What changed things was a program almost nobody talks about: state vocational rehabilitation. Every state has a version of this department, just under a different name. The idea behind all of them is the same: If a disability is standing between you and a job, the state will help remove it. Hearing loss counts. Hearing aids count.

Overall our findings suggest that differences in speech-in-noise ability may reflect a combination of early auditory processing, attention, and how strongly the brain represents target speech compared with background noise. 

Cerumen (earwax) moves like a conveyor belt, removing the debris laterally and outward toward the opening of the ear canal where it flakes off. 

Stigma, cost, access. Three people I loved, three different barriers.