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August 3, 2019
Fast Fact: in the United States in 2017, among adults aged 18-49 years who had moderate or a lot of trouble hearing, just 19 percent
used a hearing aid.
Data source: Sara Laufer Consulting analysis of the 2017 National Health Interview Survey, Sample Adult file.
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Quick tip: Go to the Earth911 Recycling Search Tool to find a recycling location near your zip code for your used hearing aid and cochlear implant batteries.
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May 27, 2019
Fast Fact: Of the more than 37,500,000 adults who had trouble hearing in the United States in 2017, 46 percent
identified as female, and 54 percent
identified as male.
Data source: Sara Laufer Consulting analysis of the 2017 National Health Interview Survey, Sample Adult file.
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May 13, 2019
Fast Fact: There were more than 37,500,000
adults who had trouble hearing in the United States in 2017, but just over 7,400,000 (a little under 20 percent)
of these people used a hearing aid.
Data source: Sara Laufer Consulting analysis of the 2017 National Health Interview Survey, Sample Adult file.
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April 26, 2019
An Open Letter To Robert Downey, Jr.
Dear Mr. Downey, Jr.,
You don't know me; I have never met you or spoken to you, and I don't follow you on social media or belong to one of your fan clubs. But for a reason that you would probably never guess, you will always have a very special place in my heart.
As context, I am clinically deaf, though culturally hearing. In 2008, when my hearing loss progressed to the point where my hearing aids no longer aided my hearing, I became a candidate for cochlear implantation, and I had my first cochlear implant surgery in the middle of June. After about three weeks, my incision was healed enough for my surgeon to clear me for what's called "activation," which is when my audiologist first programmed and turned on my implant electrodes, and I could hear through my implanted ear for the first time. (Iron Man isn't the only one who relies on technology!)
Two days later was Independence Day, and I went to see Iron Man that afternoon. My date and I were running late, and we got to our seats just as the movie was starting--we missed the trivia questions and previews and all that.
As soon as I sat down, I saw you on the screen, and you said, "I feel like you're taking me to a court martial." I stared at you and my heart opened. I heard what you said, and I understood what you said. For the first time in close to 30 years, I was able to understand speech in a movie.
Because your voice was the first one that I was able to hear on the big screen, you, in a way that no one else is, or ever could be, are in my heart. Thank you.
With kindest regards, and cheers to your ears,
Sara Laufer (aka Whatgirl)
Oh, no!
I'm in the prime of my life, and I have a hearing loss! Now what??
Focus on You
It can be shocking and dismaying to realize that you have trouble--sometimes a lot of trouble--hearing now, when everything used to be fine.
You are not alone. About one in eight people aged 18-66 in the United States has a hearing loss, totaling over 23 million working age adults...that's about as many people who live in the state of Texas!
Although hearing loss can be devastating, you can also do a lot to make your life better. New technologies have made obsolete the cumbersome "ear trumpets" of previous centuries, and promising research may in future years result in an actual cure for hearing impairment.
Still, though, when you start to manage your hearing loss, you face a blizzard of questions and issues. What is the best amplification for me? How do I pay for it? How can I hear better in noisy restaurants or in meetings at work? Is a hearing service dog a good choice for me?
You have control over your life.
Empower Yourself with Helpful Everyday Information
As first and second steps, peruse the pages and links on this website, and read Sound Sense: Living and Learning with Hearing Loss, an awesome self-help book especially for working-age people who find themselves with a hearing loss.
Whether you're a 25 year-old veteran returning from combat with a hearing loss, or a 38 year-old working mother considering cochlear implants, or a 66 year-old rock music lover still going strong in your career and thinking about getting hearing aids, you'll find oodles of great information and resources Sound Sense for managing your hearing loss and living a fulfilled and satisfying life.
Sound Sense is also available in many local libraries, and from many online bookstores.
Read the chapter on staying healthy, and be sure to try the chocolate truffle recipe!
Get Started!
Try using closed-captioned workout DVDs in the comfort and privacy of your own home to improve both your body and your mind. Public libraries and online DVD rental services have many fitness DVDs, and more production companies are captioning these products. Look for the "CC" on the back of the DVD case, or in the online description.
Check with your doctor first, and then check out our review of the Crunch Total Resculpt workout led by super fitness instructor Kendell Hogan.
Check Back Often
More information, resources, and smiles are on the way.
And remember:
“If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with success unexpected in common hours.”
--Henry David Thoreau
BY THE NUMBERS
People worldwide had received a cochlear implant as of 2010, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
For custom demographic research or consulting, please see our Contact page.
FEATURED WORKOUT
Check out our new captioned workout review of Denise Austin's
Boot Camp Total Body Blast!
Read our review of the closed-captioned Crunch Total Resculpt workout DVD
useful links
Captionfish Searchable Directory of Movie Theatres Showing Accessible Films
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Hearing Aids Web Page
U.S. Food and Drug Administration Cochlear Implant Information Website
U.S. Food and Drug Administration Hearing Aid Information Website
U.S. Department of Education Vocational Rehabilitation Agency Links by State