Why I love being part of a hearing loss community
November 1, 2017
Guest Post: ‘Embrace your hearing aids’
November 3, 2017NEWSFLASH: Hearing aids ARE cool!
It’s time we talk about something important. We need to change the narrative about hearing aids.
It’s time people start complimenting how awesome hearing aids are, not commenting under their breath about their discreetness. We want people to stop thinking that hearing aids are uncool. Because they aren’t. Hearing aids are cool!
Today, hearing aids come in all kinds of different colors and sizes. Long gone are the big, beige, squealing banana-sized device that your great-grandma wore. Hearing aid technology is more advanced than ever. They enable people to hear things they’ve never heard before, and allow others to rediscover sounds they thought they’ve lost forever.
On HearingLikeMe.com we have been working to end these stigmas, through campaigns like #coolhearingaids, the Here to Hear Comedy Tour and just general awesome stories from real hearing aid users that we share on a regular basis. So when we saw a New York Times article about how hearing aids aren’t cool. We just had to remind you. They are. And if you need a reminder, here’s why…
Why Hearing Aids are Cool… (in case you didn’t know)
1) They are killer technology
Hearing aids are awesome because they help us hear, but they also have so many other cool features. Did you know that some hearing aids allow you to stream sound straight into your hearing aids, whether it is from your phone, laptop, TV or any other device with Bluetooth. You can even take phone calls straight into your hearing aids. And with Roger technology, you practically have the technology that spies would use. Seriously. James Bond-style. It doesn’t get any cooler than that.
Read more: Ask Anna: What is a Roger Pen and how does it work?
2) You can customize them to make them even cooler!
A while back we started the hashtag #coolhearingaids, so we could see all the awesome hearing aids out there that people have. The creativity and individuality that hearing aid users put into their devices are awesome! Teens and young adults are decorating their hearing aids with stickers. Parent’s are choosing bright blue ear molds for their baby’s first hearing aids! The Phonak Sky model of hearing aids come in more than 200 color combinations. The possibilities to change your hearing aids to show off how cool they are are endless.
Check out some of these awesome hearing aids.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BY8ZgHEhe57/
https://www.instagram.com/p/BYn5fupB__A/
Read more: Watch: How to decorate your hearing aids
There are also many websites that sell great decorations such as stickers especially made for hearing aids and tube clips to go on the tube of hearing aids.
You can find more like these on http://www.tubetasticpimps.co.uk/.
Phonak has a partnership with Skinit, so you can design your hearing aid stickers to fit perfectly over the hearing aid.
Here are some stickers from Skinit!
#3 They are a part of who we are
Our hearing aids don’t define us, but we use them as an accessory to show who we are. We want compliments on our hearing aids, we don’t want people to feel embarrassed or bad for us in any way. Our hearing aids rock!
Read more: Why I decorate my hearing aids
Breaking down stigmas one laugh at a time
Currently comedian D.J. Demers is on the Here to Hear comedy tour spreading awareness about hearing loss. D.J., who is also a HearingLikeMe contributor and Phonak hEARo, is exploring topics such as hearing loss identity, how to have self-confidence with hearing loss and how to talk about your hearing loss with others. He does this by performing comedy shows with jokes about his hearing loss that give others insight into what it is like to have hearing loss. Through a daily YouTube vlog, he is also spreading awareness to college students about how they can get free hearing technology at their university.
Watch: How to decorate hearing aids like Jessica Flores
People like D.J. and other hEARos are paving the way for a new outlook on life with hearing loss. They’re putting themselves out there and showing the world that hearing loss won’t stop them.
So next time, someone says that hearing aids aren’t cool, or someone mutters an “I’m sorry,” about your hearing loss. Tell them to save the pity. You’ve got a mini computer behind your ear, converting sound waves into numerical codes and amplifying them directly into beautiful, comprehensible messages.
It’s time we stand up, pull our hair back and tell the world how cool hearing aids really are (as well as the people who wear them)!
Share your cool hearing aids with us on social media using the hashtag #coolhearingaids for a chance to be featured on the @HearingLikeMe_ and @Phonak Instagram accounts.
