A viral YouTube video and dancing with Ellen Degeneres and One Direction—sounds like a dream, right?
Not for Alyssa Klepper (Aly). Aly is a California girl who’s letting nothing stop her from pursuing her dreams. Born with an unidentified neuromuscular disease, Aly is deaf in her left ear. As a fan of Hollywood, films and television, hearing is an important part of her life and future career. In the fall, Aly will attend California State University, Fullerton to pursue a major in film and television production. “I am currently taking two film classes at my school, and I cannot wait to take it to the next level at Cal State Fullerton! Every aspect of this field interests me, including the way a crew/actors come together and make something that can make you feel any emotion,” Aly explained.
Today, Aly’s story has reached over 150,000 people through YouTube. The video: Aly hearing with her Ponto Plus for the first time. “I decided on the Ponto Plus after trying out everything that was available to me. It was the clearest, and I had no doubts when choosing it.” Aly had the abutment implanted on June 28, 2013, and her Ponto Plus was activated on September 28, 2013.
Here’s the video:
Looking back, it was her love of television and of Ellen Degeneres that led her to discover the Oticon Medical Ponto Plus.
“I found out about these types of hearing aids by watching The Ellen Degeneres Show! I am a huge Ellen fan, and one of her guests was a woman whose video went viral on YouTube when she filmed the first time she heard. This inspired me to start researching because regular hearing aids weren’t working for me. After months of looking up information and doctor visits, my parents and I decided to undergo surgery and go for it! It was the best decision I have ever made.”
The impact of the story that Ellen shared inspired Aly to capture and share her own video. She posted it on ellentube, a video sharing site for Ellen fans. Aly wanted to inspire others who are contemplating a Bone Anchored Hearing System (BAHS). “I wanted to show them the great results I got from it!”
The video soon received over 100,000 views and was trending on the first page of ellentube. Aly and her mother got tickets to see the show live, and she was interviewed by the associate producer for being a fan of One Direction, who were guests on the show– and just so happen to be one of Aly’s favorite groups.
“I told her about my video on ellentube and she totally recognized me! I told her my story and she later personally told Ellen and her producer about me. During a commercial break, Ellen and my favorite member of One Direction came up to me and danced with me! It was the most amazing moment of my life, and I am forever thankful for what Ellen, her crew and One Direction!”
This isn’t the last time we’ll hear from Aly, who loves being able to showcase her talent and passion in film and television. “Anywhere on a set I am the happiest person!” She has shared that joy with tens of thousands of families, and will now be able to enjoy future experiences without hearing limitations.
Stay tuned, we’ll be sharing even more about Aly’s experience. You can learn more about the device Aly has, the Ponto Plus, here. To connect with Aly and other Bone Anchored Hearing community members, head over to the Oticon Medical Facebook Page, Twitter or Instagram, Or speak to a Ponto user like Aly today