Tell us about yourself (interest, work, anything interesting, etc.)

My family came from England when I was 16, in 1959. After 6-months at school, I commenced nursing training in New Plymouth. My nursing career mainly involved cardiac training, especially for children. I worked in England, the USA, and Vietnam (during the war with the New Zealand Surgical Team). I then worked with the Save the Children's fund, [what was back then the] Crippled Children Society, ending my career working for Plunket Line in Auckland. It has been interesting and fulfilling.

I am now retired and living at Summerset at Monterey Park Retirement Village in Hobsonville. My first husband died from cancer when our daughter was 9 - she is now a mother of four! My present husband and I have been married for 21 years. We have settled happily into the village.

Tell us about your hearing loss and when you first noticed it.

I first noticed that I had a hearing problem a few years back. It was particularly challenging to understand conversations in a crowded room.  I had to increase the volume of the TV and the radio. I needed to ask friends and family to repeat themselves.

Prior to getting hearing aids, how did your hearing loss impact your life and at what point did you realise you needed to do something about your hearing?

Did you do any research about hearing solutions before coming to Hobsonville Hearing?

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

I became lazy with my hearing aids and during COVID, I lost them twice (make sure you have insurance!) One night, I lost them after they were knocked out of my ears when putting my coat on when leaving a restaurant. We drove home and realised I didn't have them. In the morning, we returned and retraced my steps - we found the hearing aids, but both of them had been run over by a vehicle.

Fortunately, I did have insurance and I was able to replace them. Then, I lost one of them again, which required another insurance replacement.

I had talked with friends in the village, who recommended Hobsonville Hearing. That's when I came to Abby; boy, what a difference! She was so thorough and explained the workings of hearing aids so well. She gave me advice on how to look after them, especially cleaning and keeping them safe (always carry the little hearing container!)

Wow - how my life has changed since having hearing aids. I hear so much better and don't become stressed over not hearing. I love that phone calls, radio, podcasts and music can stream to my hearing aids. There is even a phone app to help you where necessary. Abby and Phoebe are always available to talk; nothing is too much trouble. I wish them well in their new venture - so exciting for Abby.