Loud and clear

Highlight of my day was a trip to the audiologist on the TCU campus. My new hearing aids have been a big improvement, but there were still some problems—like the telephone. It cut in and out like there was a short, and sometimes I’d hear conversation in one ear or the other, sometimes both. That’s not the way it’s supposed to be. Some research on the part of Tracy, the wonderful audiologist, confirmed what Christian suspected: my phone is too old to interact properly with the new hearing aids. So a new phone is in my immediate future—not the latest, whiz-bang version with lots of bells and whistles, but one that is one or two generations back. I don’t use a lot of apps, etc.

Then Tracy did a series of tests to determine what was a comfortable hearing level for me in various circumstances. I said that some soft-spoken men were hard for me to understand, and she adjusted for that. She reminded me my aids have various levels that I can choose—normal, comfort (in loud surroundings), one that will refine music, etc. At one point, she was ruffling through papers, and I said, “I can hear the paper noise!” Another time, I told her my own voice sounded loud in my head, and she took it down a peg or two, saying she didn’t want it to be so annoying that I wouldn’t wear the aids. It was really fine tuning, and I was impressed.

While there I noticed that her offices are filled with children’s toys and books, and posters about children and hearing. Apparently as many as five children in a thousand having hearing loss, due to exposure to loud noise, disease, etc. I remembered that my Jamie didn’t hear me when he was about three. I could stand behind him, speak his name, and he ignored me—no, not a willful child. He wasn’t hearing. We thought of two causes—he loved to play gun games and make rat-a-tat sounds, which probably led more to occasional hoarseness than lack of hearing. But his ears were stopped up—I never did know why. The pediatrician recommended ear tubes, but the morning he was scheduled for surgery, this mom freaked out about anesthetic and cancelled. Eventually he outgrew it, and as far as I know now in his fifties his hearing is fine. But children who don’t hear are at a huge disadvantage in school as well as socially. They may also have speech problems. So get those youngsters tested.

The other population group where hearing is a major concern is, of course, the elderly. Hearing loss again may be due to many causes, from wax build-up to underlying disease, but often it is simply part of aging. Estimates are that about one third of the elderly population suffer from hearing loss, and studies have shown that hearing loss increases the incidence of dementia. Unable to hear, too many people withdraw from those around them and therefore lack the stimulation of normal social interaction.

I cannot tell you how many friends I know who deny they need hearing aids. Often they demand that you speak up, because of course the problem is yours not theirs. I guess there is an old-age stigma attached to hearing loss, so just as some deny signs of aging, they deny hearing loss. And it increases without treatment.

My own hearing loss started in my fifties and was a complication of a combination of drugs I received having to do with menopause. I remember one morning when I had an appointment with the gynecologist, I saw a tiny item in the newspaper that a combination of estrogen and progesterone was causing increased hearing loss at a younger age in some women. I asked my doctor if he knew about it, and he said, “No, but I will be tonight.” I knew he would immediately look up the relevant study.

To me, hearing aids are like walkers. Too many people let their pride get in the way of getting the help that is available, and then they don’t live their best life. I have no patience with them. So, think people are mumbling, especially on the phone? Have to turn the TV up so loud others complain? Have trouble hearing in a crowded room or restaurant? Don’t miss out on the world—go get tested.

In the category of “If It’s going to go wrong, it will,” my kitchen sink is now backing up. Christian said he’d go get Draino but, impatient, I tried a home remedy—vinegar and baking soda. It didn’t work, and now the sink and counters are gritty because that combination foams up and overflows. If it’s not one thing, it’s another.

Ho hum! I won’t even tempt fate by asking what tomorrow will bring.