There are some questions that are asked failry frequently and here are a few examples. I might get asked, "What is Random Effective Deafness" and I explain that it's a term I coined to cover the practical aspects of living with Profound Unilateral Hearing Loss which itself refers to a total hearing loss on either side, be it on the left side or right side. Losses less than total are either “Severe Unilateral Hearing Loss”, or just plain “Unilateral Hearing Loss”. So the informal term, RED, or, Random Effective Deafness is my main focus when describing the reality of living with Profound Unilateral Hearing Loss. Here some other typical questions and their answers
What are its Practical Effects
Randomly experiencing sound as a meaningless cacophony of noise lasting for randomly long durations whereupon one is rendered effectively profoundly deaf
How do you know who to target in a group
With PUHL one does not know whom to target except in rare cases where there is a correlation between whomsoever may be talking at any given moment and for that person also to be simultaneously in one’s line of vision, then one knows whom to address. But in chaotic or hurried situations where that degree of selectivity is not possible then the only option is to be a “broadcaster” and speak to the group as a whole and hope that the group will perform the selectiion function on one’s behalf and the person one wishes to speak to shall respond. This is a very stressful situation for somebody with PUHL to find oneself in because it usually provokes the hostility of the group who would be much more sympathetic were they only aware of the constraints the person with PUHL is actually operating under when forced to adopt the role of the broadcaster in order to enter dialogue approrpiately.
Do you Keep Losing Things
Yes, things get lost that one would not normally lose. For example, I reecently was in a hurry to get out and nipped in to give my teeth a brush. I was aware of a sound happening but it wan’t until later that my son told me he picked up my wallet from the bathroom floor. Then I was able to think back on what had happened, but at the time I had no idea. There have been other occasions where I have dropped something and even although I was fully aware of having dropped it I was nevertheless unable to retrieve it because I had no clue as to what direction it took when the item fell on the floor and simply could not find it. Normally, one would have some suggestion about whether something dropped went off on a particular direction, but not in my case.
Is Hearing any Easier Outdoors if Accompanied by Someone
Hearing outdoors is so unprectable that it is best only to assume it suitable for basic communication while accompanied by another human being. With traffic noise and the noise of wind and rain or just the usual hum drum of very day life any comprehension is totally random and the expereince is very stressful.
What Definition of Random do you Use
Same as anywhere else, a random event has no causal relation with any prior event – totally unpredictable therefore.
What do you Mean by Effectively Profoundly Deaf
Being unable to meaningfully interpret and act upon sound/auditory input – that’s effectively being profoundly deaf – except that it ‘comes and goes’ randomly (and lasts randomly long)
What Functions of Normal Hearing Do you Not Have
Discrimination, Differentiation, Localisation
1. Discrimination – choosing what one wishes to hear from several inputs
2. Differentiation – separating out background sound to make sense of speech
3. Localisation – knowing where sounds originate from
Do you Use a Hearing Aid
No, one cannot aid that which does not exist but I am hopeful for new developments in the technology.
Is Random Effective Deafness the Same as our Grandparents might Have
No – age related loss is more like an overall diminuition which can be helped by amplification: it is not a loss of actual functional hearing.
Can you Use the Phone
I always ask for email instead because I can’t hear the phone in another room although my hearing dog is a great help.
Multiple phones are difficult to locate/guess which one it is that is actually ringing and, in general, people do tend to overtalk each other as the pace quickens, causing me to lose the thread.
Are there Dangers from not Knowing Where Sounds Come From
Yes,
* unwittingly stepping out to cross the road in front of cars, for example.
* Bumping into people and maybe spilling hot drinks over them or whatever.
* Not being able to navigate an escape away from potential dangers such as fire or falling objects, etc.
* Personal safety and security issues based on the inability to select “fight or flight” in a meaningful way.
What Psychological Effects are There
there is ’silence deprivation’ and, ‘noise recruitment’ (sensory overwhelm) at the other extreme and a suppression of the flight or flee instinct due to the localisation problem.
Are you now more dependant on eyesight
Yes, absolutely one must vigilantly watch out for cars, etc to compensate for the loss of localisation in order to avoid wandering into dangerous situations.
