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MY STORY:
Hi there, my name is Clare. I have bilateral sensorineural hearing loss, which is a medical way of saying both my ears have a constant, progressive ringing. (Its called tinnitus; most people have this ringing for a short time after a loud event.) I've heard continuous ringing since I was about seven years old, and I am finally in the process of getting hearing aids! The hearing aids will amplify the frequencies on which my ears ring, essentially "drowning out" the ringing with real noises.
For many years, I was able to ignore the ringing, sleeping with fans and setting alarms at maximum volume. The ringing was annoying, but manageable... Then one day in college, I realized I couldn't hear the birds announcing the arrival of spring. See, this is especially difficult for me, as I am a huge bird nerd; I'd like to study their changing behaviors and the issues they are having. So when I walked around, staring at birds chirping and hearing nothing but constant ringing, it crushed me.
When I first spoke to doctors, they didn't think there was really anything to be done. They told me about some intimidating medical testing I could partake in after a few more years of ringing, but that was it. The reality of my situation began to sink in. There wasn't anything to be done. The more I thought, the more anxiety and fear filled me. Would I be able to hear my future children? Would my hearing deteriorate until it was gone forever? Could I trust what I remember hearing someone say?
The consequences of my hearing loss became more and more apparent as time went on. It became increasingly difficult to hear in cars, loud gathering spaces, or anywhere with a constant din of noise. This is due to how speech is produced: the consonants are at higher frequencies than the vowels. Thus, I would mishear words, understanding the vowels and mentally filling in the rest by guessing. Anything that rhymed was fair game. This lead to a lot of social anxiety and awkwardness, where I eventually give up on legitimate communication once I ask "what?" a certain number of times. I resort to passively playing along in the conversation- keeping watch of people's reactions so I can mimic their faces and perhaps contribute a meaningless comment. As an extrovert, the lack of being social in the way I'm used to was terrifying and extremely taxing.
Perhaps an even more eye-opening issue is trying to hear fire alarms. Given the pitch of an average fire alarm, it takes about a minute for my ears to register the noise. Since the ringing started when I was young, I was very uneasy with being alone. Once I realized the fire alarm thing, I never felt safe when I was alone. I felt a need for a human or other animal who's hearing I could benefit from.
When I realized I struggle to hear fire alarms, I returned to the doctor. After several tests showed the extent of my hearing loss, we began discussing options (!). Because my hearing had deteriorated since my first visit to doctors, I was now eligible for hearing aids!
WHAT I'M ASKING:
Fast forward a few months, and here we are. So close, but still having roadblock after roadblock with insurance. The pair of hearing aids will cost about $3,700 when all is said and done, and insurance is only going to cover a few hundred dollars. While this was quite the blow, I am confident that I can get together the $3,000 I am responsible for by August 20th. Because I know that is a very large number, I am setting the goal for this Go Fund Me at $1,000 (see EDIT).
I'm done with the ringing, and the anxiety and stress that come along with it. I'm done with the jokes centered around my hearing, and staring at birds producing sounds I cannot hear. I want the security of hearing alarms, conversations, and the rest of the wonderful world we live in. If you are able to assist in my dream of hearing fully in any way, I would be forever grateful! Anything helps!
Thank you so much for reading my story. I wish you all the very best <3
EDIT: Thanks to everyone so far for donating! I didn't anticipate this much generosity so quickly. I'm raising the goal to $2,000 so as to lessen the impact to my savings. Donations will entirely go to the total cost of the hearing aids ($3,700 total).
Hi there, my name is Clare. I have bilateral sensorineural hearing loss, which is a medical way of saying both my ears have a constant, progressive ringing. (Its called tinnitus; most people have this ringing for a short time after a loud event.) I've heard continuous ringing since I was about seven years old, and I am finally in the process of getting hearing aids! The hearing aids will amplify the frequencies on which my ears ring, essentially "drowning out" the ringing with real noises.
For many years, I was able to ignore the ringing, sleeping with fans and setting alarms at maximum volume. The ringing was annoying, but manageable... Then one day in college, I realized I couldn't hear the birds announcing the arrival of spring. See, this is especially difficult for me, as I am a huge bird nerd; I'd like to study their changing behaviors and the issues they are having. So when I walked around, staring at birds chirping and hearing nothing but constant ringing, it crushed me.
When I first spoke to doctors, they didn't think there was really anything to be done. They told me about some intimidating medical testing I could partake in after a few more years of ringing, but that was it. The reality of my situation began to sink in. There wasn't anything to be done. The more I thought, the more anxiety and fear filled me. Would I be able to hear my future children? Would my hearing deteriorate until it was gone forever? Could I trust what I remember hearing someone say?
The consequences of my hearing loss became more and more apparent as time went on. It became increasingly difficult to hear in cars, loud gathering spaces, or anywhere with a constant din of noise. This is due to how speech is produced: the consonants are at higher frequencies than the vowels. Thus, I would mishear words, understanding the vowels and mentally filling in the rest by guessing. Anything that rhymed was fair game. This lead to a lot of social anxiety and awkwardness, where I eventually give up on legitimate communication once I ask "what?" a certain number of times. I resort to passively playing along in the conversation- keeping watch of people's reactions so I can mimic their faces and perhaps contribute a meaningless comment. As an extrovert, the lack of being social in the way I'm used to was terrifying and extremely taxing.
Perhaps an even more eye-opening issue is trying to hear fire alarms. Given the pitch of an average fire alarm, it takes about a minute for my ears to register the noise. Since the ringing started when I was young, I was very uneasy with being alone. Once I realized the fire alarm thing, I never felt safe when I was alone. I felt a need for a human or other animal who's hearing I could benefit from.
When I realized I struggle to hear fire alarms, I returned to the doctor. After several tests showed the extent of my hearing loss, we began discussing options (!). Because my hearing had deteriorated since my first visit to doctors, I was now eligible for hearing aids!
WHAT I'M ASKING:
Fast forward a few months, and here we are. So close, but still having roadblock after roadblock with insurance. The pair of hearing aids will cost about $3,700 when all is said and done, and insurance is only going to cover a few hundred dollars. While this was quite the blow, I am confident that I can get together the $3,000 I am responsible for by August 20th. Because I know that is a very large number, I am setting the goal for this Go Fund Me at $1,000 (see EDIT).
I'm done with the ringing, and the anxiety and stress that come along with it. I'm done with the jokes centered around my hearing, and staring at birds producing sounds I cannot hear. I want the security of hearing alarms, conversations, and the rest of the wonderful world we live in. If you are able to assist in my dream of hearing fully in any way, I would be forever grateful! Anything helps!
Thank you so much for reading my story. I wish you all the very best <3
EDIT: Thanks to everyone so far for donating! I didn't anticipate this much generosity so quickly. I'm raising the goal to $2,000 so as to lessen the impact to my savings. Donations will entirely go to the total cost of the hearing aids ($3,700 total).