Hearing Loss: Come introduce yourself and connect with others
Welcome to the Hearing Loss group on Mayo Clinic Connect.
This is a welcoming, safe place where you can meet people living with hearing loss, and friends and family supporters. Whether you were born deaf or hard of hearing, experienced hearing loss after birth or with aging, it helps to connect with others. Together we can learn from each other, support one another and share stories about living with hearing loss, coping with challenges and celebrating milestones.
Let’s chat. Why not start by introducing yourself? What is your hearing loss experience? Got a question, tip or story to share?
Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Hearing Loss Support Group.
Hi @mmyatt01757 you may have noticed that I removed your email address from your post. I did this because we recommend not sharing personal contact information in a public online forum. We don't want you to get unwanted spam as a result. Instead we recommend using the private message functionality. However, I would like to point out that by sharing on the forum, your messages benefit many and we can all learn from each other.
Back to you @mmyatt01757 what is your story? Why did you get very involved with your local HLAA chapter?
@asklar02492 I think this response is to me. Yes, Northborough would be even further than Wakefield, unfortunately.
Thanks for suggesting though.
JK
@mmyatt01757 Thanks for the input. It was recommended to me by two very well regarded audiologists but they don't have hearing problems themselves.
As I said, I have not read a lot of the book yet, but I did see the section on hearing aids and was quite surprised that she leaves out Oticon! That's one of the most popular brands I believe.
I just checked out her websites and she also gives some leads on other books that sound potentially interesting. I had assumed she was involved with CHC in NYC but when I read her bio I discovered that she is not. I read about her book on one of their email blogs.
JK
Hi - You are in New Hampshire? I am in MA but I spend a lot of time in Maine. I am working on building an HLAA chapter in Portland, ME. I will be attending the HLAA conference this spring and will be going to all the chapter workshops. I plan to meet with an audiologist at Maine Medical to start strategizing. Would you be interested in working together - you in NH and me in Portland - sharing ideas and tactics? Giving each other ideas and encouragement?
I am 61 and have worn hearing aids since I was about 30. In recent years, my hearing got worse, and I wanted more strategies, technology, ideas and camaraderie. I asked my audiologist (a bad audiologist, I now know....) if there were any support groups out there and she said no. I googled and found the local chapter. I went and it was like I died and went to heaven! People wearing hearing aids! People struggling! People advocating for themselves in a hearing world. It was wonderful. I have been active for about 5, 6 years. Thank you for asking, Margaret
@davekoh You sound like you're ready for a cochlear implant. My loss was severe to profound (in other words, off the chart). My speech discrimination went from 40% to 90-95%. Such a miracle. I use a hearing aid in my other ear. Medicare pays for most of it and if you have a supplement, you're all in. You will find it to be one of the best things you've done in your life.
@frozsquash Your story reminds me slightly of my daughter's. I recognized her hearing loss before the doctor would confirm it or send her for hearing tests. Her loss at that time was not severe though so her speech and language had not been compromised, she was actually above age level -- I guess I was compensating by speaking a bit louder when I was talking to her. She got hearing aids when she was 4.
She was great about them through grade school but did suffer from some bullying in middle school and HS, and started wearing just one aid so she could push her hair back on one side. When she started college she knew she had to be able to hear everything so she did resume wearing two aids.
@mmyatt01757 How would we work together? Are you thinking of a chapter in NH too, that would be great. Portland is almost two hours from me, we were just there overnight on Friday. Let's PM to discuss further.
JK
Hearing these encouraging stories about cochlear implants is giving me so much hope that I can do something if my hearing loss gets to the profound stage. Thanks.
It's unfortunate that Northborough is so far but it sounds as if you could be working on something closer! Should I be doing something different in my email replies? - I've just been hitting the reply button
I'm glad I mentioned the Northborough chapter! It was the first HLAA meeting I visited and it was very inspiring. You've been doing a lot of good work. I've been travelling to Connecticut lately because the drive is a bit easier for me, but I'll probably show up again in the late Spring. Ann