Opening Topic for Open Chat Night: How to communicate with people in the hearing world

I was enrolled in hearing impaired classes at the age of three.  The teachers wanted me to learn sign language but I refused to learn, and soon discovered that hearing aids were the solution.  It helped me hear all the sounds as a normal person would.  I didn’t need to rely on other forms of communication such as asl or lip reading.  However, there are times when I have trouble communicating with people in the hearing world.  It becomes a burden in social gatherings, especially at places with lots of background noise.  I often struggle in these situations to hear all the words and have to ask people to repeat themselves.

Everyone in my community has a different level of hearing loss.  What forms of communication do you find most effective when speaking with others?  For any deaf individuals using sign language, how do you interact with people not familiar with signs?

www.OpenChatNight.com

Please help me support HLAA by joining my team for Milwaukee Walk4Hearing on May 16th 2010!  If anyone cannot attend the walk, you can still be a part of my team to show your support.

Here’s the Website to learn more about my team: http://hlaa.convio.net/goto/senthil 

Feel free to download the Milwaukee Walk4Hearing flyer (pdf format) to pass around to anyone interested in attending the walk.

Opening Topic for Open Chat Night:  Keeping up with technology

I started wearing hearing aids at the age of three.  They were these big analog ones worn behind my ears.  I kept my hair long to cover them because I was very sensitive and uncomfortable.

Digital hearing aids became available in the 1980s, but weren’t very popular because of their size.  In the mid 1990s, the technology improved and they became more popular.  Even though the aids were still noticeable, I wore them during my college years and they definitely helped me hear better.  Also, they had features such as not having to adjust the volume manually.  During recent years, I’ve seen the technology improve and they continue to get smaller.  For about four years now, I have been wearing ITC (in the canal) hearing aids.

I went to an ENT specialist and got my ears checked a month ago.  He informed me of even smaller hearing aids which include a thin wire and are far less noticeable than what I was aware of.  I will be doing research on this new technology to learn if I can benefit, and whether the expense is worth it.

What hearing aid technologies are you aware of?  I think sharing this information will help everyone in our community.

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Opening Topic for Open Chat Night:  Depression, loneliness, and social anxiety due to hearing loss

I have learned that some people in my community have experienced a varying degree of social anxiety due to their hearing loss.  Whenever I go to any social gathering in a noisy environment, I struggle to hear all the words from a person who approaches me.  I hate to always ask them to repeat themselves because I’m afraid to give a bad impression and want to be seen as a normal person.  That is why I have such fear of going out or joining any group of people.  Because of that, I have avoided many social settings during my life.  It has put me in a situation of feeling like an outsider, lonely and depressed.  As of today, I’m trying to overcome these fears.

Share your stories on how anxiety has affected you due to your hearing loss.  I think learning the type of anxiety we face will help us improve the quality of our lives.

www.OpenChatNight.com

Opening Topic for Open Chat Night: Does your significant other also have hearing loss?

During the past several months, I have been conducting a poll on my Website asking if your significant other also has hearing loss.  About 34 percent of the votes responded with “yes.” 

I am curious to know because I have been looking to meet someone myself.  It has been very challenging for me to find someone and build any kind of close relationship.  I sometimes question myself whether part of the reason for not meeting someone is due to my hearing loss.  Would any girl I approach perceive me different than a normal guy only because I wear hearing aids?  But, I know other things too have played a major factor such as my shyness and being anti-social.  I’m trying very hard to change all of that and hopefully this will help me find a girlfriend down the road.

I had posted blogs earlier about my online dating experience and other social avenues for meeting people.  What are the pros and cons for building a relationship with someone, whether they have hearing loss or not?  Share your past experiences for being single and dating or married.  I think this will be beneficial for me and others in the hearing loss community looking to find someone special.

www.OpenChatNight.com

Here’s the latest community announcement for the upcoming event in my hometown!

Event Name:
Milwaukee Walk 4 Hearing (5K)

Date:
May 16, 2010

Time:
9:00 a.m. sign-in
10:00 a.m.  Walk starts

Location:
Veteran’s Park along Lincoln Memorial Drive on Milwaukee’s scenic lakefront

The Walk4Hearing 5k is part of a national effort to raise awareness about hearing loss and to end the stigma associated with it.  Championed by the Hearing Loss Association of Ameirca (HLAA), the Walk4Hearing is the largest series of walks of its kind, taking place in major cities across the U.S. with thousands of participants since its beginning in 2006. There are a variety of opportunities to participate, such as walking and raising funds, sponsoring a tem or walker, volunteering, or making a donation.

Contact:

Jean T. Szabo, Chair
Milwaukee Walk 4 Hearing
Szaboshhh@yahoo.com

Caroline Ludka, Co-Chair
and Sponsorship Co-ordinator
Milwaukee Walk 4 Hearing
CarolineLudka@yahoo.com

Registration/More Information: 
www.walk4hearing.org

Opening Topic for Open Chat Night:  Losing your hearing later in life

The meaning of “late deafened” is used for those who lose their hearing later in life.  While I was growing up, it never occurred to me that hearing loss can change over the years for some people even at an early age.  I always thought it mostly happened to people as they got older.

I was born with a mild to moderate hearing loss, and luckily my level of hearing impairment has not changed over the years.  However, there was a situation when I thought maybe something changed in my hearing.  It happened about two years ago when I noticed my hearing was low in my right ear during certain times, especially at night.  I was really worried because something like this never happened before.  Later, I found out my hearing aid was having problems and the receiver wasn’t functioning properly.  I was very fortunate.

It makes me concerned about losing more of my hearing as I grow older, but I try my best to remember to enjoy today and worry less about tomorrow.

I’m interested to know how people cope with losing their hearing over the years, and the affect it has had on life.

www.OpenChatNight.Com

Opening Topic for Open Chat Night:  Share your Community Involvement

I started my hearing loss community because I was feeling like an outsider.  It was always tough for me to have friends to hang out with and find a place feeling where I truly belong.  During my entire life, I have been surrounded by people in the hearing world.  I can’t hear the same as a normal person would hear and it does make a difference in every social setting.  I am learning that getting involved in a community with people having similar experiences is a huge benefit for me.  It makes me realize that I’m not alone in this world.

As my online group continues to grow, I am also getting involved in the local community.  I am attending the local hearing loss chapter meetings and have become part of the planning committee for Milwaukee Walk4Hearing.  I will be joining a group on Deaf Day held at UW-Milwaukee in the spring.  This will give me the opportunity to reach out to people and make new friends along the way.  I am hoping to learn basic signs down the road.

I’m very excited to get more involved in the community during the upcoming months.  I know this will be a challenging and rewarding experience for me.

I would like to hear your story about community involvement and how it has affected your life, as well as any thoughts or suggestions for getting more people involved.

www.openchatnight.com

Opening Topic for Open Chat Night:  Family relationships - supportive, overwhelming or nonexistent?

My family has always been supportive of me, and I know I can always count on them.  However, I sometimes become frustrated and feel as if I’m not as independent as I should be. 

As I get older (and wiser), I am realizing that my lack of independence is more my fault than my family’s.  Everything they have done for me is out of love and care, not because they want to control me. I am used to them helping me with everything and, even though I don’t like it sometimes, I seldom take a stand and make my own decisions.  I guess this is my comfort zone and it’s difficult to get out of it.  I know my family will always be protective, but I also know they would probably loosen up a little if I would take the initiative.

The good news is I couldn’t be luckier to have my family, and each day I work on improving myself and my independence.

For chatroom users, share your story about being part of a family, and the affect they have on your life.

www.OpenChatNight.com

Open Topic for Open Chat Night:  Additional Complications Due to Hearing Loss

During our chat conversations, I have been learning that some people have other complications due to their hearing loss.  Tinnitus is one of the conditions that has been talked about by various people in the chatroom.  I didn’t have any knowledge about this issue in the past.

Many people experience an occasional ringing or hissing in their ears.  There are times when I have ringing sounds in my ears after being in a noisy environment for a long period of time.  The sounds are temporary for me and eventually diminish in a matter of hours.  I was surprised to find out that these ringing sounds never go way for some people.  I can’t even imagine dealing with this issue and I know it can be annoying for a short period of time.  This is what they call Tinnitus.  Visit the WebMD site to learn more about this condition.

Open Chat Night will continue to be a place for everyone to exchange useful information based on experiences with hearing loss. 

www.OpenChatNight.com