Meet Mia.
Hi friends, my name is Mia! I am profoundly deaf and wear a cochlear implant on my right ear. I am excited to share my journey with you. You can also learn more on my IG account – @AllEarsWithMia!
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Just a few months after I was born, my parents noticed that I was not responding to noise and was sleeping through loud thunderstorms. So, they took me to a doctor to see what was going on. The first doctor told my parents there wasn’t anything going on, and to appreciate that I was able to sleep peacefully through a thunderstorm. As the days passed, I was still not responding to my name or any sounds, so my parents really wanted to get to the bottom of the situation.
After meeting with six different doctors, I was finally given a hearing test and failed— I was diagnosed as profoundly deaf at 15 months. In the 1990s, hearing tests were not part of the standard newborn screening, so that is why my deafness went undiagnosed at birth. My parents were completely shocked, as they did not know anyone who was deaf or where to start their research.
After a few months of their own research and learning, my parents found the DePaul School for the Deaf, which is located in Pittsburgh, PA. I began attending DePaul when I was 18 months old. DePaul focuses on lip reading and oral speaking for their students. I started off with hearing aids to see if they would work for me. The audiologist at DePaul was a major help and shared her knowledge about cochlear implants with my parents. She indicated that I would be a great candidate for cochlear implant surgery, considering I was profoundly deaf and would have a strong support system to help me with my recovery and speech/listening therapy. When I was three years old, I underwent cochlear implant surgery on my right ear. I continued my education at DePaul until I was mainstreamed into public school in 2nd grade.
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Public school was quite the adjustment for me after previously learning around other deaf children. I was now fully immersed in the hearing community, so I had to adapt to the different classroom settings and learning around hearing students. I participated in a few different sports to stay active, while also doing extra work on my speech after school. I joined the swim team when I was 12 years old, and while it came with its own challenges, I loved proving others wrong— that deaf people can swim, and win! I continued my swimming at Penn State Behrend for two years before transferring to Penn State University to finish my education. I graduated a few years ago and am now married with a successful career!
For my entire life, I’ve always felt “stuck in the gray area” – fully immersed in the hearing world, while not being fully accepted within the Deaf community (as I do not know or use sign language). But now, I finally feel comfortable sharing my story, and started an Instagram account last year to share my deaf experiences with the world! I feel that sharing my journey has really opened people’s eyes about the deaf culture and how everyone is on their own path. Being deaf is not “one size fits all”. I love connecting with others in the deaf community, parents of deaf children, and those in the hearing community who are curious!
Thank you for taking the time to read about my experiences and supporting us. If you would like to learn more, please give me a follow, @AllEarsWithMia on Instagram! Make sure you give @forthedeafgirl an Instagram follow too and continue to support the deaf community!
