Remembering Grace

Members, News
Grace celebrating her 100th birthday!

Grace celebrating her 100th birthday!

The hearing loss community and our chapter lost an icon when our beloved Grace Tiessen passed away at 11am on March 23. She passed away calmly and quietly in her home of 62 years. This was her wish, no ER, no nursing homes, just at home with her children watching over her.

Grace had a storied life full of many experiences, including going back to school at age 51, graduating from UC Berkeley in 1940 at a time when women graduating college was very rare, and joining HLAA in 1984 after asking herself the question, “What does it mean to be hard of hearing in the hearing world?”.

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March 3 is World Hearing Day!

Better Hearing, News articles

World Hearing Day!World Hearing Day 2020 is on March 3rd and this year’s theme is, “hearing for life: don’t let hearing loss limit you,” according to World Health Organization (WHO). It’s estimate nearly 470 million people are impacted by hearing loss and it continues to grow dramatically. Education and prevention are keys to saving your hearing.

To learn more about this important day and the theme for raising awareness, check out a related article here!

We Have a New Home!

Chapter, News

Children's Hospital Los AngelesUpdate: Due to the Coronavirus situation and CDC recommendations, we have cancelled our March meeting.

Stay tuned for further updates regarding our April meeting.

Until then, please be healthy and safe!

As many of you know, we have been in a lengthy process to find a new home for our chapter meetings. After much perseverance by our dedicated President, Sharon Swerdlow, and tips from our chapter members, a home has been found! We will start our new journey at the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles starting with our Saturday, March 28, 2020 meeting.

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February’s Meeting – Relationships Panel Discussion and a New Home!

Chapter, Meetings, News, Walk4Hearing
New member Matthew sharing his challenges at work.

New member Matthew sharing his challenges at work.

You can view the meeting transcript here.
(note – due to technical difficulties beyond our control, captioning was not available at the start of the meeting)

Audio-visual glitches didn’t stop us from enjoying a lively relationship panel yesterday morning moderated enthusiastically by Sandy. Nanci/Steve and Dana/Todd shared their experiences in communication when one partner has hearing loss and the other doesn’t, and how they support one another in the process, while Matthew shared powerful examples of coping with various challenges of working in a retail environment – background music, people talking to him from behind, and answering a LANDLINE PHONE, for starters. Sharon and Leora shared how a mother-daughter bond can improve through good humor and advocacy. Audience participation was fantastic – there was a lot of raw honesty and a heartfelt sharing of the trials and tribulations that result from our hearing challenges.

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Does Your Tinnitus Worsen in the Winter Months?

Better Hearing, News, Resources
Seasonal Tinnitus

Tinnitus is no laughing matter!

There are some research studies support the idea of seasonality with tinnitus. Do you notice the winter months with cooler temperatures, changes in humidity, and less physical activity creates a greater awareness and sensitivity to your tinnitus? Or maybe it’s something to think about?

Check out the Living with Hearing Loss blog to learn more about this possibility.

A Successful Relationship with your Audiologist

Better Hearing, News, Resources

Getting the help you need with audiologistsOne of the greatest fears and challenges for those of us with hearing loss is visiting our audiologist. Will they have our best interest at heart? Can they really help us? What should I expect or don’t know? Believe me, you aren’t alone but with proper research, asking others for advice, and understanding a little bit what the audiologist point of view is can go a long ways.

Check out this article for some interesting reflections!

February 22 Meeting – Hearing Loss and Relationships

Chapter, Meetings

Back by popular demand, we are hosting our annual relationship panel and interactive session! We will talk about the good and the bad when it comes to communicating with a loved one who has hearing loss. Whether married, dating, or just dealing with a family member or friend, you’ll be sure to have a blast. Come and join us as we learn stories, challenges, and advice to help us successfully move forward!

Note that we will still be meeting at the Sherman Oaks Library.

Date: Saturday, February 22

Time: 9:30am, social; 10am-noon, meeting

Place: Sherman Oaks Branch Library, 14245 Moorpark St, Sherman Oaks

Notes: Feel free to bring a snack or side-item to share!

2020 Convention is Coming Soon!

Events, HLAA, News

HLAA National Convention

It may seem a long ways away, but it will soon be June which is the month the annual HLAA Convention is held. This year it will be in the magical city of New Orleans from June 18-21. Early bird registration is now open until March 2 so if you are planning on attending, now might be a good time to take action (further information below).

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Packed House for our January Meeting!

Better Hearing, Chapter, Meetings
Suzannah Hagan sharing a wealth of information.

Suzannah Hagan sharing a wealth of information!

Meeting transcript can be found here.

We had a packed house for our meeting last Saturday. Suzannah Hagan started us off with a terrific presentation – understanding audiograms, what it takes to be a cochlear implant recipient (and be covered for the surgery/equipment by insurance!), how Cis work, …. Due to a plethora of questions during the presentation, Suzannah only made it through a fraction of her slides, but we learned a lot from what we saw and heard!

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Child born deaf receives gift of hearing after life-changing cochlear implant

Better Hearing, News

Deaf ChildGetting a cochlear implant doesn’t restrict by age whether you are a newborn or in your 90’s. A touching story was recently shared by a chapter member about a parents struggle to have their newborn born deaf get a cochlear implant when originally told no. As many people know, a child’s ability to effectively learn to communicate starts at a very young age. Have a further read below.

Story from ABC7.

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