Our new hearing impairment article category is at

http://www.disabled-world.com/disability/types/hearing/

One of the things that is offered at Costco stores is a hearing exam at a fairly low cost, and I took advantage of it recently. They had all of the equipment needed to adequately perform the exam, including that little soundproof room with all of the associated technology.

The person who performed the exam was a person with a hearing disability, which pleased me greatly. He wore hearing aids on both ears. I was hard-pressed to notice them; technology related to hearing aids has apparently improved over the years. Instead of the hearing aids I remember that fit over the back of the ear (which are still in use, and sold), he had ones that fit into the ear canal. At any rate, I was much more comfortable with him performing the exam because I knew that a nondisabled person would probably have less personal interest, and undoubtedly have less experience with hearing disability, than he did.

The results of the exam revealed that I have a hearing loss in my left ear that is below the line that is considered to be within the , 'normal,' range. The person performing the exam tells me that within a couple of years I may very well use a hearing aid on that ear, but not quite yet. It explains why I have trouble hearing Wendy from, 'just around the corner in the hallway,' or, 'across the room.'

The loss of hearing in my left ear may be the result of seizure activity, or a number of other things. There wasn't any wax buildup in my ears. There were some, 'incidents,' during my younger years where I was exposed to loud sounds that may have affected my hearing as well.

Tom.