Kia ora to all the new and existing patients of Hobsonville Hearing. We are excited to share with you our September newsletter for 2022. How nice has it been to see the sun shining a bit more lately? Here's Abby's dog Daisy, born on 1st September (hence the name), enjoying her morning walk in the sunshine. 

This week is Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori or Maori language week. Did you know that Te Reo Maori is one of two official languages in New Zealand, alongside New Zealand Sign Language? Yes, you read that correctly, English is not actually an official language in New Zealand!

We are always trying to improve on our Te Reo and thought this phrase was fitting:

Taringa whakarongo -  let your ears listen! 

In this month's newsletter:

• Shining the spotlight on Tom Bailey
• A rundown on the Northwest Auckland Business Network's Allied Health Evening
• Abby's experience at the recent New Zealand Audiological Society Conference
• Our 300th Google Review!

This month, we are excited to introduce you to Tom Bailey - a talented local stage director who has travelled the world working in the theatre industry. As one of our younger patients, he shares a fresh and interesting perspective of his journey with a sudden hearing loss.

Tom Bailey

Tell us about yourself

Well, I’m not long back in the country after 10 years of living and working in the UK, with a short stint working for a cruise line; which worked out quite well in order for me to travel and work at the same time. I saw some incredible places while I was working for Royal Caribbean having travelled to Asia, Australia/New Zealand, Europe and the Caribbean. 
 
I’ve always had a passion for the arts, and have spent my working life in theatre. I am a stage manager, so spend my working life backstage helping to make the magic of theatre happen. This requires me to have my head in multiple conversations at any one time. Whether that’s listening to what’s going on onstage, while also calling the show and communicating with my technical team, or listening to multiple audio sources at once, for example 2 characters talking over one another, and soundtracks or effects happening at the same time. You don’t realise how much you rely on good hearing until you’re in a position where your hearing has been reduced.

I’m not sure I’d know how to start when it came to a 9 to 5 office job. When I’m not working I find myself engaging in my other interests of history and photography.

Tell us about your hearing loss and when you first noticed it
I’d woken up one morning feeling like I’d got water in my ear, but this also felt different. I also had a very stuffy feeling in my sinuses. I’d noticed at that point I was also struggling to hear out of that ear properly. Conversations seemed further away, and I was struggling to properly engage with what was going on around me.

Prior to getting a hearing aid, how did your hearing loss impact your life?
I’d noticed a significant reduction in my hearing, and being in one ear was making me feel quite unbalanced, and the onset of tinnitus had also been greatly irritating me. I had found that I was not engaging as much in conversation, and that I was grumpier as a result of a combination of the tinnitus and the unbalanced feeling. 

The biggest difference was for me at work. I was struggling to keep up in a rehearsal room, or in conversations with my colleagues and was relying more heavily on lip reading to understand what was being said to me. 

At what point did you realise you needed to do something about your hearing?
I’d realised quite early on, when my hearing wasn’t quite right and my ear felt like it had water/fluid in it that I needed to get this looked at. After some setbacks, and a lot of waiting, I was referred to Abby by my new GP, at which point things finally started to happen and we were able to get things on track.

Did you do any research about hearing solutions before coming to Hobsonville Hearing?
No, at the start of this journey I was very much new to the world of audiology, Abby has been so great to have on this journey, I can’t imagine things going any more smoothly. 

Tell us about your hearing aid journey and how it has impacted your day-to-day life

So a long story short, after a particularly annoying ear infection, less than ideal treatment elsewhere and several months of waiting, [my] new GP referred me to Hobsonville Hearing, and said Abby would be able to help. He was not wrong. Upon coming to Abby, I had been struggling with the hearing loss that had resulted from the aforementioned ear infection. Abby was able to diagnose this almost immediately, and we were able to access my need for a hearing aid. Having come to the conclusion that I would benefit from a hearing aid, the process of trialing and fitting was very smooth, and Abby expertly guided me along the way, even the slightest of changes haven’t been a hassle and we’ve been able to get the best out of the hearing aid technology that I chose. 

The difference has been night and day really; from being in a position where I was struggling to keep up with what was going on around me and finding loud and busy environments more challenging, to feeling like I’m pretty much back to “normal” and able to hear what’s going on around me with ease again. 

Abby and I were able to take full advantage of the technology available with my hearing aid, including tinnitus relief, and [Oticon] My Music programming. Both of which have been great resources to have to hand both in and out of work. The improvement has been vast, and at times when I’m wearing it, I forget that I have any hearing issues, and its only when I take it out, or purposely mute it, I am reminded at how great an impact its having on me. 

Tom working as a stage manager

Please note: if you or anyone you know ever experiences what they feel is a sudden change to their hearing, please tell them to contact their closest audiologist immediately. Early treatment can, in some cases, help to restore the hearing. A full diagnostic hearing test is necessary to diagnose this and the audiologist should liaise directly with your GP.

Abby was invited to present at another local event, hosted by the Northwest Auckland Business Network (NOWBIZ). She presented alongside a stellar team of allied-health providers, including Lilly from Hobsonville Hand Therapy, Lauren from Hobsonville Podiatry and Deb from Hobsonville Physiotherapy, all of whom are conveniently located in the same building as Hobsonville Hearing (in the Hobson Centre). 

It was a fantastic opportunity to introduce Hobsonville Hearing as the local audiology provider for the Hobsonville and neighbouring communities, and inform people about the services we offer. 

Abby attended the annual New Zealand Audiological Society (NZAS) Conference in mid-August - a long awaited event due to it having been postponed twice by COVID the last two years. The conference runs over the course of 3-days, filled with New Zealand and international researchers to speak about to the latest developments in hearing healthcare. 

The event also includes the NZAS Annual General Meeting, where the new executive council members were elected. We are proud to share Abby was chosen as an Audiologist Representative on the NZAS council, where she will work alongside other NZAS council members to discuss important topics related to audiology practice in New Zealand.

We are still proudly Auckland's top-rated audiology clinic on Google, now with over 300 Google reviews! You can read our 300th review below:

We are grateful for all feedback we receive. As a small business, reviews are a big part of why customers choose our clinic - we work hard to ensure you have a positive and comfortable experience in the clinic. If you would like to leave us your feedback, you can leave us a Google review by clicking the link: https://g.page/r/CdJa297NENoyEAg/review

We are on social media - and would love for you to like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram for regular clinic updates! We are currently holding a giveaway on our Instagram page where you can win a pair of custom musician's / concert ear plugs. To enter, find @hobsonvillehearing on Instagram.

Click the icons below to check out our social media pages.

As always, we are here to help you with all of your ear-related needs:

Visit our website at www.hobsonvillehearing.co.nz

Email us on [email protected]

Call us on 09-930-9880

Or visit our clinic during opening hours 8:30am - 5pm Monday to Friday,

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