Matildas goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold’s “shock health battle” was longstanding hearing loss—not a sudden illness. She has said she remembers struggling to hear from childhood, often relying on lip-reading, and began seeking support in April 2023 after her brother encouraged her to do so.
What Mackenzie Arnold said about her hearing
In a 2024 interview with PerthNow, Arnold described hearing difficulty that she had known about for years. “I think I always knew I had an issue, but it only really became a concern for me in my later years,” she said. She recalled being hard of hearing as a child and using visual cues, including lip-reading, to follow conversations.
The COVID-19 pandemic made that strategy harder. With masks obscuring people’s mouths, Arnold said she found conversations more difficult, withdrew from group discussions and struggled to hear a drive-through speaker. Those are her descriptions of her own experience, not a clinical account of the severity or cause of her hearing loss.
Why she sought help in 2023
Arnold told PerthNow that her brother Sam, who had experienced hearing problems himself, was the biggest influence in her decision to get help. BBC Sport reported that she saw a specialist in London and collected her first hearing aids in April 2023. The timing marks when she began addressing the problem, not when her hearing loss began.
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Arnold said she noticed a significant improvement in her quality of life after addressing her hearing loss and became aware of sounds she had previously missed. She also said she hoped her experience would encourage others to feel comfortable getting their hearing checked earlier. That is her personal account; it does not establish what another person’s assessment or treatment might involve.
The context behind the story
PerthNow reported that Arnold attended Audika Hearing Clinics and became an Audika ambassador. It also quoted an Audika audiologist and reported results from a survey commissioned by Audika. Those commercial connections matter when interpreting the service references and survey figures in the story.
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The report said the survey found that 86% of respondents ranked sight as their most important sense, 73% considered hearing the more neglected sense when comparing hearing and sight, and 27% said they neglected hearing because they did not understand it or know where to start. These are figures from an Audika-commissioned survey as reported by PerthNow, not independently established population estimates.
In the same report, Lauren McNee, an Audika audiologist, said hearing loss can affect mental health and emotional wellbeing. The article also quoted Sebastian Ryan, national manager of clinical services at Lions Hearing Clinic, describing the clinic’s hearing care and research. These are attributed comments from the report, not independent comparisons of providers.
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Her football career and later reflections
Arnold discussed her hearing impairment in a 2023 profile published by FIFA while preparing for the Women’s World Cup semi-final. FIFA also reported that she saved three penalties in Australia’s quarter-final shootout against France. That sporting achievement provides career context; it does not explain or measure her hearing condition.
In an October 2024 program, ABC Radio National described Arnold’s memoir, MACCA: My Story So Far, as covering her hearing-loss experience, self-belief and career. It is a personal memoir, not a clinical guide to hearing loss.
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What the reporting does—and does not—establish
The public account establishes Arnold’s own recollection of longstanding hearing difficulty, her decision to seek support in 2023, and the improvement she says she experienced afterward. It does not specify a diagnosis or severity, identify a hearing-aid brand or model, or establish her current clinical status. Her story can help explain why hearing difficulty may go unnoticed or be worked around for years, but it should not be read as a treatment recommendation or promise of a particular outcome.
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