Better Hearing Consumer

I am deaf but not Deaf. I can hear but I’m not Hearing (term for someone who does not have hearing loss, which I have not capitalized for this article). So, what am I? Last night, we watched CODA (child of Deaf adults), the new movie about a family that has both Deaf and hearing family members. Mom, Dad, and

Have you been thinking about your self-care recently? You know the term – it means, well, it’s when you…OK, so what does it mean? Formal description: The practice of taking action to preserve or improve protect one’s own health and wellbeing, particularly during periods of stress. Casual: Anything that you intentionally do to take care of your mental and physical

What a difference captioning – all kinds of captioning – make when the spoken word just doesn’t make sense. I can’t remember when I first experienced the joyful liberation of closed captioning, but when I did, it meant the end to struggling to understand onscreen dialogue. The late 90s, maybe? I can’t even remember what we had to do to

When someone describes their hearing level using standard phrases, the rest of us can only get an idea of how well (or not) they actually hear. “I use a hearing aid.” OK, I’m guessing you hear really well? “I’m hard of hearing.” Not so good, hey? “I have hearing loss.” Really, what does that mean? “I’m deaf.” OK. Wait, what? How are you even hearing

It irks me when people with hearing loss, including me, are reluctant to ask someone to repeat themselves. But I understand the many reasons – and the consequences. If you don’t ask for a repeat of something you didn’t catch, that immediately puts you into the bluffing hole – which can quickly turn into a deep, dark bluffing pit. When this

I’ve had hearing loss all my life and it’s been a journey of shocks and triumphs, steps forward and steps backward. A life marked by steadily worsening hearing, but also of consistently evolving hearing technology that improved my ability to hear. One of the biggest changes in my hearing loss life has been receiving a cochlear implant (CI) in January

I like to hear – because with help, I can. And I can because I want to – and I want to because I’ve known what it’s like to hear reasonably well. I know the world of sounds, in all its deliciousness and its hideousness, and I understand the magnitude of sound’s ability to empower and connect. That’s why, living

Finally, the months of not seeing the grandchildren were coming to an end. There were guidelines on physical interaction to be followed, but at least we were going to be with them. And talk with them! Umm, that last activity actually works best if you’re a hearing person, like a Hearing Grandad, but not so well if you’re my kind

If you were to Google “inspiring words about hearing loss”, not much is going to come up. There are quotes but none of them are what one could call uplifting. Hearing loss can impose significant challenges to the easy flow of life. It changes how we do things, from simple conversations to how we carry out our work. For many

Happy 10th anniversary to me!  This summer marks a full 10 years that I’ve been writing the Better Hearing Consumer (BHC) column for the Hearing Health & Technology Matters (HHTM) website. Ten years! That’s longer than a lot of my past relationships (although going 30-years strong with the Hearing Husband!). Soon I will have posted my 500th blog! When HHTM was started by