Volume 29, Number 6 COVER STORY 10 “This Kid is Intense”—Meet Washington Redskins NFL Player Reed Doughty By Barbara Kelley NFL starting strong safety talks about football, family, and his own hearing loss. TECHNOLOGY Page 10 16 On Your Mark, Get Set, Hear! By Brad Ingrao Uncover strategies for living an athletic life with hearing loss. TRAVEL 20 Flight 309 is Now Boarding From Another Gate By Lise Hamlin Learn about HLAA’s work to make air travel more accessible for people with hearing loss and how you can help. MEDICAL Page 18 26 Ear Pressure and Flying By Yuri Agrwal Have you ever taken off in a plane and landed with no hearing? Here is what you can do about it. WIRELESS 28 Bluetooth® and Hearing Aids: Ready for Prime Time? By Mark Ross People with hearing loss want to know if they can use a cell phone Page 20 with a Bluetooth® connection. Here is the answer. TIPS 46 Holiday Madness By Arlene Romoff Here are seven communication tips to get you through the noise of the season. Hearing Loss Magazine (ISSN 1090-6215) is published bimonthly by the Hearing Loss Association of America, 7910 Woodmont Avenue, Suite 1200, Bethesda, Maryland 20814. Annual Membership Dues are: USA—Individual DEPARTMENTS $35, Family $45, Professional $60, Student $20, Libraries & Nonprofit Organization $50, Corporate $300. Canadian and 6 From the Executive Director’s Desk By Brenda Battat overseas memberships are also available. Members receive a complimentary copy of Hearing Loss Magazine. Single copies of Hearing Loss Magazine are available to non-members for 8 From the Editor By Barbara Kelley a $5.25 shipping and handling charge. 18 Corporate Member Guest Column By Steve Largent Opinions expressed in articles appearing in Hearing Loss Magazine are those of the author. Mention of goods or servic- es in articles or advertisements does not mean Hearing Loss 31 Instant Messages Association of America endorsement, nor should exclusion suggest disapproval. Manuscripts, photographs and artwork 32 President’s Message By Michael Stone are welcome for review. Request the “Authors’ Guidelines” from the Editor or view them on www.hearingloss.org. The Hearing Loss Association of America cannot be held 32 2008 Hearing Loss Association of America Donors responsible for loss or damage of unsolicited materials. Letters of Hearing Loss Magazine interest may be published unless the writer requests otherwise. All rights reserved. No 42 Hearing Loss Association of America Chapters part of this magazine may be reproduced without written permission of Hearing Loss Association of America. ©2008 The Hearing Loss Association of America. COVER: Reed Doughty, Washington Redskins NFL player. Photograph by Cindy Dyer. Postmaster: Send address changes to Hearing Loss Magazine, 7910 Woodmont Avenue, Suite 1200, Bethesda, MD 20814. FOUNDER Howard E. “Rocky” Stone (1925-2004) i>À}ÊÃÃ In 1979, Rocky Stone founded the organization ÊÊÊÊÃÃV>Ì as Self Help for Hard of Hearing People (SHHH). vÊiÀV> The thinking behind the self-help philosophy for SHHH was to enhance 7910 Woodmont Avenue, Suite 1200 each of us as human beings. Hearing loss was an important but second- Bethesda, MD 20814 ary consideration. Once we accept responsibility for ourselves, we have 301/657-2248 Voice to learn to love ourselves, and then, each other. —Rocky Stone 301/657-2249 TTY 301/913-9413 Fax Contributors www.hearingloss.org [email protected] Yuri Agrawal, M.D., is an otolaryngology resident at Johns Hopkins University School The Hearing Loss Association of America is the of Medicine in Baltimore, MD. nation’s foremost membership and advocacy organization for people with hearing loss. Hearing Brenda Battat is executive director, Hearing Loss Association of America. Loss Association of America opens the world of communication to people with hearing loss through Reed Doughty is an NFL player for the Washington Redskins. information, education, support and advocacy. The national support network includes the Washington, Lise Hamlin is director of public policy and state development, Hearing Loss D.C., area office, 14 state organizations, and 200 local chapters. Our clear, straightforward message Association of America. has changed the lives of thousands of people: Hearing loss is a daily challenge you can overcome. Brad Ingrao, Au.D., is director of audiology at the Canadian Sensory Institute You do not have to hide your hearing loss. You do in British Columbia. not have to face hearing loss alone. Steve Largent is president and CEO of CTIA–The Wireless Association. Executive Director Brenda Battat Barbara Kelley is deputy executive director and editor-in-chief of Hearing Loss Magazine. Deputy Executive Director Arlene Romoff is an HLAA member from Saddle River, New Jersey. Editor-in-Chief Barbara Kelley Mark Ross, Ph.D., is an audiologist and associate at the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center (RERC) at Gallaudet University, Washington, D.C. Director of Development & Education Christopher T. Sutton Michael Stone is president of the HLAA Board of Trustees. Director of Member Services & Chapter Development For advertising information, contact Christopher Sutton at [email protected]. Toni Barrient Director of Public Policy BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEDICAL ADVISORS TECHNICAL ADVISORS & State Development Judith Harkins, Ph.D. Michael Stone, D.C. Paul Hammerschlag, M.D. Lise Hamlin Gallaudet University President New York University Medical Center Mead Killion, Ph.D. Director of Events & Operations Jeannette Kanter, NY John W. House, M.D. Etymotic Research Vice President House Ear Institute/Clinic Nancy Macklin Harry Levitt, Ph.D. Deb Charlea Baker, VT Michael D. Seidman, M.D. RERC, Gallaudet University National Walk4Hearing Manager Secretary Henry Ford Hospital EDUCATION/CHILDREN’S Ronnie Adler Peter Fackler, NY MENTAL HEALTH/ ISSUES ADVISORS Web Designer Treasurer REHABILITATION ADVISOR Carol Flexer, Ph.D. Susan Parras Brenda Battat, ex-officio Samuel Trychin, Ph.D. University of Akron Francis Beecher, FL Financial Services Coordinator & Controller AUDIOLOGY ADVISORS Julia Davis, Ph.D. Kathy Borzell, FL University of Minnesota Sean Smith Teresa Burke, NM Jane R. Madell, Ph.D. PARENTS’ ISSUES ADVISOR Linda V. Bryan, OH Beth Israel Medical Center Assistant to the Controller John Flanders, Esq. David Crocker, VA Rachel Trask Paul Lurie, IL Jennifer Yeagle HEARING ASSISTIVE Vic Matsui, VA The Listening Center TECHNOLOGY ADVISOR Program Assistants Richard Melia, VA Johns Hopkins Ron Vickery Barbara Miller Steve Noroian, CA Colleen Reeping LEGAL ADVISOR CAPTIONING (CART) Anne T. Pope, NY Henry Fader Connie Savage Tommie Wells, TX ADVISOR Pepper Hamilton LLP Deanna Baker Academy Curriculum Consultant Scott J. Bally, Ph.D. ECO BOX Hearing Loss Association of America Washington, D.C., Area Office Volunteers Hearing Loss Magazine text and cover pages are printed using SFI certified Anthem Matte paper using soy ink. Billie Ahrens Jeannette Kanter • SFI certified products come from North American forests Christie Berner Linda Katz managed to rigorous environmental standards. Manell Brice Joan Kleinrock • SFI standards conserve biodiversity and protect soil and David Gayle Willie Kleppinger water quality, as well as wildlife habitats. Meyer Gordon Susan Mann • SFI forests are audited by independent experts to ensure Graphic design by Cindy Dyer/Dyer Design proper adherence to the SFI Standard. www.cindydyer.com/DyerDesignGallery • SFI participants also plant more than 650 million trees www.cindydyer.wordpress.com each year to keep these forests thriving. By Brenda Battat When Someone Close to You Refuses to Admit They Have Trouble Hearing, What Do You Do? An estimated 37,000 people came to the Washington, D.C. Convention Center for the AARP Life@50+ Convention, September 3-6, 2008. HLAA staff worked in shifts at the HLAA exhibit booth in the huge exhibit hall with more than 4,000 exhibits including travel, health, technology, government agencies, and non-profit organizations. Hundreds of people stopped by our booth to get information about hearing loss. Some people had specific questions about hearing aids and where to get a hearing test. But, by far, the majority were family members who expressed frustration because their husbands, wives, mothers, or fathers were refusing to admit they may have some trouble hearing. They spoke of their frustration with TVs blaring, phones unanswered, not being able to hold a conversation on the phone, and having to repeat © Cindy Dyer Cindy © conversations again and again. “How do I get my wife, husband, mom, dad, to do something about their hearing loss? They refuse to admit they have From the a problem and it’s driving me crazy.” D-E-N-I-A-L Executive One of the most common reactions of people when they develop hearing loss is denial. This denial can be the result of many things but one key reason is Director’s that in our society hearing loss is seen as a sign of getting old and confused. Being hard of hearing or deaf comes with heavy historical baggage, Desk from stereotypical usage such as “deaf and dumb” to putting deaf people in institutions because they were considered uneducable. This is reinforced by the media making fun of the mistakes people make not hearing what is said. These negative associations have gelled into a stigma that has proven hard to eradicate. Younger Adults with Hearing Loss However, there is also a positive generational component. Today younger adults are more likely to admit their hearing loss, seek help and move on. Younger adults tend to be more comfortable with technology, have grown up with disability rights laws such as the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, and have never known TV without captioning. When people of any age with hearing loss find HLAA and our chapters, they let their hair down, learn self-advocacy and take advantage of technology and communication strategies that when used together, are life changing. By taking action to manage their hearing loss they in no way can be seen as old and confused—they are in the game.