Mariya, her mom, and I went to Sheba Hospital early this morning for Mariya’s hearing test appointment. The test was recommended by her neurologist because Mariya frequently doesn’t respond to sounds like people calling her name. It took a little creativity for the doctors to do the tests, as Mariya doesn’t talk, understands Turkmen better than any other language, and was not in a very cooperative mood, but they were very patient and understanding through the whole process.
It’s always a little challenging to do appointments outside of the cardiology clinic because we’re not familiar with the other buildings and clinics and often the secretaries and doctors aren’t familiar with Shevet. But today turned out a really lovely experience, and by surprise even gave Mariya’s mother and me an opportunity to meet the nurse who’s coordinating her kidney scan later this week. Every person we met was so kind and eager to help, even in unusual circumstances. In the end, when Mariya refused to go to sleep for the last half of the final test, the doctor and nurse immediately came up with a plan to finish the test when she comes back to Sheba on Thursday for a kidney scan in another building.
The results of the hearing tests were great– Mariya doesn’t seem to have any hearing impairment. This is good news, but does confirm our suspicion that she just likes ignoring us when we talk to her! It was an awfully disgruntled toddler we buckled back into her carseat for the drive home,
…but she cheered up as soon as we were back in the house.
…but she cheered up as soon as we were back in the house.