?

When I travel alone through airports and stay at hotels, I am not afraid to let others know that I might miss a message and would appreciate some personal attention. I do this for two reasons…for my own safety and to increase awareness about the needs for the deaf and hard of hearing.  Even though I can hear with my cochlear implants, I usually make sure I ask for assistance, especially when I travel alone. I am still deaf when I am not wearing my cochlear implant processors. I turn them off when I fly (why waste batteries on engine noises) and at night.

My husband and I recently traveled to Hawai’i for business and were staying at the Marriott Waikiki Beach Resort on the O’ahu Island. Our room was on the 27th floor overlooking the Pacific Ocean right near the beach. Last Thursday evening, we had just gone to bed and had turned off the light after a long day. We were planning to get up early the next morning to tour Pearl Harbor and do some sightseeing. I had turned off my “ears” and was doing some reading. We were first alerted to pending danger around 9:22 p.m. by my friend, Evelyn, when she sent me a text message asking if we were okay. And a few more text messages and Facebook alerts came in from other friends asking the same question because they knew we were in Hawai’i. Just as I turned to Steve in confusion, he immediately sat up in bed and giving me the impression he was listening to something. He was hearing announcements and instructions coming through the hotel intercom.  It was difficult for him to understand what was being said because the intercom system kept making crackling noises. (There is no way I would have been able to make out the words even with my cochlear implants on.)  We immediately turned on the TV where we found out about the 9.0 magnitude Japan earthquake. We were shocked to see the massive devastation that had just happened and learned that the earthquake triggered a powerful tsunami that was headed for Hawai’i in a few hours! Steve also received a phone call from a colleague at Hawai’i Electric offering us his home if we needed to evacuate.

Hawaiians are very service oriented and hospitable people.  The hotel staff was well prepared and promised to keep their guests informed on any new developments through the night. There were signs by the elevator in English and Japanese.  We were assured that we were safe as long as we stayed above the third floor. Our hotel was built like a fortress and the staff was well prepared for situations like this.  The tsunami was scheduled to come ashore to the Hawaiian Islands around 3:30 a.m. I immediately jumped out of bed, put my cochlear implants back on and packed my suitcase in case we had to evacuate in a hurry!

We heard tsunami sirens all night long (a new CI sound for me!). We also heard the police on the streets below us telling everyone to get off the beaches and go inland. Needless to say, it was a long night of warnings and we got very little sleep. Steve and I took turns watching the TV and dozing off. We even went down to the deck on the 3rd floor around 3 a.m. to see what was going on. The conference rooms were turned into evacuation centers and there were TV monitors set up everywhere. There was a church next to the hotel and I was comforted when I saw the simple cross on top of the roof. I knew then that we would be okay, no matter what happened. I was reminded of Deuteronomy 31:8 that tells us that "the Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged."  Whenever I am anxious, nervous, upset, or scared, this verse reminds me that the Lord has already gone before me, preparing the way for protection and peace.

It was actually a beautiful and eerie night. The tsunami waves did come ashore and came over the break walls, flooding the beaches and streets, stopping short of the high rise hotels, including ours.  Most of the waves were around four feet but some beaches on the islands reported eight foot waves.  When the sun came up the next morning, the streets and hotel decks were soaking wet. The sky was a beautiful blue color with a few white clouds.  The water was also blue, crystal clear and sparkling in the sunlight. There were sailboats back on the water and a few surfers taking advantage of the big waves. As we looked out at the beach, we could see the seaweed that had washed ashore.

I am so thankful for text messaging, email, Facebook and modern technology. Otherwise, we would not have gotten the messages about the tsunami so quickly. Because Steve is hearing, I don’t usually ask for special accommodations because he takes good care of me.  In the future, though, I think it would be a good idea to make the hotel staff aware that I have a hearing loss in case of emergency.   My husband may not always be in the room with me if I need to be alerted.

While our experience was mild compared to the tragic events and loss of life and property in Japan, we never dreamed in our lifetime that we would experience a tsunami warning.  This was a reminder to me to always be prepared in case of emergency, no matter what the situation is.

How A Cochlear Implant Works - *NEW*

Here is a new video on YouTube on how a cochlear implant works. . . by Advanced Bionics. . .a good one to see and pass on to people who want to know more about them.

Click here:
How A Cochlear Implant Works by Advanced Bionics, LLC.

There is another link in my right sidebar on a different explanation on how cochlear implants work.

I have the Freedom Processors by Cochlear and love my "mini-computers" that allow me to hear and comprehend sound!

Have a great day and enjoy the fall weather, wherever you are!

A Letter From My Father - Part 3

My father's letter continues. . .

Laurie's mother should be given the majority of the credit for ensuring Laurie's speech training and for spending hours and hours listening to her and her problems and for encouraging her to "never give up" on being able to "get along" in a hearing world.

She taught Laurie how to be organized and to get tasks done in a timely manner. For example, all through middle school & high school, Laurie would do her homework as soon as she got home from school. It was always done before supper so she could watch television afterwards. She got herself up each morning with a light timer, got dressed for school and was always ready when it was time to catch the bus. (Mom usually stood by the window listening for the bus for me and made sure I got out the door in time.)

The best thing that happened to Laurie was meeting her husband, Steve, when she started her freshman year at Wright State University (Dayton, Ohio) in 1975. They hit it off together! And he understood Laurie's hearing loss and was patient in dealing with it. They became engaged by March 1976 and were married in November 1976.

Dad's Recollections of Laurie:
1. She was always good with her two brothers and sister. (Most of the time. :) Kathy and I had some nasty fights! But we are best friends now!)
2. She listened to my wife & I about doing things.
3. She was always loving & kind.
4. Others liked to be around her. She had lots of friends & cousins who enjoyed being in her company.
5. She was always neat in dress and appearance.
6. She was a good babysitter.
7. She enjoyed watching TV and listening to music with earphones or a headset. (I also listened to LP albums with the volume turned all the way up in my room.)
8. She surprised her mother and I in many ways in being able to hear and communicate with people. (I found other ways to compensate in order to "get the message" or faked it when I didn't really understand.)
9. Her teachers were always impressed on how well she could learn, even with a hearing disability.
10. She promised her mother that she would get her college degree when she became engaged and wanted to be married. (She did!) (After transferring from four different colleges, I finally graduated from the University of Tennessee with my Finance degree in December 2003.)

"The End" by Dad, Edwin J. Royer

Thanks, Dad. I love you. Laurie

A Letter From My Father - Part 2

Dad went on and talked about my early "school" years. . . my notes/comments are in red. . . just reading my father's letter brought back many memories for me.

(Dad's letter continues. . . )
At age 3, Laurie was enrolled in Pre-school for 3-5 days a week at our church, North Broadway Methodist Church in Columbus, Ohio.

At age 5, she started kindergarten at a "special school" where she had a earphone headset with a specially trained teacher for 1/2 day in the morning. A taxi picked her up from our house and took her to the school and returned her home after 12:00 noon each day. (I remember the taxi picking me up every day and thought everyone went to school that way! There was a black boy named Donald who rode in the taxi with me. I thought he was black because he was burned in a fire. I found out later that he really was in a fire but that wasn't the reason he was black! And he was my friend, until he hit me on the head with his metal lunchbox!)

Laurie thrived in kindergarten (there were only nine in the class, all with hearing problems) with a wonderful teacher. (The name of the school was Kingswood. I don't know if it was an elementary school or special school. My teacher's name was Mrs. Card. I can remember sitting on her lap every day in front of a mirror with headphones, using my hands on her throat & lips to mimic the words and sounds she was teaching me. Kindergarten was a fun time for me and I still recall many details. I've tried to find Mrs. Card to thank her but don't even know where to start or if she is still around today. I'm guessing she would be in her 70's or 80's now. . .)

By January, her teacher told us that Laurie was ready for 1st grade and she was sure she could "mainstream" through elementary school. (I was reading at 3rd or 4th grade level by the time I entered first grade because I had to learn to read in order to learn to talk.)

Her prognosis was correct and Laurie became as "normal" as a 6, 7, 8, & 9 year old could be as she went through 4th grade and part of 5th grade at Oakland Park Elementary School in North Columbus, Ohio. (My 2nd & 3rd grade teacher's name was Mrs. Gump. I called her Mrs. Grump because she was so strict and firm with me. She even paddled me in 3rd grade in the hallway because I talked too much! No one walked home from school with me that day and that hurt worse than the paddling.)

We lived on a street with other young families with children and only 1/2 block from a city park. she and her friends played together all the time. The park had summer programs for crafts, games, and other activities for kids. (I loved going to the park. I loved playing on the playground, swimming in the pool, and learned to play softball. There was also a craft time and I tried everything. That is where I developed my love for knitting and needlework. One time I came home late after dark because I lost track of time. Mom turned me over her knee and spanked my bare bottom. I didn't do that again because I knew I disappointed her.)

In 1967, we moved to Dayton, Ohio in the middle of Laurie's 5th grade year. She attended an "open classroom" school environment for middle school. She did well in school wherever she went. After middle school she attended Centerville High School and graduated in 1975 near the top of her class with over 550 students. (I have mixed feelings about my high school years. . . there were over 2000 students in the high school and I felt "lost" because the school was so large. It was a "college-like" atmosphere where classes were held in four different buildings and we had to change rooms between each class. My high school years were difficult for me because I "didn't fit in" and never felt like I "belonged." I always sat in front of the class so that I wouldn't miss a thing. When I wasn't in school, I was either working or studying. I did have some very good friends and still keep in touch with them to this day. The same people who made fun of me and/or ignored me in high school "grew up" and later became my friends in college and adult life. To this day I still cringe when I hear the words "peer pressure" because it deeply affects many persons in negative ways.)

She worked as a babysitter, a coat-check girl at a restaurant and was able to do all the normal things a teenager could do. Some people wondered when she worked as a coat checker if she was from the "South" because her way of saying words wasn't as distinctive as most local Ohioans. (I got so tired of telling people that I was "hearing impaired" when they asked me where I was from when they heard my "accent." One time I decided to tell a customer that I was Spanish and was from Spain. He immediately started talking to me in Spanish and I couldn't understand a thing he said! I never did that again!)

The reason Laurie was so successful in school was due to her ability to "lip-read" people who would look directly at her and speak slowly so she could see the "word form." (To this day, I still like to lip read and prefer to look at people when they talk to me, even though I can hear and comprehend pretty good with with my cochlear implants. I think it is polite and courteous to look at someone when you are conversing with them.)

She got her Driver's permit at age 16 and learned to drive soon afterwards through Driver's Education training, etc. (Daddy was very nervous in the car while I was learning to drive! I think it was hard for him to teach me because I couldn't drive and look at him at the same time when he tried to tell me something. Mom just let me drive.)

The reason Laurie was able to do so well in getting along with people was due to her ability to observe her surroundings. When at age 2, she would point up into the sky at an airplane so high that neither my wife or I could hear or see. But, Laurie was highly observant, which helped her recognize if someone was nearby and were trying to get her attention. (This comment by my father was interesting because to this day I depend on my "eyes" to be my "ears" for me. I can "see" things before normal hearing people can hear them. But I didn't realize that was something I did when I was two years old.)

To be continued (and completed) in Part 3. . .