This is Your Brain on Noise
Forgive my language. When I first read Dr. J.J. Eggermont’s book Noise and the Brain, my first thought was, “Oh, shit.” Because noise is far worse for our hearing and brain health than I was ever taught as an audiologist. Especially for developing hearing systems in children and teens. My more professional book review, This […]
No Hearing Protection at Stadium Sports Events
I was excited to watch the Canada vs Belgium World Cup men’s soccer match in Qatar. I had no doubt our team would do Canada proud. But this isn’t about a well-played game by the Canadian team (despite the loss). It’s about people ignoring the hearing health risks of stadium noise exposures. Being amazing fans […]
Call To Action: SoundPrint’s Find Your Quiet Place Challenge
I’m partnering with SoundPrint, a hearing health app, to promote hearing health awareness this October. I don’t represent an organization. I’m just one person. But every person counts when it comes to citizen science. Join us for SoundPrint’s Find Your Quiet Place Challenge! During the month of October, 30+ prominent hearing health organizations will participate […]
Noise and Hearing Damage Simulations
Image by Aditya Chinchure on Unsplash. What does it sound like to have hearing damage caused by noise? I’ve put together a short audio playlist of noise-induced hearing loss simulations. These give a small idea of what it’s like to live with tinnitus, difficulty understanding speech, and loss of music enjoyment because of preventable sensorineural […]
Protecting Hearing at Concerts
Images by Jan L. Mayes taken at Vancouver, BC, Canada concert on Avatar Going Hunting Tour 2022. Whether it’s pop, rock, or country, amplified music at concerts is loud enough to damage hearing health. I’m an old bat in my 50’s and have tinnitus. That doesn’t stop me from going to see my favourite bands […]
If Ears Bled From Everyday Noise Exposures
I’m not talking about bleeding ears from very loud acoustic trauma blowing out a person’s eardrums, e.g. explosion, bomb blast. The image for this post was a graphic for a hearing health shock campaign I planned in 2017. I wanted to raise awareness about noise risk from common everyday sound exposures, including personal listening and […]
What Tinnitus Taught Me
Yes, that’s me on the cover! I’m sharing some of my current coping tools after being asked to write about how having tinnitus (and decreased sound tolerance) inspired my work as an audiologist: What Tinnitus Taught Me. I come from the dark days of the 1980s when “nothing could be done” for my tinnitus distress. […]
If Only We Could See the Damage of Noise Exposure
I was very honoured to have my article featured in Tinnitus Today, Spring 2022 issue. I discuss science from my 2021 papers published in Proceedings of Meetings on Acoustics, co-authored with Dr. Daniel Fink of The Quiet Coalition. My main point is simple: If Only We Could See the Damage of Noise Exposure. If our […]
Airhorn Noise Joke
When my oldest child (now a young adult) arrived at work on April Fool’s Day this year, there was a noisy joke waiting for her. Co-workers rigged an airhorn to go off every time somebody opened the front door of the office. There was much laughter until the culprits noticed my child didn’t find it […]
Online Resources for Tinnitus and Hyperacusis
These links to free online resources include research, coping information, peer support, prevention, and social media, mainly related to tinnitus and decreased sound tolerance. This includes pain (hyperacusis), dislike or hate (misophonia), and fear (phonophobia) of everyday sounds that don’t affect people with typical hearing health. I can’t recommend or endorse specific resources. I hope […]