Gael Hannan - The Way I Hear It
Hearing Loss Advocate, Writer, Speaker, Humorist
Q: At the start of every holiday season, what’s more common than cookie recipes and decorating ideas? A: Articles on how to survive the holiday season! They fall like snowflakes on social media, these survival-blogs that offer advice on coping with the annual issues of season – loneliness, depression, finances, family dysfunction, grief—and hearing loss. The last one … Read more
“…keep going.” I came across this delicious bit of inspiration on a particularly bad day: tinnitus and hyperacusis were battling for supremacy inside my cranium. It was hard not to focus on the hellish noise, but these words caught my attention. They even made me smile, because they reflected exactly how I felt at that … Read more
OK, people with hearing loss, think quickly now. What’s the most challenging aspect of going to the hospital, doctor, or dentist? The eye exam where you can’t see the technician’s lips (or any face-part) because of the lights are inyour eyes? The masked dentist who’s clearly trying to ask you something but you can’t say ‘pardon’with … Read more
If I could hear perfectly, For just one day I’d ask everyone to whisper, Facing away Just to feel, for just one day… The exquisite naturalness of Of hearing perfectly. By Gael Hannan, in honour of National Poetry Day in Britain, 2016.
Conversing with a hard of hearing person is much easier if you, the ‘hearing’ person, are aware of the hearing loss. If you don’t know that the person you’re talking to has a hearing problem, you’re forgiven (somewhat0 for looking off into space as you prattle on, or mumbling, or putting your hands in front of … Read more
In the hearing loss world that I live in, there are HoHs and there are Pros: HoH: Refers to a person who has hearing loss and who may also identify as hard of hearing, hearing-impaired, or hearing aid/cochlear implant user. (This term does not refer to all those affected by a person’s hearing loss, such as … Read more
This past June, I was honoured to help open and close the joint convention of the Hearing Loss Association of America and the International Federation of Hard of Hearing People.
I am honoured to be featured in the September/October 2016 issue of the Hearing Loss Association of America’s magazine, Hearing Loss. My article, Hearing Loss Isn’t Funny, takes a look at what people consider humorous about communication challenges – and what isn’t. Click here for the HLAA site.
If there’s one thing you don’t need when you have hearing loss, it’s another reminder that you have it. We get plenty of reminders throughout the day—every day—with sounds we can’t quite understand, people mumbling, and captioning that’s missing when we need it. So why on earth would I mark my body with an inky rendition … Read more
Do you use captioning? On TV, perhaps, or in the theater, or on internet videos? Perhaps you enjoy CART (Communication Access RealtimeTranslation) at live events? It’s not easy to explain the simple power of turning the captions “ON” for people who have difficulty hearing the spoken word. It’s the difference between dark and light, confusion and … Read more