Misson Impossible

Years ago when I was in graduate school I was fortunate enough to have access to what was cutting edge technology.  The school had a partnership with research facilities second to none and as a result we were able to see technology long before it went to market.  At one point a well known research facility came to the school and placed in the middle of the table a literal black box, perhaps 12”x 10”.  The scientists were rather excited to tell us this was a prototype of a digital sound processor.  These scientists were very hopeful that one day they could miniaturize this prototype to fit as a pack on one’s waist with a wire that would go to the ear attached to a mold to hear with.  This was eons ago in the world of technology.

A few weeks ago I was at an innovation summit for another unveiling of a digital sound processor.  The processor was so tiny it could fit into one’s ear canal with very little visibility.  More impressively this miniature processor, designed for hearing loss, was able to receive a wireless signal from one’s television or other audio device with no other wires, cables or other attachments. These hearing devices are now miniature wireless custom ear phones.  More impressively they have an iPod like remote - soon to be released with a touch screen - that allows one to connect via blue tooth to the telephone but also allows the other party to hear you through the custom devise in your ear, all hands free and hidden away,  primarily invisible to the casual observer.  This technology, that at one time seemed only imaginable in fiction, now exists in reality.

Mission impossible has now become possible.  What the next ‘black box’ prototype will be capable of one can only imagine.

Finding Your Happily Ever After

We will inevitably find ourselves in challenging listening situations; parties, dinners, church services, concerts etc.  Perhaps it is at times like these, that we wonder why a loved one seems to avoid the very gatherings they previously enjoyed.

Are you perplexed by this unexplained change?  While there are many potential explanations for this change there is one that is readily understood and has the potential for a happy ending, so to speak.

Given that this article is dealing with hearing and issues related to hearing I am obviously suggesting that hearing loss can lead to social withdrawal, I talk to people every day that have come to this understanding.  It stands to reason to say that we avoid situations that are difficult or challenging.  Why go to that party if the background noise is so loud that you can’t follow the conversations?  Why be in a listening situation that makes you feel like you are less than competent?  The resulting avoidance and ultimate withdrawal may not be sudden but perhaps a slow and insidious process which, nonetheless, will take root over time to such a degree that those around will start to take notice of this change in social interaction.

If one is inherently a social being and find themselves withdrawing from social settings the end result may be to miss those interactions to the point of depression.  I have heard patients rationalize this withdrawal suggesting that this is the way they prefer life. Typically, it is the family member that disagrees in this regard.

It is one of the more amazing experiences to watch a patient re-engage with the world as their hearing is brought back through the use of prescribed amplification.  I have story after story related to me of the life altering changes that occur when one can communicate effectively.  To be able to connect with each other in social and other settings can be one of life’s great joys and when that is taken away, through the loss of hearing, the results can certainly be life altering, even devastating.

Perhaps it is time to find that happy ending.