Woman made deaf ‘through grief’ can hear 16 years later
A WOMAN who believes she went deaf from the trauma of losing her husband has regained her hearing – 16 years on.
Jacqui Thorpe, 54, developed severe tinnitus and became profoundly deaf in both ears following the death of Paul from a brain tumour.
Her condition deteriorated rapidly but spending £3,000 on hearing aids failed to help. As a result, Jacqui lost her sales administrator job and had to learn to lip read. She tried implants but nothing worked.
Sixteen years later, the mum of two from Pontefract, West Yorks, has been “given her life back” after being fitted with an NHS cochlear implant.
Now Jacqui can enjoy simple pleasures again, like birdsong. However it has been a long haul. She had quit her job to care for Paul but after a nine-month battle he died in January 2005 at just 39.
She said: “My hearing loss must have been because of the trauma I’ve been through.
“I was scared but I really didn’t moan about the hearing loss because I needed to hold myself together. But I’d lost my husband, my best friend, my children’s father – I was heartbroken.
“My tinnitus got worse and worse. Over 16 years, I’ve cried out for help but no one could.”
The gran of six decided to make a change in 2019 after taking her granddaughter to school and not hearing a word she said.
An audiologist referred her to a team performing cochlear implants – an electronic device that provides a sense of sound to the profoundly deaf.
Last December she went under the operation and by the New Year had regained her hearing.
She said: “It was my only hope and was a huge success. I love listening to the birds now. I’m now independent, more confident and much happier – it’s amazing.”