Hearing Loss Association of America | Boston Chapter
Serving Boston, Massachusetts and the surrounding area, our mission is to empower people who have hearing loss by facilitating opportunities for social engagement, education and skill development.
Boston Hearing Loss Advocates Lead Creation of Dynamic Exhibit
Spurred by long-time hearing loss advocate Andrea Kaneb (above left) — who sits on the MOS and HLAA Boards — the exhibit also includes HLAA Boston leader Jonathan Ozek (above, 2nd to left) and member Saiim Khan sharing their personal hearing loss stories among others.
THANK YOU MOS partners for making this exhibit a reality!
Hi! My name is Julie and this summer I am interning for HLAA Boston with my friend Alice. I want to start off this post stating that I don’t have hearing loss and I am not deaf, but at our school we have a great CAPS program so I work with and interact with lots of hard of hearing and deaf people. Also through this internship I have interacted and worked with many wonderful people who have hearing loss. I have seen the struggles and also the successes they have gone through. As someone who does not have hearing loss I have seen somethings that might be normal for people who have hearing loss but might be abnormal for people who don’t. Like I have seen many people try to speak louder to deaf people even though they can’t hear. In school forgetting captions on a video. While these are small things I think it can make people feel out of place and unwanted. Also in my time here I have learned that only 2% of the population of people with hearing loss know ASL, so if you meet someone with a hearing aid you shouldn’t assume they know ASL. Everyone’s experience with hearing loss is different and there is always a large variety of stories from each person. Talking to people who are so different but also connected by this experience you can see how they relate to each other but also how their experiences differ by each generation and each person. I hope in the future people with disabilities will be less stigmatized and will be given the accommodations they need. I see this organization bringing change and helping people with hearing loss as one step toward that!
Hello! My name is Alice and I am a rising senior who is interning with HLAA for the summer. I was assigned to make a blog post on this website to share my experience with hearing loss. As for some context, I was born with moderately severe conductive hearing loss as a result of not having ear canals. I wear a Bone Anchored Hearing Aid, or a BAHA, which is basically a quarter-sized device that rests on the side of my head, right behind my ear (see attached image). Because my hearing aid is not what people would typically think of as what a hearing aid is “supposed” to look like, I consistently get questions on what it is. The question I get the most is “what’s that?”, usually asked by young children, but I get lots of other questions too, including but not limited to: “what kind of headphone is that?”, “is that thing recording me?” or “are they using that to track your sleep or something?”. And it’s not just people with typical hearing asking these questions. A couple months ago, I was spending time with a preteen who also had hearing loss and she asked what my hearing aid was. When I told her it was my hearing aid, she responded “oh, I know what a hearing aid is but the ones I see never look like that.” That moment really stuck with me because it reminded me that hearing aids, like hearing loss itself, are wide in variety and often misunderstood. So, consider this post as a PSA. Hearing aids are not one size fits all. They come in many different shapes, sizes and colors, and are each specifically designed to help the person wearing them. Thanks for reading! And if you’ve ever wondered “what’s that?”, now you know ;-).
Check out Local Movie and Live Theaters Near You!
An open-captioned performance is a theatrical or cinematic presentation where a text display of dialogue and sound effects is visible to the entire audience. Unlike closed captions, which require a separate device, open captions are displayed on a screen or monitor, making them accessible to everyone in the audience, regardless of their hearing ability.
This month’s highlights:
Federal funding for accommodative services in education is being threatened under the guise of DEI elimination. Learn about Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 which mandates reasonable accommodation for kids with disabilities in schools receiving federal funds in the article following by HLAA Boston leader and teacher Julie DeMatteo-Lane. Julie also explains how parents access services and provides examples of hearing loss-related accommodations available. Get in the know about what is happening in your schools!
In Massachusetts budget constraints are pressuring resources at the Massachusetts Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (MCDHH) which provides support services and equipment for the neediest in our community. Join our May 14th meeting (6pm via zoom) to hear from MCDHH commissioner Dr. Sotonwa about the support services MCDHH provides to the Deaf and HoH community and how to advocate for full funding.
Some of the highlights in this month’s newsletter are:
A primer on Section 504 accommodations plans
A request to contact your MA state legislators to ask them to co-sponsor the draft bill (HD 3015) mandating private insurance coverage for hearing aids. Use this link: https://www.dpcma.org/get-involved/action-center#/25
A recap of the Hearing Loss New England Conference
Some of the highlights of this month’s newsletter:
New member Julie Dematteo-Lane introduces herself and her show on hearing loss
Social media director, Jonathan Ozek is appointed to the Statewide Advisory Council (SAC) for the Massachusetts Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (MCDHH).
Dr. Tian Wang and the Hearing Restoration Project is looking for consumer product review volunteers.
Curious to learn more? Read the newsletter here!
Shari Eberts latest blog post has some great advice for those of us suffering from tinnitus.
While there is no cure for #tinnitus, don’t tell patients there is nothing they can do. Many options exist to help ease the burden. #TinnitusSupport
Boosts speech vs. background sounds on Apple Devices
From: Tom’s Guide reviews Read the rest of the article.
To enable Enhance Dialog on iphone: 1) Go to Settings, 2) Select “Accessibility”, 3) Select “Audio & Visual”, 4) Tap switch to “Add Voice Isolation”
Apple AirPods2 offer a Hearing Test, Clinical-Grade Hearing Assistance, and Hearing Protection for those with mild to moderate hearing loss.
More information here: https://www.apple.com/airpods-pro/hearing-health/