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Hearing Loss: Come introduce yourself and connect with others

Hearing Loss | Last Active: May 16 7:36pm | Replies (1456)
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@colleenyoung

Hi Len, great to see another musician on Mayo Clinic Connect. My axe is the French horn. What's your primary instrument? I just visited the New Horizons website https://newhorizonsmusic.org/ It sure looks like a lot of fun.

For anyone else interested, here's the link to the Association of Adult Musicians with Hearing Loss https://www.musicianswithhearingloss.org/wp/ The title of one blog listed on the website struck a chord (pun intended) with me "Deafened but Not Silent."

Have you considered getting a second opinion about the operability or treatment of your acoustic neuroma, also known as vestibular schwannoma? Note that a risk factor with surgery is also hearing loss.

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Replies to "Hi Len, great to see another musician on Mayo Clinic Connect. My axe is the French..."
Len Allman | @newhorizons | Jul 7, 2021

Hello Colleen
My main axe is/was trumpet. I stopped actively practicing/performing on it about 10 years ago. Part of that decision came from playing with a local university Wind Ensemble in which the percussion section was in very close proximity. to the trumpet section. At one point, I wrote (in pencil, of course) on a piece of music, "COVER LEFT EAR BEFORE DOWNBEAT!" My tinnitus went wild all the way home from rehearsals and into the next day. Subsequently I began playing Cello in our New Horizons String Orchestra. At the first rehearsal I was amazed at how quiet it was even with all members playing simultaneously. Lately, since I started teaching an adult beginning trumpet student, I've begun demonstrating on trumpet again. My schwannoma was diagnosed by a wonderful ENT Dr who referred me to Wake Forest University. There the schwannoma was confirmed as inoperable.
I'm attempting to find an audiologist through Sensaphonics in Chicago who has experience and training in working with musicians.
What has worked for you?
Best regards, Len Allman

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