One look at a child and you will see the innocence and the beauty of the beginning of a life full of infinite possibilities. If you take a step back, it’s easy to understand why parents would stop the rotation of the Earth if it meant the promise of protection and safety for their offspring. Sarah Ivermee is one of these parents. Her first child, Freddie, was born a mere 3lb 9oz and had unfortunately contracted CMV (cytomeglavirus). This viral infection can cause a number of different physical and developmental issues, including deafness. Freddie suffered the total loss of hearing in his right ear and had moderate to severe hearing loss in his left. Deteriorated hearing is usually coupled with impaired lingual development, and as such, this youngster was deemed a suitable candidate for a cochlear implant to try to restore the ability to hear to his damaged right ear.
While this may be a good time to consider this story a success, this is only the beginning. As many of you know, any difference in appearance can be a source of insecurity or a reason for others to poke fun and ridicule. Sarah realized this problem, and in an effort to alleviate the potential insecurities, she developed a plan to make the hearing aid and cochlear implant more appealing. Initially decorating the units with nail stickers, Sarah’s experiment was a success and made way for an idea to help other children in need. While there were already websites offering DIY and crafty hearing aid decoration ideas, she noticed that there weren’t any pre-made kits available to make things really easy, so this is what she did…
The Creation Of Lugs:
Sarah created the company Lugs, and they have so many decorative kits to choose from!
TMNT- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles:
One of my personal favorites from my childhood!
The Super Fast Lightning McQueen:
What kid wouldn’t feel fast and awesome rocking the star of the movie CARS?
Holiday Cheer:
There’s no reason that your cochlear implant can’t be customized to spread a little holiday cheer!
More Holiday Cheer:
You’ve got to have the hearing aid match, right?
I Am Ironman:
This one transforms the little tike into Ironman, complete with his very own Arc Reactor!
Super-Heroes Galore:
If you have a hard time choosing your favorite super-hero, there’s no need to worry! Lugs has super-heroes galore to adorn your implants and aids.
Batman Or Spiderman:
You know how kids are, they don’t care if they match. Besides, if they can be two heroes today instead of one… Why not?
The Incredible HULK:
No one’s going to want to mess with this kid when he’s wearing his menacing Incredible HULK accessory.
These Minion Batman and Ironman custom hearing aids look like they’re a pretty good quality product and I am sure that they make the kids think that they’re wearing something truly awesome! Plus, who doesn’t love the Minions?
LUGS was created to help children with hearing aids and cochlear implants to not feel so different, to help them to not have to deal with being made fun of, and most importantly to help them want to wear their implants and aides to ensure that they’re living their lives as fully as humanly possible. Sarah simply makes these kits, in her living room, to allow people to dress up their hearing devices. She is satisfied with the reality that she is able to help many children with hearing difficulties to customize their devices and transform them into something that they can be proud to wear.