Once I realized that hearing loss isn’t anything to be ashamed of, little by little, I started to speak up for myself. The more I did, the more confident I felt. This confidence has reached all areas of my life.
10 Ways to Develop Accessibility in the Workplace
Accessibility is making sure everyone—whether disabled or abled—has easy access around the workplace as well as its facilities. The concept of accessibility at work goes far beyond physical access and involves so much more.
‘Hear’ I Am
I wrote a book, “Hear I Am,” several years ago about helping people with hearing loss and other disabilities to be able to graduate from college and work at a job with the proper accommodations in place. In the book I model through examples about how I persevered in college and then in the workplace.
I’m An Audiologist and I Don’t Like Fitting Hearing Aids
I’m an audiologist and part of being an audiologist is understanding how to protect your hearing. While I do protect my ears, I most certainly know what it means to abuse my hearing. High decibel levels from music and other loud sound sources can cause permanent hearing loss.
A Love for Hearing, A Love For Life
If there was ever a time to live with hearing loss, it's now. Technology has improved exponentially in recent years, and the internet has allowed people with hearing loss to participate in communities and real-time conversations in a way that used to be almost impossible.
Old Normal
If there was ever a time to live with hearing loss, it's now. Technology has improved exponentially in recent years, and the internet has allowed people with hearing loss to participate in communities and real-time conversations in a way that used to be almost impossible.
A Community, Shared
Like others with hearing loss I still sometimes have to fake being able to fully hear, but I have gained much more confidence and do not hesitate to ask people to recognize my hearing loss and make accommodations. I stay current on the newest technology for hearing loss and look forward to receiving this magazine to catch up on the HRP’s research efforts and each year’s new Emerging Research Grants scientists.
Teaching by Example
I am open with my students about my hearing loss. I want them to be as comfortable with it as I am, and understand it requires some adjustment on their part, just as it does on mine. In order to hear them I have to ask for silence in the classroom when another student is speaking, because background noise is a killer when I am trying to listen to someone individually.
Valleys and Peaks on My Hearing Loss Journey
My hearing loss journey has been gradual—like driving slowly up into high mountains on a twisty road, adjusting to changes in altitude at each major peak. I have been hard of hearing since my 20s, with hearing loss accelerating in my 30s to 50s, and now stable with small age-related changes each year.
Are You Faking It?
“Fake it until you make it” is a common phrase most of us have heard at some point in our lives. While I don’t remember when I first heard these words, I do recall receiving this advice multiple times early in my career from colleagues and mentors of all ages.