Adolescence is an awkward phase. Being a cochlear implant user could make it more so. Some Cochlear Implant (CI) users bore the brunt of bullying in this period. Cochlear implant user Uzair (Mohd Uzair Mohd Rom) was a victim of such experience. Today, he works as a Repair Support Engineer at Cochlear in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Uzair Was Diagnosed Late and Had Struggled
The 28-year-old Malaysian was late in his diagnosis of hearing loss. Uzair’s mother sent him for a diagnosis when he was still not able to speak/hear properly at age 4. The doctor misdiagnosed him as having a learning disability to explain his lack of learning development. It was until when Uzair was 6 that he was first diagnosed with severe hearing loss. He started using hearing aids then. They did not help much. A more effective help came when he was implanted with CI on his right ear at age 11. He was implanted two years ago, in 2018, on his left ear.
Uzair had been in mainstream schools through his schooling journey. It was a rocky journey. He struggled to keep up with the class. It was not until when he was 11 that he could hear well enough to capture speech. It was then he started picking up vocabulary, grammar and speech. Secondary school years were not smoother for Uzair. His hearing needs and the speech processor often became the subject of ridicule by his peers. Uzair was struggling not only with studies but also with having friends.
Turning Point at University
He was tired of living the downtrodden life. He put in extra effort with three of his best friends in the final year of his diploma programme to pull himself out of the rut. Things turned for the better when he entered university. He pursued a bachelor’s degree in Electrical & Electronics Engineering at Universiti Tenaga Nasional (UNITEN), a private university in Malaysia. He met peers from different parts of the country and the world. Their constant care and encouragement brought him out of his diffidence. “I was afraid that what had happened when I was in Primary/Secondary school would repeat and think I behave like an idiot, or I may not hear or misunderstand what they say. But my friends refused to stop helping and kept pushing me to be more outgoing and confident,” Uzair said.
He started to learn to be comfortable under his own skin, and to mind less about others’ comments and opinions. Once shy and socially awkward, Uzair grew into a sociable guy known for his goofy manner and his signature broad smile throughout his three and a half years of university life.
Joining Cochlear
He did an internship with Cochlear in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia during his final year in university. He joined the team as a Graduate Engineer upon graduation. He was later promoted to the Repair Support Engineer role. He has been with Cochlear since March 2017. It was a dream-come-true for Uzair. He has always wanted to improve the living quality of those with hearing loss, especially for the young ones.
Uzair is well on track in proving that hearing loss is not going to stop him from living a meaningful life. Our success is the best response against stereotypes and prejudice targeted at people with hearing loss, Uzair said.
You could find more cochlear implant user stories here.
CI Project collects cochlear implant user stories. I’d like to invite you to join the private Facebook group. You’ll receive an update of each new story (about once a month) and will get to interact with the characters of each story there. I’m also looking for more cochlear implant user stories. I’d appreciate it if you could nominate a cochlear implant user (including yourself) for me to write a story about!