On going deaf...
Oct. 8th, 2001 09:48 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
alexpgpI recall, some time ago, watching some program on television where two women were talking about Justice Clarence Thomas - rather critically, I might add - when one of them wound up matters by saying something to the effect of hoping that Thomas' wife fed him a high-fat diet, so that he might croak sooner.
People of a similar mindset will probably rejoice at the news that Rush Limbaugh has apparently suffered a catastrophic hearing loss recently and is, in effect, working deaf.
Unlike a lot of people who condemn Limbaugh, I've actually listened to several of his shows over the years. Some of what he says makes sense; some doesn't. That's not the point of this post.
You see, a couple of years ago - in December 1999, in fact - I suffered a catastrophic hearing loss in my right ear, and learning of Limbaugh's plight made me recall how I felt at the time, faced with the likely prospect of being deaf in one ear. If you think deafness is a liability for radio personalities, believe me, it's no less disastrous for an interpreter.
At first, I attributed the deafness to an infection. I felt congested. I went to a doctor, who prescribed something that - it turned out - didn't do much for the congestion (because there wasn't any) but did make my heart do things that made the NASA doctor sit up and take notice when I sat down to take my annual flight controller physical. I also failed the hearing test in my right ear (the curve in the low frequencies was about as flat as the Texas plains).
As the congested feeling hadn't gone away, I went to an ear, nose, and throat specialist (aka 'otolaryngologist'), who handed me over to a technician to do another hearing test.
This one was worse, if such a thing could be imagined.
When I was back with the doctor, he let me have it directly: I'd lost the hearing in my ear. It happened to people from time to time. Nobody knows why it happens. It may or may not be reversible. He prescribed a course of prednisone and told me to come back in a month.
A month later, some of the hearing had come back, though not enough for me to interpret, although I worked at it. (I felt a little like a character in an old Twilight Zone episode, the one where the lead player starts to notice that word usage was subtly changing (a person referring to a cup might say it was a "mouse," a car became a "tree"). Soon, the changes were not so subtle, until eventually, he understood nothing of what's going on around him and the episode closes with him sitting on the floor, reading a children's dictionary that is filled with completely familiar words that have acquired completely unfamiliar meanings.)
Fortunately, I did not have to struggle for a long time. The hearing in my right ear continued to improve until today, about the only residue of that experience is that I favor my left ear when I'm in a noisy environment. I was lucky, I guess.
* * * I got a pretty solid 5 hours of sleep this afternoon, after which I "turned to" on the floor, sweeping it and mopping it per my plan. The floor is pretty clean now, so I can turn my attention to table surfaces, which are piled with junk. In this regard, however, I must keep in mind that moderation in all things is the key to success and happiness. :^)
Tonight's shift starts at [ugh!] 2 am and ends at 9:30 am. I just might go in a bit earlier to stave off having to drive around in the middle of the night.
Cheers...
People of a similar mindset will probably rejoice at the news that Rush Limbaugh has apparently suffered a catastrophic hearing loss recently and is, in effect, working deaf.
Unlike a lot of people who condemn Limbaugh, I've actually listened to several of his shows over the years. Some of what he says makes sense; some doesn't. That's not the point of this post.
You see, a couple of years ago - in December 1999, in fact - I suffered a catastrophic hearing loss in my right ear, and learning of Limbaugh's plight made me recall how I felt at the time, faced with the likely prospect of being deaf in one ear. If you think deafness is a liability for radio personalities, believe me, it's no less disastrous for an interpreter.
At first, I attributed the deafness to an infection. I felt congested. I went to a doctor, who prescribed something that - it turned out - didn't do much for the congestion (because there wasn't any) but did make my heart do things that made the NASA doctor sit up and take notice when I sat down to take my annual flight controller physical. I also failed the hearing test in my right ear (the curve in the low frequencies was about as flat as the Texas plains).
As the congested feeling hadn't gone away, I went to an ear, nose, and throat specialist (aka 'otolaryngologist'), who handed me over to a technician to do another hearing test.
This one was worse, if such a thing could be imagined.
When I was back with the doctor, he let me have it directly: I'd lost the hearing in my ear. It happened to people from time to time. Nobody knows why it happens. It may or may not be reversible. He prescribed a course of prednisone and told me to come back in a month.
A month later, some of the hearing had come back, though not enough for me to interpret, although I worked at it. (I felt a little like a character in an old Twilight Zone episode, the one where the lead player starts to notice that word usage was subtly changing (a person referring to a cup might say it was a "mouse," a car became a "tree"). Soon, the changes were not so subtle, until eventually, he understood nothing of what's going on around him and the episode closes with him sitting on the floor, reading a children's dictionary that is filled with completely familiar words that have acquired completely unfamiliar meanings.)
Fortunately, I did not have to struggle for a long time. The hearing in my right ear continued to improve until today, about the only residue of that experience is that I favor my left ear when I'm in a noisy environment. I was lucky, I guess.
Tonight's shift starts at [ugh!] 2 am and ends at 9:30 am. I just might go in a bit earlier to stave off having to drive around in the middle of the night.
Cheers...
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no subject
Date: 2001-10-08 08:19 pm (UTC)it's got to be especially bad for him, since he works in audio.
i don't agree with much of what the guy says,
but he's entertaining,
and i wouldn't wish ill on him.
hearing loss frightens me.
your personal story is pretty harrowing.
that hearing could just "go away" is not encouraging.
no subject
Date: 2001-10-08 11:10 pm (UTC)? ? ?
no subject
Date: 2001-10-09 12:10 am (UTC)Cheers...
no subject
Date: 2001-10-09 04:39 am (UTC)Like the guy or not, he has THE largest audience and he will definitely always have his phonelines jammed from start to finish...
I was sad to hear the news myself... I try to protrect my hearing at evey turn...
How those cats who blast their radios with 110 db can even make out jet engines amazes the hell out of me...
no subject
Date: 2001-10-09 07:41 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2001-10-09 09:38 pm (UTC)The doc said the loss could be caused by a number of factors (ruptured membrane, bone spur, inflammation, tumor), but nobody's going to slap you on an operating table, open you up, and then dig around just to figure out which one it is (though the doc did order an MRI, which eliminated the tumor theory).
Cheers...