Take in Some Stanzas for National Poetry Month in April
It’s April, and that means poetry! Make it official, outspoken (#NationalPoetryMonth), or under the radar, but whatever you do, celebrate these poets with hearing loss and singular voices.
Gael Hannan
A renowned humorist, author, and passionate advocate for hearing loss issues, Gael Hannan grew up with progressive hearing loss. She teaches speechreading, holds hearing awareness workshops, and conducts sensitivity training for organizations large and small. She was honored with the Consumer Advocacy Award from Speech-Language and Audiology Canada.
Her poem “Those Things on the Side of Our Head” concludes this article featuring three other poems by authors with hearing loss, including the next person on our list!
Shanna Groves
Shanna has progressive hearing loss and is a speaker, author, and advocate for hearing loss issues. She has a popular blog, Lipreading Mom, is a finalist in the Oticon 2022 Focus on People Awards, and launched an awareness campaign, Show Me Your Ears.
Here’s that link again. This time, catch Shanna’s poem, “A Different Kind of Beauty.”
Camisha L. Jones
Camisha served as managing director of Split This Rock, a national poetry nonprofit centering social engagement, from November 2013 through August 2022. She competed at the 2013 National Poetry Slam on behalf of Slam Richmond, is co-editor of a forthcoming anthology of disability poetry, and lives with fibromyalgia and Ménière’s Disease.
Her poem “Ode to My Hearing Aids” is from her chapbook Flare, which focuses on her experiences with hearing loss and chronic pain.
Noah Baldino
Noah is a writer and editor with middle-frequency hearing loss whose poems have appeared in POETRY, The Yale Review, and elsewhere. A recipient of the 2019 Academy of American Poets Prize, Noah has also received support from numerous organizations, including Bread Loaf, Poetry Foundation, and The Stadler Center for Poetry and Literary Arts.
Head here to check out Noah’s poem “Hearing Loss.”
Raymond Antrobus
Raymond Antrobus MBE FRSL is an East London-born poet, performer, and hearing aid user. His poems have appeared in magazines and literary journals, he has read and performed his poetry at prestigious festivals and universities, and he is co-curator of popular London poetry events Chill Pill and Keats House Poets.
Enjoy this spoken-word performance of his two-minute piece “The First Time I Wore Hearing Aids.”
Willard J. Madsen
Any article on poetry and hearing loss wouldn’t be complete without mentioning the classic “You Have to Be Deaf to Understand.” Willard J. Madsen’s 1971 poem became so popular it was eventually translated into seven different languages, was reprinted in numerous publications, and is considered a classic of Deaf culture. Madsen became deaf at age two because of scarlet fever and taught at Gallaudet University for almost 40 years.
Clayton Valli
Clayton Valli pioneered the concept of using a curriculum for deaf children focusing on ASL as a first language. He was also the first person to earn a doctorate in ASL poetry, from the Union Institute in Ohio. His original works of ASL poetry garnered international recognition, for example, “Dandelion,” which suggests ASL persists despite intentional efforts to weed it out.
Whether poetry or K-pop, we’d love to help you hear your passion better — contact us today to schedule a hearing consultation!
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Traveling? 8 Tips for Better Hearing on the Go
in TravelFrom Loops to Batteries, We’re Covering the Bases
Hearing devices help you communicate your best no matter where you are, so it’s especially important to lean into them when traveling. Make those unforgettable on-the-go moments even more special with these helpful reminders.
1. Get to Know Your Hearing Devices
Your hearing aids likely come chock-full of features — some you might not have fully explored just yet. Options may include streaming, geotagging, and controlling the devices through your compatible smartphone or tablet. Take time now to get to truly know your hearing technology for a better experience on the road.
2. Pack Extra Batteries
Keeping your hearing aids powered is even easier when you bring an extra supply of batteries — just in case. And be sure to remove batteries from your hearing devices when they’re not in use. If you’re using rechargeable hearing aids, it’s a good idea to have an extra charger on hand specifically for travel.
3. Remember Your Storage Container
Just like at home, your hearing devices need proper storage when not in use. In order to prevent damage or misplacement, protect them from moisture, small pets, and kiddos. Dehumidifiers made especially for the devices will not only dry and sanitize them; they’ll do double duty as convenient storage containers.
4. Change the Wax Guard
Your hearing device’s wax guard serves as an important protection against a damaging buildup of wax, skin particles, and other debris. If it’s been close to a month or more since you last changed out the wax guard, take care of this easy maintenance task before you go, and pack a couple of extra guards.
5. Include a Quick-Cleaning Kit
Dust and dirt can make their way onto your hearing devices, but a small cleaning kit is just the thing. Wipe the earmold — if it’s part of your device — with a soft, dry cloth; carefully brush over the microphone and battery contacts with a soft-bristle brush; and use a wax pick to remove earwax from the earmold.
6. Add Your Bluetooth Gear
From table microphones to phone clips, TV streamers, and more, Bluetooth-enabled accessories that work with your hearing devices can go a long way toward enhancing your communication and enjoyment. Make sure they’re part of your checklist.
7. Get Yourself in the Loop
Some museums, theaters, houses of worship, and other spaces have installed hearing loops, letting visitors enjoy enhanced audio by wirelessly connecting through the T-coil setting on their hearing aids. Look for the hearing loop logo, or ask the info desk if they’re a participating venue.
8. Protect Your Hearing
A new environment can mean new or unexpected sounds — some of which may hit the danger zone of 85 decibels or higher, which can harm your hearing. Avoiding excess noise when possible and bringing quality hearing protection that softens loud sounds can help guard your hearing health while on the go.
Want more travel tips? Need custom hearing protection or accessories, such as wax guards and a cleaning kit? We’re here to help. Contact our caring team today!
Best Safe Hearing Gifts for Dad
in Accessories, Hearing AidsDad’s Ears Will Thank You
This Father’s Day, give dad the gift that truly keeps on giving — recreation that’s easy on his ears! These gift ideas are sure to make him, and his ears, happy.
Headphones
Dads love their earbuds, whether listening to music, streaming the game on a smartphone, or enjoying an audiobook. But headphones are better for his hearing health.
Earbuds allow sound to sneak in around the edges. The natural reaction is to turn up the volume to beat back the extra sounds. That can be a recipe for hearing damage. Plus, earbuds send audio directly down the ear canal — any fluctuation in volume is delivered right to your eardrum!
Headphones, however, create a seal around your ears. This lets far less environmental sound in to compete with what you’re trying to listen to. And sound coming from headphones must travel a short distance just to reach your ear canal, so the force of the sound has a chance to dissipate a little.
Specialty Earplugs
These earplugs are more robust and specialized for certain kinds of activities. You can get good, dependable, inexpensive versions or go all out and spend hundreds of dollars, depending on Dad’s needs.
Shooting (or hunters’) earplugs protect you against the sudden, dangerous impulse noise of gunfire but allow you to hear the movements and voices of anyone nearby. And high-fidelity earplugs let you hear the tonal nuances of music while dampening the high volume — ideal for musicians and avid concertgoers.
Sound Hole Cover for Acoustic Guitar
Even if he’s great at guitar, that doesn’t mean you want to hear Dad’s acoustic arrangement of the metal hit “Crazy Train” yet again coming up the basement steps.
Sound hole cover to the rescue! This is a disc that nestles easily into the sound hole of most models of acoustic guitar to dampen the sound. There are price ranges for every need — and it shouldn’t cost more than three to five dollars to keep Dad quietly shredding while saving his hearing.
Drum Practice Pad
Maybe Dad went the even noisier route of taking up the drums. But don’t worry — your days of hearing him loudly practice the opening staccato raps of Paul Simon’s “Obvious Child” are numbered!
Enter the humble drum practice pad. Though not as inexpensive as an acoustic sound hole cover, it still won’t break the bank. When played, it simulates the same feeling of give as a real snare drum, but it’s much, much quieter. He’ll know it feels and sounds right, but his hearing won’t pay the price.
A Book
What could be better for his ears than a physical copy of a book? If he’s an avid reader, you can’t go wrong, whether he’s eagerly awaiting the next Patterson thriller or has once again spilled coffee all over his copy of Walt Whitman’s Leaves of Grass.
Contact us to learn more if you’re interested in hearing-protection options for Dad this year!
Q: Allergies and Hearing Loss — What’s the Connection?
in Hearing lossA: This is a great question! Let’s start with some allergy basics.
Allergies
An allergy is when your body’s defenses overreact to something that is not typically harmful. These are called allergens, and common ones include latex, pet dander, and peanuts.
When you come across an allergen, your immune system goes into defensive mode. Chemicals called histamines flood your body and where you encountered the allergen.
The Allergic Response
Histamines are like security guards — once released, they do what’s needed to remove the allergen. Reactions such as inflammation, itchiness, and excess mucus production result. But how does this cause hearing loss?
Seasonal Allergies and Hearing Loss
Because the allergic reactions leading to hearing loss so often involve seasonal allergies, that’s where we’ll focus. Other allergies, such as those triggered by mold or pets, would also work as examples.
The outer ear
Let’s use pollen as our allergen example. We’ll begin with the effects on the outer ear:
The middle ear
Continuing with pollen as our allergen example, let’s look at the effects on the middle ear:
The inner ear
Finally, continuing with pollen, the effects of allergies on the inner ear are:
As you can see, it’s simple cause and effect — and the cause is usually inflammation, mucus, or a combination of both in the tiny passageways in your ears.
Contact us today if you think your hearing issue could be more than the temporary effects of seasonal allergies!
Give Mom the Gift of Better Hearing This Mother’s Day
in Hearing Aids, Hearing lossHearing on Her Terms Makes Moments More Special
Moms are a busy bunch.
These duty-juggling, many-hats-wearing heroes can be hard-pressed to find time for themselves. So whether they’re hitting the dance floor, perfecting their golf game, catching up with a BFF, or scaling a rock wall, they can enjoy those special moments even more with healthy hearing. And you can help!
Recognizing the Signs
Is your mom, or a mom you know, missing out on the sounds of her life? Potential hearing loss has many signs. She may often turn up the TV, say “Huh?” or “What?” in response to clear questions, and have trouble following phone conversations or video calls.
Withdrawal from social situations can also signify a hearing issue. Your mom might not even realize she’s pulling away from her life. And it’s not uncommon for people to put off life-changing hearing help for more than a decade even after a diagnosis of hearing loss.
Mom might need a loving nudge in the right direction.
Better Hearing, Better Life
The benefits of seeking hearing care can go far beyond better communication. We love seeing patients reconnect with family, friends, and favorite hobbies thanks to a whole new world of sound in their lives.
And with hearing loss linked to other conditions, including dementia, cardiovascular disease, depression, and falls, it’s encouraging that a growing body of research connects improved hearing to better cognitive health and other benefits.
Modern, Invisible Technology
The traditional barriers to seeking hearing care — feeling stigmatized for needing a hearing aid, for example — are things of the past. Today’s technology is not only practically invisible, but it also works seamlessly and continuously with the environment to maximize the wearer’s experience no matter where they go.
Some of today’s sophisticated hearing instruments can even work alone or with apps on compatible smartphones and tablets, handling activities such as:
Reuniting your mom with the sounds she loves could be just a visit away. Contact us today to schedule a hearing consultation that could change her life. We’re here to help!
Gardening For Hearing
in Hearing Health, NutritionGet in the Dirt With These Five Ear-Resistible Plants
Nothing says springtime like seedlings and fresh compost for a bountiful new season in the garden. Planning your homegrown fruits and vegetables? Consider these yard-to-table superstars to help support healthy hearing.
Blueberries
Who can resist a batch of berries just waiting to jump into a smoothie, pie, or stack of pancakes? Songbirds love to snack on them, too. And blueberries offer vitamin C, which, when combined with magnesium and vitamins A and E, may help thwart noise-induced hearing loss.
Try This: Simple Blueberry Smoothie
Mix first 5 ingredients in blender until smooth. Garnish with lavender, and enjoy. Makes about 2 servings.
Kale
The always-reliable kale’s versatility — use it solo or in soups, salads, lasagna, and more — is matched only by its hardiness. This timeless leafy green includes folate — which, when ingested frequently, may help reduce the risk of hearing loss in older men.
Pumpkins
Direct-sow this favorite no earlier than late May for summer or fall harvesting. Freshly collected pumpkin seeds are rich in zinc, which supports the immune system and — in an oral-medication form — might help improve tinnitus.
Tomatoes
The tomato, a garden staple, has earned its place as a fruit to cultivate. It’s rich in a wealth of nutrients, including potassium, an important mineral for regulating blood and tissue fluid levels — including in the inner ear, which plays an important role in hearing and balance.
Asparagus
This vegetable can take time to cultivate — a few years may pass before the first harvest — but, boy, is it worth the wait! It’s delicious, it offers an opportunity to grow a prized veggie that can be a little expensive at the store, and it provides another source of folate, the benefits of which are discussed above.
Have a gardening tip to share? Want to learn more about eating for healthy hearing? We love sharing healthful ideas that you can use. So contact us today!
April Is National Lawn and Garden Month
in Hearing ProtectionCelebrate by Protecting Your Hearing
Spring has sprung, and so has the annual cornucopia of sounds: birds singing, children laughing, neighbors chatting — and lawn equipment.
Your Loud Lawn
Maintaining your burgeoning plant life is a noisy affair. Once you’ve used the mower, leaf blower, chain saw, and string trimmer, your ears have put up with quite a racket.
In fact, around 40 million U.S. adults aged 20–69 years (about one in four) have noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) — and more than half of those don’t have a noisy job. So how noisy is lawn care, exactly?
Noise-Induced Hearing Loss
Hearing happens when the hair cells in your inner ear convert sound signals to electrical signals, and these electrical signals get sent to your brain to be interpreted as sounds.
Every hair cell that gets damaged, then, means less hearing ability. NIHL is hearing damage caused by exposure to loud noise, which damages your hair cells.
How Loud Is Too Loud?
You might be thinking, “OK, but how loud can all my lawn gear actually be?”
Your hedge trimmer alone can damage your hearing after seven or eight minutes of unprotected exposure.
The key to navigating your loud lawn is decibels, the basic unit of sound intensity. Sounds below 85 decibels (dB) are safe for unprotected human ears. At 85 dB and above, you’re in the action zone: Take steps to protect your ears or risk hearing damage.
The Decibel Levels of Lawn Care
Let’s take a look at some common yard-care machines and the decibel outputs they inflict on your unprotected ears. For comparison, a typical indoor conversation is about 60 dB.
Hearing Protection
With output like that, it’s no wonder NIHL is so common. But that prevalence hides an important fact: NIHL can be easily and inexpensively prevented with hearing protection.
Hearing protection is a proven, effective way to minimize the risk of hearing damage, and it doesn’t have to mean a muffled, plugged experience for the wearer. You can get earplugs for as little as a few dollars for 20 pairs at a pharmacy, but there are also over-the-counter options that allow conversation to come through but block loud noises. You can even buy custom-fit earplugs that match the contours of your ears for maximum comfort.
Lawn care doesn’t have to hurt your hearing — contact us to set up a hearing protection consultation!
Q&A: Does Caffeine Affect Hearing and Balance?
in Balance, Hearing HealthQ: Is caffeine harmful?
A: This is one of the most loaded questions about everyday health. Many studies have been conducted on the effects of caffeine on the body. Some of these effects are positive and some are negative. Some studies suggest a correlation between moderate caffeine consumption and lower risks of some diseases, while others have shown the opposite. Different lifestyle and genetic factors determine whether caffeine is a healthful substance for you personally, so always check in with your physician before making decisions about which drugs to ingest and how much to use. Caffeine can also interact with certain medications and supplements, so it’s always a good idea to discuss your intake with a doctor if you have questions or concerns.
Q: How does caffeine impact hearing?
A: Frustratingly, the jury is still out on this, but here’s what we know so far:
One animal model study demonstrated that caffeine may impair the body’s ability to recover from acoustic trauma. Typically, the effects of acoustic trauma are temporary and resolve days or weeks after exposure, but test subjects given daily doses of caffeine and subsequently exposed to loud noise recovered their hearing more slowly than those without caffeine. These findings are important to consider, because if the same results are observed in humans, it could change how we approach hearing safety in a variety of environments.
Another study using data from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey discovered that tinnitus was less prevalent in daily coffee drinkers in the 19–39 and 40–64 age groups than in their peers who rarely drink coffee. It also suggested that brewed coffee may have preventative effects on hearing loss and tinnitus, but that other coffee preparations may induce tinnitus in some age groups.
A UK study found that coffee consumption is associated with a lower risk of disabling hearing loss in men. It is thought that the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of coffee are responsible, rather than caffeine content, since the result held true for both caffeinated and decaffeinated coffees. Interestingly, female coffee drinkers did not receive the same benefit.
Q: Does caffeine affect balance?
A: Possibly. According to a study from 2021, consumption of caffeinated beverages may enhance postural stability and voluntary motor control. Because caffeine is a stimulant, it increases attention, which can have an effect on a person’s balance. We’re not yet sure if caffeine affects the vestibular system directly, or if caffeine’s effect on the central nervous system is responsible for observed improvements in the posture and balance of the test subjects. More research is needed to understand these results.
If you’re experiencing hearing loss, tinnitus, or balance problems, please don’t wait. Contact us today to get your questions answered or to schedule an exam. We’re HEAR to help!
This Mask Supports Effective Communication
in Hearing LoopWhich Mask Can Help You Be Heard?
You probably chose your go-to masks based on safety and comfort. However, communicating while wearing a mask can be tricky — so how do you know which type of mask is best for helping others understand you?
A team at Washington University conducted a study to answer just that question. But before we look at the study, let’s try to understand why your choice of mask would even matter.
How Masks Affect Communication
Muffling your voice
Singing in the shower sounds different than singing in the living room. Your voice bounces off mirrors, porcelain, tile, and glass differently than it does off carpet, upholstery, electronics, and your pets’ fur.
Speaking into a mask is no different. Woven cloth interacts with the sound of your voice one way, and the material in surgical masks affects your voice in a different way.
They all, however, muffle sounds at high frequencies. You can start mistaking one word for another; “cat” sounds like “hat,” and “top” sounds like “pop.” What sets one type of mask apart from another is how often this happens.
Covering up nonverbal cues
Your face gives many nonverbal cues as you talk or react to what others say. But when you wear a mask, your eyes and eyebrows are the only source for these cues. One type of mask tries to solve that problem by using a large transparent panel so that others can see your mouth as you speak.
The Findings of the Mask Study
The study setup
The team at Washington University studied speech understanding using four kinds of masks: surgical, cloth with an inserted filter, cloth without an inserted filter, and transparent.
A researcher read sentences unmasked and then while wearing each of the four mask types. The participants, none of whom had hearing loss, wrote down what they heard and how hard they had to work to hear it. Then they heard the sentences spoken with three different levels of background noise.
General results
When there was no background noise, participants understood every sentence. It didn’t make a difference if the speaker wore a mask or not.
When background noise entered the picture, however, the differences between the masks were clear. Communication was easiest through a surgical mask. A cloth mask (no filter) was second-best. Tied for last place were the transparent mask and the cloth mask with a filter.
The unexpected result
The big surprise was the transparent mask. When background noise was at its peak, only about 30% of what was said was understood. The plastic panel affected speech more than the other mask materials. But it also obscured nonverbal cues and lip-reading — because fog developed on the panel.
In fact, the researcher who read the sentences aloud had this to say about transparent masks: “They’re super uncomfortable and wet. They’re pretty gross.”
The winner
The surgical mask came out on top. It provided more than 50% accuracy of understanding in loud noise, and it took less effort to achieve that level of understanding.
It should come as no surprise that surgical masks won — they’ve been used for decades in settings requiring a sterile environment and clear communication, such as operating rooms and dentist chairs.
Have you been having more trouble than usual navigating the world of mask wearers? Contact us to schedule a hearing consultation!
7 Poets With Hearing Loss
in Hearing lossTake in Some Stanzas for National Poetry Month in April
It’s April, and that means poetry! Make it official, outspoken (#NationalPoetryMonth), or under the radar, but whatever you do, celebrate these poets with hearing loss and singular voices.
Gael Hannan
A renowned humorist, author, and passionate advocate for hearing loss issues, Gael Hannan grew up with progressive hearing loss. She teaches speechreading, holds hearing awareness workshops, and conducts sensitivity training for organizations large and small. She was honored with the Consumer Advocacy Award from Speech-Language and Audiology Canada.
Her poem “Those Things on the Side of Our Head” concludes this article featuring three other poems by authors with hearing loss, including the next person on our list!
Shanna Groves
Shanna has progressive hearing loss and is a speaker, author, and advocate for hearing loss issues. She has a popular blog, Lipreading Mom, is a finalist in the Oticon 2022 Focus on People Awards, and launched an awareness campaign, Show Me Your Ears.
Here’s that link again. This time, catch Shanna’s poem, “A Different Kind of Beauty.”
Camisha L. Jones
Camisha served as managing director of Split This Rock, a national poetry nonprofit centering social engagement, from November 2013 through August 2022. She competed at the 2013 National Poetry Slam on behalf of Slam Richmond, is co-editor of a forthcoming anthology of disability poetry, and lives with fibromyalgia and Ménière’s Disease.
Her poem “Ode to My Hearing Aids” is from her chapbook Flare, which focuses on her experiences with hearing loss and chronic pain.
Noah Baldino
Noah is a writer and editor with middle-frequency hearing loss whose poems have appeared in POETRY, The Yale Review, and elsewhere. A recipient of the 2019 Academy of American Poets Prize, Noah has also received support from numerous organizations, including Bread Loaf, Poetry Foundation, and The Stadler Center for Poetry and Literary Arts.
Head here to check out Noah’s poem “Hearing Loss.”
Raymond Antrobus
Raymond Antrobus MBE FRSL is an East London-born poet, performer, and hearing aid user. His poems have appeared in magazines and literary journals, he has read and performed his poetry at prestigious festivals and universities, and he is co-curator of popular London poetry events Chill Pill and Keats House Poets.
Enjoy this spoken-word performance of his two-minute piece “The First Time I Wore Hearing Aids.”
Willard J. Madsen
Any article on poetry and hearing loss wouldn’t be complete without mentioning the classic “You Have to Be Deaf to Understand.” Willard J. Madsen’s 1971 poem became so popular it was eventually translated into seven different languages, was reprinted in numerous publications, and is considered a classic of Deaf culture. Madsen became deaf at age two because of scarlet fever and taught at Gallaudet University for almost 40 years.
Clayton Valli
Clayton Valli pioneered the concept of using a curriculum for deaf children focusing on ASL as a first language. He was also the first person to earn a doctorate in ASL poetry, from the Union Institute in Ohio. His original works of ASL poetry garnered international recognition, for example, “Dandelion,” which suggests ASL persists despite intentional efforts to weed it out.
Whether poetry or K-pop, we’d love to help you hear your passion better — contact us today to schedule a hearing consultation!
4 Reasons to Keep Your Hearing and Vision in Check
in Comorbidity, Hearing, Hearing And VisionWe all know that eyes and ears play a huge role in helping people (and animals!) experience life’s adventures. Seeing and hearing the people, places, and moments that matter will create wonderful, lasting memories.
But did you know that seeing and hearing are connected? Here are four reasons to schedule regular checkups for hearing and vision to benefit your overall health and wellness:
Hearing and vision work together to help you live your best life, so remember to keep them both in top shape. Start with a hearing checkup by contacting us today!