Our first case study (CS1) is Colin age 53 and living with Usher Syndrome Type 3 the rarest of the Usher types. Colin has worn hearing aids since he was 40 years old and is currently severely deaf and has been registered severely sight impaired (blind) for several years. Colin is oral.
Having worked full time in management until his early 40’s when the deafness and progressive blindness of Usher Syndrome became too severe feeling he had neither the tools or the support to continue so very reluctantly he chose voluntary redundancy.
Usher Syndrome began to take over
Having felt forced to leave full time employment Colin then attempted self employment in an endeavour to continue working. This also proved to be incredibly challenging as a result he could not continue. Usher Syndrome was making the decisions for Colin his blindness could no longer be compensated by his hearing.
Making adjustments
Cane training and some time later Guidedog training changed his life giving back the ability to be more mobile and more able to escape the isolation of the condition. Making new friends and finding a new found confidence Colin was able to more accept his condition.
Colin like most with Usher Syndrome wants to be busy so volunteers for charity. Socialising had become particularly difficult without sight and average sound from NHS hearing aids which so often made social environments difficult or unbearable. Being completely night blind and unable to hear environmental sounds and sounds of danger when out causes extreme anxiety and often causes many with Usher Syndrome to self isolate.
Colin was fitted with ReSound LiNX Quattro smart hearing aids on 16 November 2019.
Follow his story here.
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