Skill Development

From the chronicles

Through your own efforts, you can hear better

Hearing better is about more than just having the right technology; it’s about the active role you play in the process. While hearing aids or cochlear implants give access to sound, it’s through your own practice and determination that your brain learns to really understand it. By putting in time and effort to train your […]

Gestures for communicating with people who have hearing loss Part One

When you use gestures to make a point or emphasize the meaning, it can be really helpful for people with hearing loss. Here are 11 gestures for clearer communication: Send this link to the person in your life who has hearing loss to make sure they are on the same page! (No pun intended.) […]

Learn how to read lips No. 37

I finally found a good analogy to explain the importance of substitution when you are learning how to read lips! Substitution is your friend when you are learning how to read lips. Think of substitution as your brain’s Visual Autocorrect. When you see a word that doesn’t quite fit the conversation, you don’t get stuck […]

Why dynamic auditory training programs work best for hearing loss

Adaptive auditory training programs, such as Neurotone’s Lace AI Pro, offer a significant advantage because they are designed to be dynamic. One of the primary benefits of an adaptive approach is that the program automatically adjusts its difficulty level as you improve, ensuring that you are always training at or near your personal threshold level. […]

Feeling excluded from group conversations because you can’t hear?

To anyone who has felt left out or not included for any reason: may you find your tribe. Don’t give up! 🙏 In addition to finding the support of others who made the effort to include me, I also rely on cochlear implant technology, remote microphone technology (Phonak Roger 20 receiver and a Roger On […]

When you’re learning how to read lips No. 36

Learning to read lips is all a matter of practice! Here’s an example of what you need to know: Check out my free Lipreading Challenge on YouTube to quickly learn key lipreading concepts. Just 90 minutes can improve your skills and help you when the listening environment is challenging. If you need more support, I […]

Cochlear implants without auditory training is like a cell phone without a signal

Cochlear implants without auditory training is like a cell phone without a signal. If you can’t get a signal on your phone despite a nearby cell phone tower, you might feel disconnected and different (compared to everyone else who can get a signal). Similarly, with cochlear implants, the signal in the signal-to-noise ratio is the […]

Learn to read lips No. 35

When you’re trying to lipread, clues from the context are like the autocomplete or autosuggest features on a search engine. By context, I mean what is happening in the moment; what just happened; what is about to happen; who you are with; and where you are. How would you ask for context, if it was […]

Even people with normal hearing benefit from auditory training

Processing speed affects our ability to hear in noisy listening environments, even for people with normal hearing. I emphasize this even for people with normal hearing, because some people with hearing loss believe that hearing aids alone should provide the benefits they are looking for. But even older adults with normal hearing have difficulty in […]

Hearing aids without auditory training is like a dog walk without a dog

Without my dog, I’d skip walks when it’s difficult, missing out on exercise, sunlight, and dog joy in the snow. This is what life would look like: Similarly, background noise makes it difficult to hear. Without auditory training, people may avoid noisy environments altogether. Auditory training uses structured exercises to help the brain hear […]