Better Hearing Consumer

Disclaimer: I have never trained or obtained a degree in the science of hearing healthcare. I do, however, have a lifetime of training as a person with hearing loss and I’ve worked with a lot of hearing care professionals. I’ve got a few hot tips to share.   If you have hearing loss, you most likely spend time on the

Having hearing loss is no cakewalk, but compared to some other conditions, it’s not so bad. It’s not the worst thing that could happen, or is it? It has been a sad week. Who has not been moved by the tragic deaths of Kobe Bryant, his daughter and seven other people? The world is shocked at losing a beloved, towering

If you have hearing loss, the above title might make you go, Oh, duh! What kind of person would be delighted to have hearing loss? Actually, I can think of someone – the person who was worried they were developing dementia. Hearing loss is a much easier diagnosis to deal with, don’t you think?  But once you’re over the profound

Some days, hearing loss can drain a lot of our energy. We have to work hard at hearing and understanding. “Hearing” people don’t put any effort into hearing. It just happens. A sound happens – and they hear it, registering it as a cough, a bell, a voice, whatever.  What they do with that knowledge is something else, but the

Happy New Year and Happy New Decade! There’s something catchy-sounding about ‘2020’, don’t you think? And speaking of catchy, that reminds me of my cats – who love to catch mice. And on the very rare occasion a mouse does break in, I find out about it only when I see the true-life game of cat and mouse, a gruesome

Dear Readers: During this holiday season, the editors at Hearing Health & Technology Matters (HHTM) are taking some time off. However, we are not leaving you without anything to read on our blog this week. Instead, we are publishing a special holiday edition filled with what we call our Readers’ Choices. Our Readers’ Choices featured this week are the posts

Dear Readers, This week in the Better Hearing Consumer, I write simply to wish everyone a holiday season that is stress-free and communication-joyful. When our family and friends speak with us in a way that is absolutely, perfectly easy to understand, we should let them know. We don’t have to grovel with gratitude, but we can share our pleasure in

When hearing aids are no longer strong enough, a cochlear implant (CI) can be life changing. For some people, it’s an easy decision to be implanted. For others who may still have some residual hearing, it’s not a slam-dunk next step. What if I get a balance problem or tinnitus? What if it just doesn’t work for me? What if

I recently wrote about the nerve-wracking experience common to people with hearing loss: Waiting For Your Name To Be Called. To people who can hear (well), this might not seem like a big deal. But in medical situations, or at an airport for example, waiting for audible information is a real source of anxiety in the hearing loss world. But

Dear Family, Every year, before Thanksgiving and Christmas and Hanukkah and all the other traditions observed in our fabulous extended family, I give you the same pep talk. You know the pep talk I mean – the one where I urge you to put some pep into how you talk with me so that I can follow conversations. Every year,