O.K., so NOW what?

Codger

Codger

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Me? I woke up this morning deaf. Well, not really. I mean I did wake up this morning. And I am deaf, though I do hear a little bit. Mostly I hear an airconditioner running. All the time. I guess I could be described as HOH, but I was that ten years ago. My loss has been progressive. I could blame it on explosives, jackhammers, or that Led Zepplin concert when I was a teen. But truthfully, I think it is a combination of genetics and something medically going on in there (buzzing, headaches, itching, rapid loss progression, dizzyness, etc). Just this past year it has gotten to the point where effective communication with friends, family, and workers is nearly impossible. I have had two failed attempts to invoke ADA so far, but I still think it is worth keeping in my "Deal with it Toolbox", as I call it. I am investigating the languages and aids I can use. I do count myself lucky that I had 40 years of hearing, education, and speach skills before I started loosing my hearing.

I don't want you all to think I am whining and feeling sorry for myself. Even though I am. :lol: I am sure that a lot of you know a hundred times more about the psychology of late life hearing loss, and I am just now at the stage of admitting it to myself and the world. I am trying to keep a good attitude and get the communication skills I need. I guess that is one of the main reasons I am here on this site. I am here to read and learn from folks who have been there and done that.
 
First of all, :wave:

Welcome to AD and you will find some interesting about deaf or info.. in health section..
and enjoy..
 
I've been hard of hearing since the age of 5. Nobody really knows the cause of my hearing loss.

Yes, you are lucky that you had 40 years of hearing and speech skills. That's important. Good thing my parents got me a hearing aid as soon as they found out I lost most of my hearing so that I can hear speech and sounds.

Perhaps right now you should think about seeing an audiologist who can recommend a hearing aid for you. Maybe you're qualified to get the small in-the-ear hearing aid which isn't so obvious. Also, it might be a good time for you to start reading lips when people talk to you in case you lose all of your hearing one day.

Good luck.
 
Thanks for the welcome Alex and MsGiglz . I went to an audiologist several years ago, and at that time, my loss was 75% in the left and 65% in the right. He recommended some hearing aids. But the cost was about $1700 each. No can do! Then the loss has much worsened in the last two years.

I have begun trying on my own to read lips. Some folks use their lips, and some don't. Wait! Why am I telling YOU this? Lol! Anyway, using this, I can catch a few key words in a sentence, but not really what they are saying. So what is the source for improving this skill? Is there something online that will help? I started today learning a few basic signs from a site that was posted here. That is going to be ONE of my daily lessons.

I finally got an appointment with a specialist to do more indepth tests to see why the other symptoms are there. Perhaps there is something they can do to slow down the progression of the loss and get me over the dizzyness.

I read through some posts here today and was bowled over by the anger that one fellow posted. My loss of hearing does not anger me, but sometimes other folks reaction to it does. Is this a phase of the journey that I skipped or is it still ahead of me? :roll:
 
Welcome Codger,

Hope you'll find AD and the members informative.

I guess there's different reactions to losing one's hearing.

Good luck on your journey.

:wave:
 
menieres?

hi codger... love the name lol.... i too am " older" and hoh to the point to where i have to use a hearing aide in order to communicate. I was diagnosed years earlier with "Menieres ear syndrone... have any of ur dr. suggested this might be ur problem?? cindi from texas
 
No. So far only an M.D. has had a peek, and she gave me a scrip for pennicillin after I told her it had never helped me before. Oh, and she did bend me over a ram a needle in me, also full of penn.

I am glad that you gave me a lead on something to research though Cindi. I am definately going to check it out. I finally got an appmt with an e.n.t. doc for next Friday. Maybe he/she will be knowledgable enough about the possibilities to get a better handle on whatever it is.

I am not really worried about becoming deaf. I am just sorry that I waited so long to learn alternate communication skills and other work arounds. I have known some profoundly deaf people in the past, and they were some of the happiest, most productive people I have ever had the pleasure to work with. At that time I learned to sign and spell to them, but that was many years and brain cells ago.

Pardon me for being longwinded, but I am communication starved. And all of a sudden, I find myself trying to learn the language of a different culture and meld it into the one I am used to. Like every culture, it has it's own acceptable slang, anacronyms, and offensive words. I ask everyone's indulgence while I learn.
 
Welcome to AD - Both my sister and I were born deaf - Suspected recessive genes from both parents.

Again, welcome to AD.
 
First I would like to say welcome to AD, and I do know how you feel about losing your hearing, and how hearing aids are quite expestive, I am trying to get myself a new pair since my old ones doesn't work anymore, and my insurance does not cover for new hearing aids but only CI, which I've gone thru the CI and found out it wouldn't work for me, I don't want to explain why it wouldn't but I lost most of my hearing and only have a very tiny amount of hearing left to hear but with the use of hearing aids, I would hear quite much more which I could hear some noises or maybe someone's voice , who knows but it worth a try ....

I lost my hearing at the age of 5 due from illness, there were times I wish I could hear but it not going to happen anyways, so I learn to accept my deafness and move on by learning sign language and being around with people like me...:)
 
Welcome to AD! Enjoy your stay!

No one knows if I am hearing or deaf when I born but I became deaf thru high fever. I am a stone-deaf so I don't have any experience to share with you but I am very proud to be a deaf. That's something I can live with my life.
 
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PurpleRose71, thanks for the welcome. All the men in my family loose their hearing, hair by their 50's. So there is definately a genetic component in my case. But there is more going on with me now, I am pretty sure.

Angel and Magatsu, pleased to meet you and thanks for the welcome. I expect you all have a lot to teach me!
 
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Codger,

Welcome to AllDeaf,

Now a question.. since you haven't mention about your appt with doctor at ENT last month.. have they figure out if you have mieneres or not ?


Again, Welcome to AD...

Wendy
 
welcome aboard!! you will be surprised to meet people from all walks of life!!

i am a profound deaf myself since birth but i can speak very well and use asl that i learned at a late age... so it is NEVER too late to learn asl only if you are motivated to learn it.. as you go along with us.. you will also meet some people who are late deafened like yourself as well .. that you might want to share some of your experiences with and get some support from them as well cuz they have been your shoes.. and of course we are here and will be there for you too!! :hug:
 
Welcome to alldeaf codger! Like you, I am also late deafened. I received my first pair of hearing aids at age 15 for a moderately-severe loss. By age 25 the loss became severe to profound at which time I started to learn alternative communication techniques such as tactile sign (I'm totally blind). I now have profound hearing loss in both ears. I have a cochlear implant (recently activated) in my left ear and wear a hearing aid in my right ear.

Have you thought about obtaining funding for hearing aids through the Lion's Club or similar organization? I know they provide hearing aids to those who are in financial need. They may also be able to provide you with an assistive listening device which some people with severe-profound hearing loss can use. Assistive listening devices block out background noise and bring sound directly into a pair of headphones or your hearing aids.

Just thought I'd offer these suggestions in the hopes that one of them helps. :)

Again, welcome!! :)
 
WBHarley said:
Codger,

Welcome to AllDeaf,

Now a question.. since you haven't mention about your appt with doctor at ENT last month.. have they figure out if you have mieneres or not ?


Again, Welcome to AD...

Wendy
Click to expand...
Wendy, the tests showed simple nerve deafness. The dizzyness they think is cardiovascular, so whenever they get around to it, I get to wear a heart monitor. Thanks for the welcome! :kiss:
 
zesty said:
welcome aboard!! you will be surprised to meet people from all walks of life!!

i am a profound deaf myself since birth but i can speak very well and use asl that i learned at a late age... so it is NEVER too late to learn asl only if you are motivated to learn it.. as you go along with us.. you will also meet some people who are late deafened like yourself as well .. that you might want to share some of your experiences with and get some support from them as well cuz they have been your shoes.. and of course we are here and will be there for you too!! :hug:
Click to expand...

Zesty, thanks for the wecome. Surely you know that I am already a regular here! And I feel like I already know some of you a bit. I read a lot more than I post, and so I see a lot of good here. Good people, good knowledge and ideas, and good attitudes. That has gone a long way already in helping me to accept and cope with the changes in my life. Thanks! :type:
 
Hear Again said:
Welcome to alldeaf codger! Like you, I am also late deafened..................

Have you thought about obtaining funding for hearing aids through the Lion's Club or similar organization? I know they provide hearing aids to those who are in financial need. They may also be able to provide you with an assistive listening device which some people with severe-profound hearing loss can use. Assistive listening devices block out background noise and bring sound directly into a pair of headphones or your hearing aids.

Just thought I'd offer these suggestions in the hopes that one of them helps. :)

Again, welcome!! :)
Click to expand...
I am looking into several different ways to get hearing aids. I have a cheapie that works sorta... just sounds like I have a bucket over my head. And paper rattling sounds like a windstorm! Thanks for the welcome and the suggestions. I hadn't thought of the Lions Club!
 
Hey, codger, man, welcome. I, too, am an ole codger, lol! Somehow this topic has escaped my notice until just now. You mentioned something about the ADA so I was wondering what invocation of that law you hoped to achieve?
At any rate, welcome to this site. Can you tell us something about yourself....like where your'e from and what you do for a living?
 
Hi Tousi! I am in Southwest Tennessee. I live on a farm in the rolling hills near the Tennessee River. I am a swimming pool contractor most of the year. In the winter I work in other building trades or run a CNC in a machine shop.

My ADA problems have to do with requests for accomodation being ignored in court and in school board meetings. Both are public entities, and I was denied the right to effectively participate in proceedings directly affecting me. I don't want to sue. I just want them to comply. Thanks for the welcome!
 
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