3.09.2007

Walk a mile

Last week Tristan lost his voice. Doesn't really sound like that big of a deal really, I mean what does a 4 month have to say ....

Turns out it was one of the hardest weeks for me as a mother.

Since Tristan lost his voice it meant that I couldn't hear him when he cried. Which, is not a problem when I am was with him. But it became a problem when (for whatever reason) he was out of eyesight. Normally if I left him in his bouncy or bumbo ... or if he was in his crib or the couch I would return quickly if I heard him cry... or at least be able to tell how much he needed me by the pitch, intensity and frequency of his cry. But last week, none of those tools were available to me. The worst was when I put him in his crib. I couldn't tell if he was having a hard time going to sleep or if he woke up crying in the middle of a nap or if he was done sleeping. I have a cheap monitor so I had to turn it all the way up to hear his strain.

Before this it hadn't occurred to me how much I truly rely on my hearing. I know that sounds silly... but I didn't. I guess I took it for granted. So it got me to thinking what it must be like for a deaf mom. What kind of techniques did they use to "hear" their baby. I am sure there must be a whole different style of mothering out there.

Have any of you experienced this or know someone who is deaf - what do they do???? If I get a chance to read about this later in the week I will let you know.

How limited my view and experience of the world really is.....

1 comment:

Jen said...

Let's talk about this. Which is cheaper? A monitor that picks up noises extremely well or a monitor with a video screen? Hmmm... Such a valid question...