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Aiden's Story
"Aiden was born October 2, 2010..."
I had an easy pregnancy, except for my husband being deployed for most of it. When it finally came time to have my scheduled c-section, I was nervous, but ready!!! Minutes seemed like hours, but when I heard my son cry I was so relieved!! He was beautiful, and perfect in every way. There he was with a little round head and a smirk on his face. I had an instant bond with him, he was and is my only son.
He was so healthy, so I never thought he would fail his hearing test, but he did, in both ears. After a repeat newborn screening and an ABR it was confirmed, profound hearing loss in his left and mild to slight in his right. Aiden was fitted for hearing aids and wearing them by the time he was about 9 weeks old. After we got the hearing aids we were sent to a hearing loss clinic and discussed different causes with several doctors and two audiologists. They all were thinking it was caused by genetics, but after testing the results were negative. After a few weeks had passed I received a call from one of the doctors, he asked me if he could have Aiden’s newborn blood tested for CMV. I said yes, but I had never heard of it before. I didn’t give it much thought because Aiden was so healthy and I never expected it would be positive, but it was.
Now I’m not going to lie, I am scared for Aiden. No child deserves any of this. But he is very blessed, Aiden is 10 months old now, and he is a very happy and healthy little boy. His eyes are fine, he can rollover, and he is trying to learn to crawl. But he does have a developmental delay. He cannot get into the sitting position by his self yet, but he can sit up for a really long time if I sit him up. He isn’t pilling up on his own yet, but he does if I help him. He says momma a lot and already knows a few signs. He recently started physical therapy and is going to get orthopedic braces to help keep his toes straight and his ankles not to roll. His hearing loss may be progressive but we don’t know for sure yet.
We have been blessed in so many ways in our journey with Aiden so far. We have met so many amazing people and I have found more strength in myself than I never knew I had. Through our early intervention services we met Erin and she has helped us in more ways than she will ever know. She works for Family Conversations and comes to our house once a week, to teach us SEE sign, so Aiden will be able to speak and sign. Between her stories, sweet nature, and really caring about Aiden, she gives me hope that he will have a normal life. She has also taught me that hearing aids and braces on his feet are just accessories, and to be proud of them. We are very fortunate to have her in our lives.
My family as well as my husband have been great throughout all the appointments, worries and the shock of Aiden’s diagnosis. The army keeps us far away from home, but the support my mom gives us is amazing. Even though she is hundreds of miles away she has been a huge part in helping us through all of this. Our family is extremely grateful for the fact that he is not severely affected by CMV. So many people have asked me how I deal with his hearing loss so well, and honestly I feel like the luckiest person in the world to be Aiden’s mom, his hearing loss isn’t a big deal, he is alive and healthy and to me that’s all that matters. I am so proud of both of my kids and will always support them.
I think every milestone Aiden reaches is a miracle, at ten months old he has taught me a very important life lesson, just because a doctor labels you disabled doesn’t mean you are. If I could give another parent any advice about this it would be, don’t let CMV define your child, and don’t ever give up on them. Aiden was born beautiful and perfect and he still is. I love my son more than words could ever say, and I thank GOD for blessing us with such an amazing little boy. I don’t know what the future holds for him but I do know one thing for sure, my son is kicking CMV’s butt one day at a time..."
- Shared by his mother, Kara