Special moment as Anna hears for the first time

THE extraordinary and emotional moment in which a
two-year-old Northside girl hears sound for the first time in her life will be
shared with viewers of a television documentary to be aired next week.

The touching scene of Anna Murphy’s cochlear implants
being switched on will undoubtedly send tears flowing in households all over
the country when it’s featured on the Temple Street Children’s Hospital TV
series on December 12.

Ann was born profoundly deaf and heard sound for the
first time following a successful cochlear implant surgery.

The documentary follows the journey she and her
parents take from her diagnosis, to surgery and finally to the touching day
when the implants were switched on for the first time.

Speaking to Northside People, Anna’s mum Lorraine, who
hails from Rivervalley in Swords, described Anna’s journey.

“We knew quite early that there was something wrong
with Anna,

? she said.

“She wouldn’t stir if she heard a pot banging or even
a noise as loud as the house alarm.

“She wasn’t babbling and making noise when she was
four or five-months-old like other babies but it took so long for us to get a
diagnosis.

“We were pushed from pillar to post so we eventually
decided to go privately to get a proper hearing test.

“It confirmed our worst suspicions but at the same
time we were glad to have some closure, some answers.

?

Anna was quickly identified as an eligible candidate
for cochlear implants and had the surgery two days before her second birthday.

“We were only too glad of the camera crew because it
was a distraction,

? Lorraine explained.

“I would have been walking the walls and
clock-watching when she went to surgery if the film crew weren’t with us.

“They were very sensitive and I always joke that it
was like having a counsellor behind a camera. It kept us occupied and took the
edge off the nerves and worry we felt.

?

Surgery on the little tot took an hour longer than
expected as the Temple Street surgical team delicately manoeuvred around the
facial, optic and pace nerves to insert the cochlear implants.

The documentary captures the moment one and a half
months later when the implants were turned on.

“It was absolutely amazing, so special,

? she recalled.

“The doctors didn’t expect that much of a reaction
because it can take children a while to realise that they can suddenly hear.

“But Anna’s reaction was brilliant. She started
playing with musical instruments and was her own

‘one man band’.

“Once the cameraman left the room we just fell apart
crying like babies we were so happy.

?

Anna hasn’t stopped making noise since, her mum
Lorraine joked and she’s happiest when she’s babbling as loud as she can.

Anna is considered medically as if she is a newborn
baby in relation to her speech and language development as she has just begun
to hear sounds.

However, doctors expect that by the time she reaches
seven-years-old that she will be on par with a child of her age.

To show their appreciation to the staff of Temple
Street Hospital, Lorraine, her family and friends organised a massive benefit
night to raise

?¬16,000 which will go towards providing rehabilitation tools for
a specialised speech and language unit in the hospital. The cheque was recently
presented to the hospital.