Kenzie taking control of his cochlear implants

Now Kenzie is five, he is becoming more and more independent with his cochlear implants every day.

He likes to take charge of the daily maintenance of his cochlears, including charging the batteries and popping them in the dry box. He's also now able to fully put them on and off himself without my help.

Kenzie has become a lot more confident in understanding different noise levels and environments. He will now ask to adjust the volume of his processors to suit him depending on where we are.

Currently, we use the Cochlear app on my phone to adjust the volume. If we’re in a loud environment such as a fair, he will ask me to turn his ears down. I will drop the volume down by one level at a time until he tells me to stop (normally from a 10 to a 6). He will then tell me when he is ready to turn them back up again.

He's able to change to his aqua kit and turn on his radio aid without my help now, which reassures me that he has the confidence to manage his cochlears himself if I wasn't around.

As he gets a little older, I will start using the remote to adjust his volume so he can take control of this himself and get used to adapting the volume to suit him. Kenzie also has his own phone, so when he's older, I will be able to add the Cochlear app on his phone so he can become even more independent.

He's so proud of his magic ears, and I love how he wants to take responsibility for looking after them. After all, they’re a big part of him and who he is.