"Audiology and Autism"

My older toddler has been fairly non-verbal to date. Within the last few months, we have discovered that they are autistic, and we are starting to go through the diagnosis process.

Through WACHS speech therapy (shout out to the awesome Courtney!) and OT Sheridan we organised a referral for a hearing test run through Hudson Road in Bunbury.

After waiting patiently we got an appointment and met with Christy and Michelle who were amazingly patient and supportive. Although the appointment did not go well as my toddler was not cooperating because it was a whole new experience for them and they found it quite overwhelming.

Realising this Christy and Michelle arranged for a second appointment a month later to try again and in the meantime, we were to come in for a weekly session with Michelle to play, which would help my toddler feel more comfortable in the space as we all get used to/desensitise them to some of the equipment used.

Michelle really showed she understood my toddler, was very patient and let them take the lead while playing, whilst slowly introducing things like headphones and gently touching their ears. After three of these sessions, we had our second audiology appointment recently and I was so surprised at how well my toddler cooperated this time. This was only due to the extra appointments we made. It made such a huge difference and I could not feel more grateful for their efforts. We still have a little more work to do to complete the tests but with more 'play' appointments I feel confident we will get further results. None of this could have happened without the extra help we have received.