Now that the weather is warming up and the kids will be home for the summer we are starting to the see the beginning of the travel season. Every year, around this time in May more and more patients begin to ask me what they can do to avoid ear pain as they begin to travel and take vacations so I have decided to compile my most effective tips into this week’s post. This stretching of the eardrum can cause pain. The eardrum also cannot vibrate when it is stretched thus causing a decrease in hearing. Thus when flying whether ascending or descending you need to try to keep the pressure equalize via the eustachian tube. Ways to do this are listed below:

Swallow: Frequent swallowing causes the eustachian tube to open more frequently thus helping to keep the pressure equal.

Chewing gum or sucking: For an adult chewing gum or sucking on a hard candy causes a person to salivate and thus swallows more keeping the eustachian tube active.

For Children: With infants their eustachian tubes are narrow and flatter than adults the pressure can be more intense. Ear pain relief drops can be prescribed by a pediatrician before flight as well. Give them a bottle or pacifier to suck on especially on descent. Older children can suck on a sucker, suck through a straw or blow bubbles through a straw to help alleviate ear pain.

Valsalva Maneuver: With a mouthful of air, close your mouth and pinch your nose shut. Gently force air out until ears your ears pop. If you are sick with a cold or allergies, the Valsalva maneuver is not recommended, as it could cause a severe ear infection. Instead, try a lesser known method called the Toynbee maneuver: close your mouth and nose and swallow several times until pressure equalizes.

Do not sleep on ascent and descent

Stay Hydrated: by drinking which also results in swallowing

Earplanes: Filtered earplugs available at drugstores

Nasal Spray: The use of nasal spray and decongestant one hour before landing can be helpful to keep the mucous in the eustachian tube reduced thus the tube remains clear and open.

Head Cold: Do not fly with congestion

If hearing does not return to normal within several days post travel see your physician.

“It’s noisy in here.”
“The wind is really strong.”
“Your phone keeps breaking up and dropping your voice.”
“Can you stop mumbling please?”

We’ve all used these excuses before, and we’ve all learned that down the line, they really don’t do us any good. Admitting you have a hearing loss shouldn’t be embarrassing, but for many it is, and telling others that you can’t hear well can be difficult. And just like you would speak differently to your boss than you would to your significant other, telling a person you have a hearing loss can vary based on what that the person means to you.

Here are some tips for telling the people in your life that you have hearing loss and how you can work together to make the most out of your relationships.

Family and friends
The people that you are closest to can be the most difficult to admit a problem to, but they are also going to be the ones who will notice it before anyone else. In fact, your friends and family will probably be the ones who identify your hearing loss before you do. The problem with this group is that they may be acting as advocates, pushing you to the doctor’s office or to try hearing aids before you are ready. Maybe you need hearing aids, maybe you don’t. The point is that you are the one who has to wear them and you have to live with them. So in the end, all that matters is that you have to be the one who is ready.
Calmly explain to them that yes, you have difficulty hearing but that you need to be the one to ask for help. If you are not ready for hearing aids, suggest ways they can help make it easier for you to hear and understand them. If you are ready to consider hearing aids, then ask someone to accompany you when you go to your hearing care professional’s office. That person will be a great pillar of support and will actually help you and your provider get the best overall picture of how your hearing loss affects your lifestyle.

Significant other
When you are in a relationship with someone, whether the relationship is brand new or going on thirty years, hearing loss can significantly impact how you communicate, express feelings, deal with difficult situations and even affect romance. Being open and honest with your significant other is key to keeping the peace in your relationship. If your partner also suffers from a hearing loss, it may be easier to explain your own loss and you may even bond over your shared difficulties. If your partner has normal hearing, it is best to tell him or her as soon as possible.
Go to a quiet restaurant, have a movie night at home or just take a walk in a quiet park and explain to your partner what sounds are hard to hear, what environments are difficult to hear in, what sounds or noises make understanding speech difficult and what he or she can do to help make it easier. While you may be initially embarrassed to tell your partner of your hearing loss, doing so will make him or her more conscious of your hearing and feelings, and you will be less likely to encounter conflict resulting from you missing a word or phrase.

Coworkers/boss
You probably spend more time at work than you do at home, so making sure your coworkers and boss are aware of your hearing loss is key to your job performance and at-work interactions. Pull your boss aside for 10-20 minutes or schedule a coffee together one morning. Make sure you have his or her full attention and explain how your hearing loss affects your job and what you do and others can do to help.
• Suggest that you are always facing the main speaker during a meeting or that someone is always in charge of sending post-meeting summary notes.
• Ask if your office number could be your cell if you have hearing aids that stream calls directly to your phone.
Taking the time to sit down and tell your boss the difficulties you could face and making suggestions to overcome them will make your job easier and will prevent you from accidentally getting in trouble because you may have missed an important point in a meeting.
Your coworkers quickly become your friends, so it is often best to tell them once you begin to work with them. You will interact on a daily basis and will need to rely on and trust in each other to accomplish key tasks and assignments. Explain to them what sounds and words are hard for you to understand and what environments are difficult to hear in.
• Ask them to email or speak with you in person before calling.
• If they forget you have a hearing loss, politely remind them that you have an easier time understanding them when they are facing you directly.

Strangers
This group can be the easiest or hardest to explain your hearing loss to.
If the individual is a “work” stranger, it’s best to tell them of your hearing loss immediately, especially if this is the only time you will be speaking face to face. If you are not comfortable doing so, consider asking your boss before meeting this person to explain to him or her that you have trouble hearing and to suggest ways to accommodate you best. Work-related strangers could be clients or executives, and while they are typically people you don’t see often, their words are often the most important to hear. It is better to be upfront about your hearing loss so that you can have the best chance at understanding what they say and not feel like you’re on a different page or struggling to keep up with everyone else.
If the stranger is someone you meet at a bar, party, at school or in an otherwise non-office situation, it is really up to you whether or not you tell him or her of your hearing loss. You may not feel comfortable around the stranger and not want to share, and that’s OK. If a friend or family member you trust is with you, ask them to help mediate the conversation between you and the stranger. This way you don’t miss anything and you don’t have to explain your hearing loss yet. If you feel comfortable telling the stranger, simply explain to them that you have hearing loss and may have to ask them to repeat things every so often. They will be understanding of your situation and respect you for your honesty.

Ultimately, hearing aids can help you interact better with each of the above groups. They are not perfect, and it is still a good idea to be openly honest about your hearing loss, but hearing aids can help you hear better in both quiet and noisy environments, pick up on sounds you might otherwise miss and give you a much more enjoyable social experience where you aren’t struggling to understand important speech or sound.

Schedule your appointment with our office today to discuss other strategies that may be helpful for communicating with hearing loss.

Good Sound Audiology  welcomes Wendi Black as Audiology Assistant to the practice. Wendi has been working with Good Sound Audiology  since June and looks forward to helping patients achieve a better quality of life in her expanded role. Wendi commented, “In the short time I’ve worked with Good Sound Audiology, I’ve come to realize that providing the gift of better hearing is the greatest thing we can possibly give someone.”

Since completing her certification training in November, Wendi will be available for routine appointments.  Working as a cooperative team with Dr. Tina Jessee, Wendi will also manage Surflink and TruLink installations (bluetooth and wireless TV streaming applications) in all three locations; Gilbert, Mesa, and Sun Lakes.

Good Sound Audiology is pleased to add Wendi to our team of providers and patient care coordinators who help Bring People Together Through Better Hearing.

The hearing loss guide: Useful information and advice for patients and families written by John M. Burkey

The goal of this book is to provide the reader with a first-hand account from others with hearing loss and their family/friends. Hearing loss is not a private disease; it involves anyone and everyone in the person’s communication circle. The advice and comments from each person reflect their personal experiences to many different aspects of hearing loss. I have heard very similar comments from my patients and their communication partner (spouse, child, friend).

“For many, life had become a ‘What’ fest”.

The first part is the basics of hearing & hearing loss, using easy-to-understand terminology. The second part provides the reader with excellent information regarding realistic expectations of hearing loss and hearing aids with comments and advice from real people with hearing aids.

I would recommend the book to anyone that has hearing loss & values customer reviews. The author provides unedited accounts of hearing aid users and their significant communication partners. Most people that post reviews online have something negative to say about their experience. Mr. Burkey fills the pages with a good balance of negative and positive reviews of each person’s experience with hearing loss and hearing aids.

To purchase this book, visit Amazon http://amzn.to/1hgh7tD