It’s the most wonderful time of the year. But for the 1 in 10 people with hearing loss, it’s also the most challenging time for communication. Lipreading Mom should know. I’ve had 11 years of holidaytime hearing loss experience. The whole family is packed around the dinner table, busily chatting about their good fortune and … Continue reading
Please Say a Prayer for this Sweet Hearing Dog
Bosley is the 7-year-old hearing dog of Rev. Catherine O’Connor from Ontario, Canada. “I was raised lipreading, born hard of hearing,” Catherine writes. “I only got my first hearing aids when I was in my 20s.” Now 54, Catherine wears purple hearing aids while at work only. At home, she lives with her brother, also … Continue reading
Show Us the Captions! Join Me in Supporting Movie Theater Captioning
This weekend, I am attending a captioned movie with my family as part of the global awareness campaign, Show Us the Captions. Will it be movie night with James Bond, Abraham Lincoln…or the animated “Wreck-It Ralph”? Hmmm… I have often wondered how generations before closed captioning survived animated movies. Pete’s Dragon: Why Can’t I Understand … Continue reading
Do You Take Hearing Breaks?
This past weekend, my ears got a workout during a writers conference. It started with a meeting room full of attendees networking. I generally love meeting new people, and this was no exception…except for one thing. One of my hearing aids quit working midway through the day. (I later learned the reason why. Keep reading.) … Continue reading
While Teaching My Kids About Generosity, I Learned Something
Don’t get me wrong. I like to shop for my children. It’s easy for me to lip read them when they repeatedly say, ‘Please, please, pleeeeeeeeeeaasse.” And I love to lip read the words, “Ah, thanks, Mom.” As we left the store, a Salvation Army kettle ringer stood outside the store’s exit. I wondered if … Continue reading
New Book From Lipreading Mom…Coming Soon!
COMING SOON: Confessions of a Lip Reading Mom – By Shanna Groves In Confessions of a Lip Reading Mom, Shanna explores the roller coaster ride of her progressive hearing loss, which was diagnosed two months after the birth of her first child. She was 27. Three healthy kids later, her hearing loss has accelerated. Sounds … Continue reading
Why Hide When You Can Help Somebody?
When I was asked to speak to a moms group at church, I thought of the boldest way to make an entrance. Holding a plastic scepter and donning an old bridesmaid’s dress, I twirled around the room singing. “I am a princess!” It wasn’t the dress or impromptu dance that made me feel courageous. My … Continue reading
ReSound Partners with Lipreading Mom’s Show Me Your Ears
My hearing loss awareness campaign, Show Me Your Ears, has a new supporter. ReSound, hearing technology manufacturer that created the Versos I am wearing in these photos, has offered to help me promote the awareness project. I hope that you will visit the Show Me Your Ears page, as well as the ReSound Blog to … Continue reading
My Whirlwind Day of Sign Language, Storytelling…and Dead Hearing Aid Batteries
I took part this past weekend in the KC Ability Expo, an event in my area that promotes understanding of differently abled individuals and support organizations. The annual fest features info booths, artists, wheelchair dancers, a Deaf choir, and other entertainment. As a second-year Expo volunteer, I split duties between helping with a Hearing Loss … Continue reading
My Hearing Aids Story…In Pictures
Hearing aids are a gift. Imagine hearing birds chirping for the first time, or a baby’s laugh, or a kitten purring. By placing hearing technology in my ears, my whole world of listening goes from gray tones to a Technicolor symphony. When I lost more hearing earlier this year, the two pairs of hearing aids … Continue reading