Hear and Say

Nothing is holding 14-year-old Vivek back

Vivek fits the bill of an allrounder, he loves all kinds of sport, from cricket to soccer and even volleyball; he also enjoys playing the piano and signing in the choir at school.

When Vivek was one year old and living with his family in India, he was diagnosed with profound hearing loss.

Vivek got his first cochlear implant at one and a half years old, and moved to Brisbane shortly after.

“A frantic Google search for cochlear implant support brought us to Hear and Say. Being new to the country, in very unfamiliar circumstances, the support and understanding we received from the team was a blessing to say the least,” said Bindu, Vivek’s mum.

“I get goose bumps every time I drive past the original centre location; I tear up when I tell the story of how we found Hear and Say and the wonderful staff that helped Vivek to hear and speak,” she said.

“From responding to puppets playing hide and seek at our cochlear implant programming sessions, to learning cooking vocabulary in speech therapy lessons, Vivek blossomed through those initial years.”

At three years old Vivek got his second cochlear implant.

“Despite delays in getting his first and his second implant, Vivek was vocal and ready for kindy by the time he was four years old,” said Bindu.

“We were lucky once again and had extremely supportive and diligent kindy teachers. Vivek continued to build his vocabulary, stringing words into sentences, he also learnt to count, sing and write.”

Thanks to the hard work of his family, his cochlear implants, and specialised speech therapy, Vivek started school at five years old, alongside his peers.

“Hear and Say will always be Vivek’s life-long partners. The impact they’ve had, especially the love, care and professionalism of the staff, was evident when Vivek recently expressed a desire to consider audiology as a career option.”

Vivek with Australian Cricketer Marnus Labuschagne

Hearing and Speech Therapy

We’re here to help people of any age – babies and kids through to retirees.

• Hearing tests • Speech therapy • Hearing aids • Cochlear implants • Tinnitus support • Occupational therapy

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29 Nathan Ave, Ashgrove Qld 4060

07 3850 2111

hearandsay.org.au

Book an appointment today.