Looking back over each grade when I felt embarrassed, I wish I could have told myself that even when people ask questions about the FM, by the next day they have usually forgotten about it. Most of the time I cared more than other people did.

Cochlear implants were never on our radar, and the topic arose what felt like out of the blue while talking to his audiologist who said hearing aids could no longer improve his ability to better understand speech.

There’s a lot of overlap between managing tinnitus and dealing with the challenges of aging. Socializing, paying active attention, learning new things, and physical activity are all things that can help with both.

Even within the d/Deaf and hard of hearing umbrella, our access needs and identities vary widely. That in-between space can feel like nowhere—not “hearing enough” for the hearing world, not “Deaf enough” for Deaf spaces.