Audiology: take one

Since I had a homebirth, all of the standard hospital procedures weren't done on Levin. I opted not to have erythromycin placed into his eyes, we chose an oral dose of vitamin K as opposed to the intramuscular injection, and he didn't receive an initial dose of hep B. (we did get that for him at his checkup though, so don't worry).

I recently received a letter in the mail from the State of Alaska that informed me that hearing tests are now required for all newborns. The letter needed to be signed for and it had a $6 postage sticker on it, so I knew it was something that I shouldn't take very lightly.

I never felt it necessary to test my child, but I definitely don't have any opposition to the test itself. But to be honest, I feel like a hearing assessment is unnecessary and pointless for us at this point in time. Obviously, had there been any reason for concern, I would have taken him in. But Levin has always been very alert and responsive to his environment. Always. I frequently examine my children, both physically and developmentally. Levi and I have naturally done so and I would never have thought for a moment that Levin needed any test to tell me that he can hear. We always make noises and ensure that he turns toward the sounds and move objects and ensure that he can follow them with his eyes. I know that Levin can hear. A test isn't going to reassure me that.

But needless to say, I decided to take him in anyways. The native hospital takes wonderful care of all my boys and I really wanted to stay in their good graces. I'm not out to be difficult and stand against something so petty, but the letter did get to me somewhat. I felt like the state was making me out to be a bad mother for not doing something so 'important' and that they were trying to push me into doing something that they felt was crucial. I have a lot of opinions about our modern maternity care system and I honestly feel that a lot of unnecessary interventions are taken. Some things are vital, but others aren't always necessary. And although hearing tests can prove useful in detecting early problems in some, I just didn't feel it was necessary for my 3 monther. Thankfully, Levin was a big, healthy, full term baby. His development has exceeded my expectations and there have been no areas that I feel need to be evaluated.

And just as I had expected, the appointment was indeed a waste of my time. I was not told that baby needed to be sleeping and his appointment was timed perfectly for after his two hour morning nap. Because I wasn't given proper instructions, the test was not able to be completed. We literally tried to test his right ear for 45 minutes until I stepped up and said that I needed to go. Never have I had to reschedule an appointment because my child was too happy. That was definitely a first! Levin was wide awake, smiling, batting/kicking, and cooing his little heart away. I think he really enjoyed all of the attention!