July 25, 2008
Someone who has hearing loss may be able to hear some sounds
It has been observed that out of 1000 babies born, three may have hearing impairment. It is important to keep a healthy self-esteem when coping with and understanding your hearing loss. Hearing loss, or deafness, is the partial or total inability to hear sound in one or both ears. The human ear is remarkable as is the smallest and most complex organ in the body. We start to think of hearing loss as defining who we are, forgetting it is just an experience that we're living with, just as getting married, getting your first job, having your first child, buying your first home, getting your first grandchild, retiring from work. Considering the ear's delicacy, it is remarkably resilient. Nevertheless, illness or injury can impair our ability to hear properly. Professionals now understand that when a person loses his/her hearing, he/she goes through the same psychological stages that terminally ill people go through - denial, anger, awareness, bargaining, depression and acceptance. It is possible that someone who has hearing loss may be able to hear some sounds or simply nothing at all. Recognizing that you have a hearing loss may be the hardest part, especially if it has been a gradual process. Audiologists say that the typical person has waited seven years! Mixed (conductive and sensory combined) hearing loss happens when the outer and middle ear is affected and also the tiny hair cells are damaged. This is a very critical case and cannot be cured fully. loss of hearing is a real condition, although minimized in our today's society. To lose one's hearing can be a shattering of one's self image. Neural hearing loss happens when there is a problem with the connection from the cochlea to the brain. Neural means related to nerve, so neural hearing loss means the nerve that carries the messages from the cochlea to the brain is damaged. The individual may not understand what is happening to him so he wouldn't know to tell friends and family how to change their communication style. Friends and family can help by discussing the changes in a gentle, supportive and caring way.
