Hard of hearing - possible to become deaf?

Sherlyn

Sherlyn

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I have moderate loss in my right ear and moderate to severe hearing loss in my left ear and have been hard of hearing since birth. I played in the band at the age of 13-16 and is currently 20.

I'm just wondering if it is possible for my hearing to deteriorate until the point where I become Deaf as age progresses?
 
Yes, it is possible that hearing loss is progressive.

My old friend was HoH at birth and became profound deaf when he was adult until death from car accident.
 
Foxrac said:
Yes, it is possible that hearing loss is progressive.

My old friend was HoH at birth and became profound deaf when he was adult until death from car accident.
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Thank you for the reply. I was curious because I realised my hearing keep getting worse as I get older. I'm quite afraid of being unable to hear in the future..
 
Sherlyn said:
Thank you for the reply. I was curious because I realised my hearing keep getting worse as I get older. I'm quite afraid of being unable to hear in the future..
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Yes, it means you have to get stronger hearing aids or CI.

You will be candidate for CI easily if you cannot meet the speech level on audiology report with hearing aids, and will refer you to ENT.
 
Do investigate CI to see if it would be appropriate for you. Being young, you would adapt more easily and it would keep you in the hearing world for the foreseeable future. My loss was progressive and when I yell now my own voice sounds faint to me. It is scary, but at age 66 and being spinal cord injured I am not sensible candidate for CI.

Unless one lives near a large deaf community where ASL makes lots of social contacts available, I think the priority is finding some way to remain functional in the hearing world. Signers hate that conclusion, as I would if I were a signer (I cannot with the clawing that goes with a typical neck SCI), but you are the one to make the decision.

I hope it is reassuring to know you will have options.
 
It really depends... some HoH people may lose their hearing gradually to where they would never become profoundly deaf, others could lose hearing rapidly and become deaf. And... everything in between. I know my hearing seems to be decreasing 10 dB at a time every few years. Right now it's leveled out to where it is now for a while....will be interesting if it goes down more because of powerful hearing aids (I'm a power junkie with them lol).
 
Do you have any idea what caused your hearing loss, Sherlyn? You've said your hearing is getting worse. Have you been tested lately, or is it just something that's noticeable?
 
About 30% of HOH people go deaf. That is why it's important for even "just HOH" kids to learn ASL, Cued Speech and other more intense interventions. That way, not only will they have the abilty to function fully without their HA/CI, they'll be able to function fully if they lose their hearing. It's important to cover all the bases!
 
deafdyke said:
About 30% of HOH people go deaf. That is why it's important for even "just HOH" kids to learn ASL, Cued Speech and other more intense interventions. That way, not only will they have the abilty to function fully without their HA/CI, they'll be able to function fully if they lose their hearing. It's important to cover all the bases!
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I 100% agree that HOH kids and adults should learn ASL and have a back up plan for later in life. I would be lost if I didn't learn ASL when I was younger. But also knowing if they want HA some time in their life or if push comes to shove if they want to CI. Having this planned out will help them understand their future.
 
DeafNerdMommy said:
I 100% agree that HOH kids and adults should learn ASL and have a back up plan for later in life. I would be lost if I didn't learn ASL when I was younger. But also knowing if they want HA some time in their life or if push comes to shove if they want to CI. Having this planned out will help them understand their future.
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Exactly. Which is why I said it would cover all the bases. Too often HOH kids are just given a " front row seat, FM device, speech therapy and MAYBE a TOD" and HA/CI.....Hearing technology is good, but it will only ever mean PARTIAL access to the hearing world.
 
TOD?

Thhp all I got was front row seat and speech therapy til 6th grade; FM systems weren't even in our line of vision as far as accessibility as we didn't know about them (and of course hearing aids). The white paper with dark lines (as opposed to the yellow with faint blue lines) that were provided to me was due to my vision.
 
Sherlyn said:
I have moderate loss in my right ear and moderate to severe hearing loss in my left ear and have been hard of hearing since birth. I played in the band at the age of 13-16 and is currently 20.

I'm just wondering if it is possible for my hearing to deteriorate until the point where I become Deaf as age progresses?
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it may be but usually for me, I'm always stable though! (sometimes I drop a bit but not alot!)
 
Thank you for all your replies! I have been considering to take ASL and speech therapy classes, but I've been really busy balancing out studies + club activities. I do have issues in classes where I am unable to hear from the back of class and I try hard to concentrate in classes. As a kid who have always studied in a normal school, I did realize that people tend to be less understanding and there are limitations that I can have too. Thankfully I was given FM support but I still find it awkward and I'm reluctant to let people know I'm HoH due to traumas. Coming from what you guys have said, I think I need to learn ASL..

Double-U said:
Do you have any idea what caused your hearing loss, Sherlyn? You've said your hearing is getting worse. Have you been tested lately, or is it just something that's noticeable?
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I think my hearing have deteriorated quite a lot when I played in the Band when I was young, but I didn't want that to hinder my love for music. However I stopped because my audiologist kept advising against it. I'm guessing it's either age or perhaps wearing earpiece? (I try to limit myself to a certain amount of time and on low volumes). I've been tested at least once -2 a year and my hearing did indeed get worse. It's also noticeable to me when I have to on the volume louder and louder as time progresses. but it's a steady loss. :)
 
DeafDucky said:
TOD?

Thhp all I got was front row seat and speech therapy til 6th grade; FM systems weren't even in our line of vision as far as accessibility as we didn't know about them (and of course hearing aids). The white paper with dark lines (as opposed to the yellow with faint blue lines) that were provided to me was due to my vision.
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Teacher of the Deaf. Basicly saying that most of the time HOH kids just get the very minimal accomondations. Really sad as most of them would strongly benefit from additional stuff too.
 
ah okay.

I guess Teachers of Deaf within public/mainstream wasn't as common if at all in existence in the 1970s- early 80s...Who knows. I know there wasn't one when I was in elementary school considering that I think I was the only deaf kid in the entire school til I was in 6th grade and there was one a grade below. "jr high" and HS were too small (and private) to even have any services and no formal IEP.
 
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