This is extremely relieving, Benny. Although I don't struggle with hearing loss per say, I have a weird inability to understand what people are saying half the time, even in English frequently I just hear gibberish (I have to watch tv/movies with subtitles). This makes learning Spanish quite difficult, but the fact that you did it with actual hearing loss is very inspiring.
it happen to me too!! wao!! you really explaining in good english to me!! i got you!! because is pretty much what's happen to me in denmark, i had learn several language before danish but the phonetic in danish absorbe me totally!! making me doubt if I was smart enough to continue living here!! ( the fACT is danish = norwegian and some swedish + more dialects in jutland region) is something like spanish can understand some portuguese and italian haaa! good point!
It's a topic I would have never expected from you, but it is so great to listen to you sharing your experience which can be really helpful for other people. I have never heard of the technologies you have told about, and they can be really useful even though I don't have problems with my hearing. So thank you a lot for the video!
+erilinapolly My pleasure! Happy to share some solutions to unique problems that I've come across with others, so they can get the same benefits! I think a lot of this video can genuinely be useful even if you have perfect hearing - glad you enjoyed it!
Well it's very interesting to know that someone has the same problem that I have, but in my case it's the right ear that has hearing loss. Thanks for the video maybe this tips could help me someday.
Great vid Benny. I too have reduced hearing in my left ear so these recommendations are very relevant. Amazing what tech is out there in the audio arena.
+Nendo Akuma My background is in electronic engineering, so I always think of some kind of a technical way to solve problems before anything else. Hopefully you found it interesting! :)
(totally off-topic) That's interesting that you are/were an electrical engineer who is also a polygot. My background is in computer science, but for as long as I can remember, I've thought that if I could have any one superhero power, it would be to speak every language fluently.. At various points I've studied or tried to learn at least 10 different languages. (Not including computer languages. ;-)) Looking back, computer science was the wrong fit for me entirely, and I would have been much happier in just about any other field. Would you say the same about EE?
Thanks, Benny. I suffered hearing loss, especially in my right ear, in my early 20s when I served on a Navy ship and was assigned to the engine rooms. I'll look into the special headphones. I do pretty well in face to face conversations, but it's harder to "hear" foreign language sounds in audio only.
Thanks for this video Benny. Me too I have hearing loss, I am totally deaf in my left ear and I also face some difficulties to follow a conversation when I'm in a noisy environment. Those earphones sound intresting and maybe they could help me, I will surely check them out.
thanks alot for this awesome video!! i truly believe this is happening to me! i had been reading about and resources on this topic and found something similarity (electrosensitivity and tinnitus.) again thanks alot!
Benny... I'm from Louth... I'm thinking of making my own version of Michel Thomas for Irish.... I too lived in Spain and now speak Spanish but my Irish is brutal....any tips? you from baileboro?
+Billy Riedel Well, my "half deaf" is only in one ear and according to ear tests it's around 60% of normal hearing (although I can't hear higher and lower frequencies well at all). But since my right ear is better (not perfect, but 80-90%), I can manage most of the time. It's only in noisy areas I struggle. A hearing aid would be overkill for the level that I have. It's why I mentioned the 'smart hearing aid' here - reducing the noise while not reducing human voices makes it way easier for me :) After years of this issue getting worse and worse, I had surgery recently, so things may be getting better for me - time will tell!
+Billy Riedel Yes, unfortunately. It developed in my early teens. Fortunately it's not nerve damage, but something else (the ENT doctor has explained it to me, but I didn't understand it so well :P ), which is why I went for surgery this year after spending the last 2 years trying several other things that didn't work and a CAT scan showed a potential issue. Constantly travelling for most of my life made it very hard to get consistent follow-ups after checks for the "obvious" issues and until I had a base and good health insurance, getting a CAT scan would have been very difficult to arrange over my entire life other than emergency health insurance for an accident.
Why would hearing aids be overkill? By your description, it seems like you're a perfect candidate. Hearing aids nowadays can be programmed to only amplify the frequencies you have trouble with, at the volume you need. They're pretty awesome. They can be pretty small too. I've even seen one that fits entirely in the ear canal. Although generally, the smaller they are, the more expensive they are. My two youngest kids are deaf and got cochlear implants at 12 months, but they started out with hearing aids. When they got the hearing aids, the audiologist programmed them to match their audiogram (as best they could for someone with profound loss).
Interesting stuff; sorry to hear about your hearing loss - I have similar problems, especially in restaurants. FYI here is a review of '"Here" and other noise-canceling earphones. www.cnet.com/products/here-one/review/
