Love the Luddite comment, as I know I was one a few decades ago. My Dad was an original! He was adamant that computers would destroy the world. (I would not argue with him on that now, as he may have been right!) I'm glad I came out of that closet though.

Diagnosed in my early 20s with bilateral progressive sensorineural hearing loss, I was actually relieved to be told by prominent members of the medical community that "nothing could help me that would ever be available in my lifetime". I didn't want to wear hearing aids. How horridly embarrassing that would be! Computers weren't there yet, and assistive listening technology wasn't even a phrase. 12 years after receiving that message I was stressed, depressed, frustrated and knew for sure that no one I knew had a clue what I was going through.

Once I accepted the reality that I truly wanted to hear, I realized that the only way to do that with my progressive bilateral sensorineural hearing loss was to open my mind to the technology that was available then, and to that which was in development.

I am so thankful for my cochlear implant, my hearing aid, and all the technology that keeps me in the hearing mainstream where I want to be. It did take a lot of acceptance to get there though. My denial and hesitation were a barrier. In my 80s now I hear better than I did 40 years ago! So thankful.