Better Hearing Consumer

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Feb. 26, 2013

Me and My Audie: A New Relationship

Gael Hannan
By Gael Hannan and Joanne Deluzio Editor’s Note: Last week, in How I Learned to Love My Audiologist, I talked about my ideal hearing health professional – someone who is client-centered and trainable. And I’ve been lucky to find a couple of those in my lifetime. However, my favorite audiologist is not my provider, but my friend and colleague Joanne
Feb. 18, 2013

How I Learned to Love My Audiologist

Gael Hannan
My audiologist is a Very Important Person in my life. She’s not at the very top of my “Favourite People” list – that’s reserved for family, close friends and the cats – but she’s close to it,  because she helps me live a good, communication-rich life. This philosophy makes me a bit of an oddball. The very fact that I use
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Feb. 12, 2013

One of Those (Hard of Hearing) Weekends

Gael Hannan
Have you ever had one of those hours, or days, or weekends when hearing loss seems to play a starring role as the bad guy? If you’re like me, your hearing loss is constant – it’s always there, like the air you breathe, the clothes you put on. It’s inescapable, and we live with it the best way we know
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Feb. 05, 2013

Vibrations – The Words of Youth with Hearing Loss

Gael Hannan
In April 2006, I was invited to St. John’s, Newfoundland to present at a special weekend symposium for hard of hearing and oral deaf youth, hosted by the Canadian Hard of Hearing Association, Newfoundland & Labrador chapter.  The youth were transitioning from high school to the big world beyond and  I was supposed to share my expertise as a ‘mature’ person
Jan. 28, 2013

The Hearing Loss Whisper Game

Gael Hannan
There are some things that people with hearing loss are not particularly good at, generally speaking: taking the minutes at meetings, hearing a pin drop, working as a UN translator, and playing the Whisper Game. In this game, also known as ‘Telephone’ or ‘Chinese Whispers’, a group of people sits in a circle or around the room. A written message
Featured image for “Why People with Hearing Loss Should Meet Other People with Hearing Loss”
Jan. 21, 2013

Why People with Hearing Loss Should Meet Other People with Hearing Loss

Gael Hannan
If you have hearing loss, do you know any other people with the same issues?  Beyond your grandma, have you ever met another hard of hearing or late-deafened or deaf person – swapped notes, shot the breeze, commiserated, shared battle stories and laughed at all the crap that goes along with hearing loss? If not, perhaps you’re happy being the
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Jan. 15, 2013

Meet Birgit Meyer – Hearing Health Advocate

Gael Hannan
Editor’s Note:  Entering the world of hearing loss, I felt like Alice going through the looking glass;  I was immediately immersed in a new universe populated with a large and expanding cast of people – interesting people who shared my issues and understood my challenges. Some have become close friends. Many have inspired me with their curiosity and passionate commitment
Jan. 08, 2013

The Power of the Hard of Hearing Bodybuilder

Gael Hannan
Editor’s Note: This week, I’m pleased to offer this powerful story from Jonathan Nicoll, a teacher,  a natural bodybuilder, and a positive thinker extraordinaire! Jonathan, a Canadian, was diagnosed at age 5 with severe to profound sensorineural hearing loss and wears bilateral digital behind-the ear hearing aids.  He is a teacher of deaf and hard of hearing children, a caregiver
Jan. 01, 2013

A New Year of Hearing Health

Gael Hannan
Are you tired of reading other people’s resolutions for the coming year? Personally, I’m saturated with the chest-thumping declarations, no matter how brilliantly written, that have been popping up everywhere – in the newspaper, on Facebook and LinkedIn and other social media. I just can’t do any more new year’s resolutions, including mine. So I’ve decided to scrap my original
Dec. 24, 2012

Readers’ Choice 2012: What I Didn’t Know About Hearing Aid Batteries

Gael Hannan
When considering a blog about hearing aid batteries, I thought “What’s to write? When I put them in, I hear. When they sputter out, I don’t. I put in new batteries. End of boring story.” On second thought, I’ve been “doing” hearing aid batteries for 37 years (I started young), and  I don’t usually think about them until there’s a