Hello,

What is the purpose of this website? I wanted to start a blog so I could document the life of hearing impaired people who I work with on a day to day basis. My name is Michael Smith, and I am a National Board Certified Hearing Instrument Specialist in New Port Richey, Florida. I work in the rehabilitation department with a group of awesome individuals, in which the words “I can’t” is not in their vocabulary. Our job is helping people to hear and understand speech to the best of their ability through a battery of tests designed to improve understanding over a period of time.  I can’t express the feeling it gives to help someone who has become isolated, depressed, angry or misjudged and help them get their life back on track.

The best definition I have heard to describe hearing loss is as an “Invisible Disability”. The person with the loss, most of the time, does not know he/she has a loss.  Their family or friends usually notice it first. I decided I wanted to keep a diary of the people who I take care of and publish their real life stories(no real names used) online so hopefully it might help other hearing impaired persons better deal with their hearing loss. I believe that true life stories help people understand that they are not alone when facing a new challenge in their life. I will be adding more to the site very often so keep checking back.