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Hearing Loss:
I was born with a mild to moderate hearing loss. My parents didn't know about my hearing problem until I was 2 years old. They found out after taking me to an ENT specialist because I wasn't speaking clearly. I started my education by attending hearing impaired classes before going to Kindergarten.
As I got to third grade, I slowly moved into regular classes. It has been a milestone for me to get there. In middle school, I attended learning disabilities classes since I was a slow learner. I think that was a result of not hearing the sounds and learning the words in the early stages of my life which is crucial. Eventually, I moved to regular classes in middle school as well. After high school, I went to college and earned a 4-year degree in Arts/Graphic Design. I work as a full-time Web designer and enjoy doing creative things. I am proud of my accomplishments to be where I am today.
During my education, I've always started from the bottom and move towards the top. My teachers and instructors have been the greatest influence in my life. I would never forget the first year of school when I wore a hearing aid box strapped around my shoulders. It has been challenging and a rough road for me in every stage of my life since then. As of today, I wear digital hearing aids which make it hard for people to notice that I have a hearing loss, and I hear all the sounds as a normal person would hear. This makes me realize how fortunate and lucky I am.
Social Interaction:
I took an evening class during the fall semester. I met a very nice student in class. We helped each other on the projects which made it more fun. She showed interest to stay in touch with me, and take another class together in the near future. I felt good about myself having a new friend and someone to talk with.
Unfortunately she disappeared on the last day of class, and never got back to me since then. She did not give any reason or indication to end the friendship. I started to lose self confidence and my feelings were deeply hurt. This is one example when people unexpectedly cut me out of their circle of friends, and yet gives me another broken friendship.
I am creating a personal blog so I can continue sharing my stories and experiences interacting with people in my world.
My social life has been challenging over the years. There were students in grade school who constantly teased me, and it has always been difficult to make close friends and stay in touch with them. As a result, I have become shy, soft-spoken, and not very outgoing.
I created a message board for people with hearing impairment to share their personal experiences and thoughts. I think this will give me the opportunity to meet new people, interact, and help others deal with their life experiences similar to mine.
I also created a group in Facebook for anyone interested to join and meet new people in the hearing loss community. I hope to see you there!
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