1. < Hearing Loss
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Hearing Loss: Come introduce yourself and connect with others

Posted by Colleen Young, Connect Director @colleenyoung, Feb 5, 2019

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.

arrowshooter | @arrowshooter | Sep 10, 2019
In reply to @johnbishop "@arrowshooter -- Do you have a Batteries Plus store near you? I had them replace the..." + (show)
@johnbishop

@arrowshooter -- Do you have a Batteries Plus store near you? I had them replace the battery on my wife's iPhone 6 Plus and it was cheaper than sending it to Apple or taking it to an Apple certified repair center. If you schedule the repair online you can get a $10 off coupon. https://www.batteriesplus.com/product-details/device-repair/device-repair-in=store/un=branded/ris11109

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Thanks John. If it were a big problem I'd have it solved by now one way or another.
First of all I don't believe VA would authorized a new phone for "medical" reasons when other means will control my hearing aids.
Apple says Batteries+ is NOT an authorized dealer and shouldn't be used.
It is sort of a 50-50 call on replacing battery or replacing phone at this point.

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1 reply
arrowshooter | @arrowshooter | Sep 10, 2019
In reply to @judyca7 "Jim.... good for you for learning ASL. I am looking into studying that as well. My..." + (show)
@judyca7

Jim.... good for you for learning ASL. I am looking into studying that as well. My daughter wants to take classes with me which would be great since I will have someone to sign with. Are you doing classroom learning or is this on your own or online? I've read that learning a new language does help your brain as well. I am afraid of eventually losing my hearing completely and want to be prepared for this. Good luck to you. Judy

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judyca7, I'm glad to hear of your interest in ASL. I'm going to start a new thread on this because I think others may want to participate in the discussion. You ask some very good questions.

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Mentor
John, Volunteer Mentor | @johnbishop | Sep 10, 2019
In reply to @arrowshooter "Thanks John. If it were a big problem I'd have it solved by now one way..." + (show)
@arrowshooter

Thanks John. If it were a big problem I'd have it solved by now one way or another.
First of all I don't believe VA would authorized a new phone for "medical" reasons when other means will control my hearing aids.
Apple says Batteries+ is NOT an authorized dealer and shouldn't be used.
It is sort of a 50-50 call on replacing battery or replacing phone at this point.

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@arrowshooter - Apple always says that not authorized dealer baloney. Any tech can swap out a battery. It was my iPhone 6 when I had Batteries Plus replace the battery because the phone was awfully slow performance wise. After replacing the battery it was returned to the performance like it had when I bought it. I gave the phone to my wife and bought a new one since she had an older android phone and the iPhone is (in my old guy opinion) much easier to use for seniors. In fact, the kids call it an old folks phone here. If I had the choice new phone or replace battery it's a no brainer -- get a new phone. It has more memory, better processor and will be faster for doing the different smart phone tasks.

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JK | @contentandwell | Sep 10, 2019
In reply to @arrowshooter "Hi, my name is Jim and I've had hearing loss since serving in Viet Nam which..." + (show)
@arrowshooter

Hi, my name is Jim and I've had hearing loss since serving in Viet Nam which has become worse over the last 50 or so years. I receive my audiology care at VA but have also used private practice audiologists as well. I have profound high frequency sensorineural healing loss which means I can hear noise well but can't understand speech. With hearing aids I can hear birds and crickets etc., but they don't help my speech understanding much. Drive-up windows, restaurants, loudspeakers in gymnasiums, and multiple people talking at once are impossible for me. Phones, and TV (with technology are OK) and one-on-one conversations face to face in quiet settings are OK too.

More recently I have started to learn ASL for 2 reasons. One, to improve my ability to communicate and two, to challenge my aging brain by learning a new language. I think both are successful. I advocated for a hearing loop in our church and I'm actively advocating for veterans with hearing loss. I'm happy to find this site because mutual support is so important to us.

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@arrowshooter Your hearing loss sounds very similar to mine. When I had my last hearing tests (I am due for one next month) it was two years ago. My hearing of sound had not changed much but my word recognition had decreased substantially. Interestingly, when I talk to my son, daughter, husband or sister on my Iphone I hear them very well. When I get a call that has to do with something else, like from a doctor's office of anything of that nature, it's impossible. Sometimes I intentionally let it go to voicemail because my phone captions the message.
I have the Oticon hearing aids with the Connect Clip. The Connect Clip is very helpful in some situations. It is good if you just want to hear one person. It does not help, nor does "live listen" if I put it on a table in the restaurant so I can hear the other people at the table because all of the extraneous noise also gets magnified.
I thought about ASL but I only know one person who knows it so I would only be able to communicate with her. She used to teach deaf children. I think for me learning lip reading would be more helpful.
JK

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1 reply
JK | @contentandwell | Sep 10, 2019
In reply to @joangela "Hello, My name is JoAngela. I have profound hearing loss. I am 58 years old. I..." + (show)
@joangela

Hello, My name is JoAngela. I have profound hearing loss. I am 58 years old. I wasn't always this old, but I have always had hearing loss since I was a young child. I have been on this site for a couple of months. I check in periodically. Anybody want to talk about the difficulties of hearing loss in a hearing world?

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@joangela Hi Joangela. My hearing loss started about 15 years ago and has gotten progressively worse over the years.

It is very difficult, and often depressing, to not be able to hear the conversation when I am trying to communicate with more than one person, and even worse when in a restaurant or at a function. My son was married recently and despite the joy of the occasion it was also depressing for me. There were other events surrounding the actual wedding and I was at a total loss. I find that phone conversations with anyone other than those with whom I am close are very difficult, particularly if I need to call customer service for something. Then you not only have the problem in hearing the person at the other end but often those jobs are done by people in other countries and they have strong accents. One time I kept asking to be put on with someone who could speak more clearly to me. I went through three different customer service people and ended up almost in tears by the time I got off the phone, and had not resolved the issue. When I know I have to make those calls I will sometime have my husband do it for me.
My last hearing test was two years ago and my hearing loss in one ear was profound, and in the other severe. I am scheduled for tests in October. I have Oticon Opn 1 hearing aids and have heard there is a newer model that is 15% clearer. It is tempting to buy new ones but will 15% really help that much? It's not as if they give these things away either. New ones will cost over $6000. My daughter used to work at the Center for Hearing and Communications in NYC. I am tempted to go there if I choose to get new hearing aids. I did get hearing aids there before once. The audiologist there is fairly renown and I am wondering if she might be able to do more for me than my local audiologist who I think is really very good also.
JK

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1 reply
tonyinmi | @tonyinmi | Sep 10, 2019
In reply to @arrowshooter "Hi, my name is Jim and I've had hearing loss since serving in Viet Nam which..." + (show)
@arrowshooter

Hi, my name is Jim and I've had hearing loss since serving in Viet Nam which has become worse over the last 50 or so years. I receive my audiology care at VA but have also used private practice audiologists as well. I have profound high frequency sensorineural healing loss which means I can hear noise well but can't understand speech. With hearing aids I can hear birds and crickets etc., but they don't help my speech understanding much. Drive-up windows, restaurants, loudspeakers in gymnasiums, and multiple people talking at once are impossible for me. Phones, and TV (with technology are OK) and one-on-one conversations face to face in quiet settings are OK too.

More recently I have started to learn ASL for 2 reasons. One, to improve my ability to communicate and two, to challenge my aging brain by learning a new language. I think both are successful. I advocated for a hearing loop in our church and I'm actively advocating for veterans with hearing loss. I'm happy to find this site because mutual support is so important to us.

Jump to this post

Hi Jim. Not being able to understand speech in noise is the biggest problem for most people with hearing loss. Hearing aids do help but you'll still have difficulties. Its best to utilize communication strategies to keep from going crazy. Move away from the noise source. You'll find that most people do not have a problem with moving outside the noisy environment. This is not always possible. For instance, when your sitting in a restaurant. A pass-around microphone or personal FM system may help.
Your reasoning for learning ASL was the same reasons that I tried using it. Unfortunately, unless your communication partner knows ASL, it does not help. It's excellent tool to exercise the brain though.
You may want to reach out to the Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA). They formed a group dedicated to veterans. You can find information here: https://www.hearingloss.org/hearing-help/communities/veterans/
Tony in Michigan

REPLY
2 replies
arrowshooter | @arrowshooter | Sep 10, 2019
In reply to @contentandwell "@arrowshooter Your hearing loss sounds very similar to mine. When I had my last hearing tests..." + (show)
@contentandwell

@arrowshooter Your hearing loss sounds very similar to mine. When I had my last hearing tests (I am due for one next month) it was two years ago. My hearing of sound had not changed much but my word recognition had decreased substantially. Interestingly, when I talk to my son, daughter, husband or sister on my Iphone I hear them very well. When I get a call that has to do with something else, like from a doctor's office of anything of that nature, it's impossible. Sometimes I intentionally let it go to voicemail because my phone captions the message.
I have the Oticon hearing aids with the Connect Clip. The Connect Clip is very helpful in some situations. It is good if you just want to hear one person. It does not help, nor does "live listen" if I put it on a table in the restaurant so I can hear the other people at the table because all of the extraneous noise also gets magnified.
I thought about ASL but I only know one person who knows it so I would only be able to communicate with her. She used to teach deaf children. I think for me learning lip reading would be more helpful.
JK

Jump to this post

Yep, lots of similarities. I have OPN and Connect Clip which works as you described. I also use it to connect to my computer for audio. I have the Roger mic as well and it works about the same (but with some differences) as Connect Clip.

REPLY
1 reply
arrowshooter | @arrowshooter | Sep 10, 2019
In reply to @tonyinmi "Hi Jim. Not being able to understand speech in noise is the biggest problem for most..." + (show)
@tonyinmi

Hi Jim. Not being able to understand speech in noise is the biggest problem for most people with hearing loss. Hearing aids do help but you'll still have difficulties. Its best to utilize communication strategies to keep from going crazy. Move away from the noise source. You'll find that most people do not have a problem with moving outside the noisy environment. This is not always possible. For instance, when your sitting in a restaurant. A pass-around microphone or personal FM system may help.
Your reasoning for learning ASL was the same reasons that I tried using it. Unfortunately, unless your communication partner knows ASL, it does not help. It's excellent tool to exercise the brain though.
You may want to reach out to the Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA). They formed a group dedicated to veterans. You can find information here: https://www.hearingloss.org/hearing-help/communities/veterans/
Tony in Michigan

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Are you Tony F who I met at HLAA convention in Mpls a year ago?

REPLY
1 reply
JK | @contentandwell | Sep 10, 2019
In reply to @arrowshooter "Yep, lots of similarities. I have OPN and Connect Clip which works as you described. I..." + (show)
@arrowshooter

Yep, lots of similarities. I have OPN and Connect Clip which works as you described. I also use it to connect to my computer for audio. I have the Roger mic as well and it works about the same (but with some differences) as Connect Clip.

Jump to this post

@arrowshooter I really need to learn the other functions of my Connect Clip, I only use it as a microphone on someone I am conversing with. I am completely unfamiliar with the Roger mic. I will have to check that out.
JK

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arrowshooter | @arrowshooter | Sep 10, 2019
In reply to @tonyinmi "Hi Jim. Not being able to understand speech in noise is the biggest problem for most..." + (show)
@tonyinmi

Hi Jim. Not being able to understand speech in noise is the biggest problem for most people with hearing loss. Hearing aids do help but you'll still have difficulties. Its best to utilize communication strategies to keep from going crazy. Move away from the noise source. You'll find that most people do not have a problem with moving outside the noisy environment. This is not always possible. For instance, when your sitting in a restaurant. A pass-around microphone or personal FM system may help.
Your reasoning for learning ASL was the same reasons that I tried using it. Unfortunately, unless your communication partner knows ASL, it does not help. It's excellent tool to exercise the brain though.
You may want to reach out to the Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA). They formed a group dedicated to veterans. You can find information here: https://www.hearingloss.org/hearing-help/communities/veterans/
Tony in Michigan

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Yes, I am already participating in the Veterans Across America Virtual Chapter. I have not seen any other reference to that Chapter on this site - yet.

I'm on the Veterans Outreach Committee in HLAA WI too.

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