Back in the 1960s when Torben was growing up, single-sided deafness was something you just had to deal with. Torben was born with a lack of hearing on one side, and although he attended plenty of control visits to various doctors, nobody knew how to solve it. In fact, one doctor even suggested rinsing the ear with cold water, he remembers with a smile.

Overcoming deafness with coping strategies

“I had some bad experiences in school because of my hearing difficulties, but I coped by learning to lip-read and by making sure I always positioned myself on the right side of the person I was talking to,” he says.

Combined with his determined nature, coping strategies like these meant that his hearing loss has never stopped him from doing what he wanted to do. Before he became a teacher’s aide, he even worked for a time as a sound engineer in the music industry.
“Just because you have hearing difficulties doesn’t mean you can’t create good sound. I just made sure I had my good ear towards the instruments,” he explains.
 

Time to act 

However, as he grew increasingly annoyed with his hearing loss, his family prompted him to find out more about what could be done for single-sided deafness. “My wife and children noticed that the hearing loss had become more tiresome for me, and they suggested that I contact a specialist. Thankfully, times had changed, and there was a solution available that I wanted to try.”
The solution proposed was a Ponto bone anchored hearing device. The more Torben read and heard about the solution, the more he realised it could make a big difference in his life. Having consulted his GP and a hearing specialist, he made an appointment to have the surgery, which proved to be a simple procedure. “The implant was fitted under local anaesthetic in just twenty minutes, and I was home again the same day. I felt that I was in really safe hands.”

A few months later, after the sound processor had been fitted, Torben experienced sounds in a very new way. After fifty years of relying on coping strategies to hear properly, this was a dramatic difference.

Learning to forget the coping strategies

“It took some getting used to, as I had to unlearn fifty years of behaviour. Now I no longer have to worry about making sure my good ear is facing the right way and positioning myself so I can lip-read. Before, I used to spend a lot of time saying ‘Excuse me?’ and asking people to repeat themselves. I don’t need to do that anymore. I can take part in what is going around me in a completely new way.”

Torben admits that going from not hearing anything on one side to being able to hear clearly was challenging. “In many ways, it took me out of my comfort zone because I can now hear everything going on around me – right down to the birds singing and other people’s conversations. It took a few weeks for me to adjust”.
 

Wallet, keys... Ponto Plus

In spite of the big change that the sound processor has made, it didn’t take long for Torben to get used to it, and today his sound processor is just part of his life. 
“My sound processor feels like a pair of glasses – something you just put on in the morning. If I forget to put it on, I realise in the car on the way to work. Usually I turn back and get it, otherwise I know it will annoy me all day,” he says.
Torben’s wife and children have been right behind him throughout the process and have been able to see the change that the sound processor has made to his hearing. 
“When I upgraded to the new Ponto Plus Power, my family in particular really noticed the difference. It has given me much greater speech understanding and a better and more natural sound quality. I would almost go as far as to call it wonderful,” Torben says with a smile.

Enabling and enhancing digital communication 

To be able to use his Ponto Plus Power in even more communication situations, Torben has also started using the Ponto Streamer. The device connects with digital equipment like a TV, cell phone or PC and sends the signal directly to the sound processor.

“When my family has gone to bed, I can carry on watching TV using the streamer, and the sound is transmitted to my sound processor so as not to disturb anyone. I also use the streamer as a headset with my mobile phone when I’m in the car, which works really well. And I’ve also used it with teleloop systems at concerts,” he says.

Raising awareness of single-sided deafness 

As the sound processor is visible when worn, Torben can no longer hide his hearing loss the way he used to. But he tackles this by being open and honest about his condition, and he hopes that his attitude can help others facing similar challenges.

“The surgery makes an invisible disability more visible. I now get attention that I never used to. But I actually enjoy it when people ask me questions, because I can tell them about single-sided deafness. I see myself as an advocate for this now, and I would definitely advise others to get the system if they are considered candidates,” he concludes.