Sophy Henderson from Ross-on-Wye, was born partially deaf, and has now been part of a case study for actiononhearingloss.org.uk, to raise awareness of hearing loss, as part of Tinnitus Awareness Week which was February 5th-11th.

Sophy is 25 and was born deaf, which she told the Ross Gazette was picked up at pre-school at the Larruperz Centre in Ross, and she had hearing aids fitted. Sophy said that she didn’t realise until her teens that she also had tinnitus, and “thought it was normal.”

“I’ve had tinnitus for as long as I can remember. I was always aware of it but I didn’t know what it was, or that it was called tinnitus, until I was much older. I just thought it was normal and that everybody heard what I was hearing. It’s connected to my partial hearing loss, which I’ve had since birth, caused by swelling on the brain.”

Sophy attended John Kyrle High School and went on to study equine at college in Holme Lacy, but struggled when horse riding, as she couldn’t see the instructor and their lips moving while sat on the horse.

The audiology department at Hereford Hospital provided the instructor with a mic link to Sophy, so that she could hear.

She said: “I didn’t go out much when I was younger, especially to clubs, unless I was with my close friends who understood my condition. I find that noisy environments can aggravate the tinnitus so I avoid them if I can – this can affect my social life at times, but in all honesty it doesn’t feel like much of a sacrifice to protect my ears.”

Sophy got married in 2016, and now has a 10-month-old daughter. She said the struggle really began when she was ‘expecting’ her daughter.

“On a day-to-day basis, tinnitus is an incredibly frustrating and debilitating condition to live with. I often think I’m hearing something – and it just isn’t there. I have a 10-month-old daughter and I often think she’s crying so I rush to her – only to find she’s fast asleep and it’s just the tinnitus. It’s very upsetting. Sometimes the tinnitus is so high-pitched I think I’m hearing the smoke alarm, which puts me on edge, especially when I’m home alone.”

Sophy and her husband got in touch with Deaf Direct, who assessed Sophy’s situation and fitted her a new doorbell, and sent the fire service to fit her a new fire alarm free of charge.

“I now have a pager, which vibrates when the doorbell rings or the smoke alarm goes off, and another gadget that detects my baby crying so I’m not rushing to her every five minutes! My husband is very understanding too and has become my ‘ears’.”

“Living with tinnitus is not easy, but I have learned to cope. I put TV or music on if it’s really bugging me in the daytime. Or I busy myself to detract from the noise. I read that hearing aids help, but I already wear them anyway.”

“I couldn’t do a job that involved answering the phone, so for calls for car insurance etc., my grandad is my secretary!”

Sophy told the Ross Gazette that she’s never classed herself as deaf, because she can hear through her hearing aids.

She said: “I always wanted to find something local, because I’ve always felt on my own - even though I’ve never let it stop me. My parents took me to groups in Hereford, but I was never really interested because they were groups of people who were completely deaf and using sign language, and I didn’t feel like I fitted in. The partially deaf are excluded, even though it’s just as hard.”

Sophy added: “There needs to be more deaf awareness for employers, and help to make the workplace more suitable - such as special phones which you can buy.”

Sophy will also be supporting Deaf Awareness Week which starts on May 15th.