Are there benefits to living with hearing loss?
A friend challenged me with this question. She wanted to see if there were any positives to hearing loss other than that you can take out your hearing devices when a fire siren goes by and that your partner’s snoring doesn’t bother you. I was stumped.
Email that got me thinking
As I was thinking about it, I received an email from my longtime friend Janine. I met her while living in Haines, a small town in southeastern, Alaska. She was the program manager of the local radio station and just happened to have a hearing loss. So, when I suggested we do a radio interview on hearing loss, she readily agreed. That started our friendship.
In her email, she told me that she had come down with a bad case of pneumonia and had to be airlifted to Juneau. She recovered, but then relapsed, and had to fly to Seattle for further treatment. There she found out that the pneumonia was caused by a slow growing cancerous tumor in her lungs and that she would need multiple operations and treatment. A handful for sure.
Positive Spin on living with hearing loss
Janine’s mother asked her how she was able to keep so much strength despite her trials. She pulled out her hearing aid and showed it to her mom. Reflecting on that experience afterwards she wrote:
“For better or worse, my hearing loss has been a damn good coach in how to navigate uncertainty, confusion, unknowing and fear. I feel like it’s given me a little bit of a leg up. The longer I live, the more grateful I am for my hearing loss, which isn’t to say I would wish it on anybody or that it’s been peaches and cream and smooth sailing. But it’s given me a lot of grace, especially in this hard time”.
Wow! So uplifting! Could I say the same or even just part of it? I had to think about it.
How do I relate to Janine’s positive take on living with hearing loss?
For a large part of my life, I pretended to hear when I didn’t – which meant I was never sure if I had missed something or not – not a fun place to be. That made me want to make myself as small as possible ….. like a mouse. It negatively affected all aspects of my life. In my personal life I never expressed my thoughts or needs. And in my business life. I would have been more productive if I had brought my hearing loss out in the open. But no, I didn’t.
Once I realized that hearing loss isn’t anything to be ashamed of, little by little, I started to speak up for myself. The more I did, the more confident I felt. This confidence has reached all areas of my life.
I realize that being confident helps me deal with life’s uncertainties. Really, I’m not sure why but it enables me to look at things from a more positive perspective. This gives me an ease in dealing with whatever life hands me. And of course – like everyone – I have my challenges. It certainly doesn’t mean everything comes easily to me. But it does come easier than before.
How I feel today about living with hearing loss
I’m not going to say I became a lion, but I was no longer a mouse.
Today I’m proud to be a DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) Coach specializing in hearing loss. I work with companies to help them understand what hearing loss is, how unrecognized hearing loss can negatively affect their workplace and how they can accommodate that challenge to be more productive.
Like Janine, I wouldn’t wish hearing loss on anyone as it does have its challenges. But it has given me a grace and courage that has made my life happier and more peaceful.
What about you?
What are the benefits of living with hearing loss for you?
