Being mostly deaf stinks! I would say it is akin to visiting a foreign country. People all around you are talking, some perhaps to you, some maybe about you, but you don't have any idea. You can't talk to anyone because you can't hear or understand what they say back.
I am ever-so conscious of my breathing, swallowing, singing, and chewing since all of these sounds are amplified in my head while all other sounds are muted. Singing at church was quite excruciating. Most songs ended up in a lip sync. At work I attended a lunch lecture last week. Anytime I ate a chip I had a good 30 seconds of just crunching in my head as the lecturer pantomimed and moved soundlessly about.
On the plus side: I can ignore people. I sometimes hear violins playing in my head. I can sort of hear people better on the phone than I can if they were standing next to me. My co-worker gave me flowers (with a card that says "I'm Sorry you can't hear right now"). And the rodeo is still action-packed and exciting, even muted!
(No animals were harmed in the posting of this blog.)
1 comment:
Holy Crap! What the heck are you doing out there in San Diego that would cause you to have such severe ear infections that your eardrums ruptured? Sounds like you might need to move...maybe to the East Coast! I love reading your blog posts. If I were there I would pretend like I was talking to you but not really talk to you. I think that would be funny! :o)
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