From telephone calls to kindergarten, cochlear implants are opening up a new world for one Menlo Park family
Rising before the sun on July 23, Sarah and Todd McBride knew one thing for sure: Within hours, doctors at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford would perform a cesarean section on Sarah and the couple would be parents of a second child.
Two questions remained, though.
The couple had opted not to be told the gender of their baby, choosing the names Tucker William and Madeleine Charlotte to cover their bases. In addition,
no prenatal test exists to determine whether a baby can hear; the McBrides wouldn't know for days whether little Tucker or Madeleine would be born profoundly deaf like Sarah, Todd and their first child, Samantha.
Todd had a feeling the baby would be a boy and would be able to hear. Sarah thought the baby would be a girl and would be deaf like the rest of her family.
They were both half right.
Hearing aids are now being replaced with cochlear implants. This family represents three of over 20,000 in the U.S. who have gone through the procedure, and who are thriving, as a result. Blessings to them, and all those like them who aspire to hear.
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