Today I had to go to the dentist as I had lost a filling. I don’t usually get nervous about visiting the dentist but since my hearing has deteriorated I find that I do get a bit anxious. It is not because of the work that is to be done on my teeth but how I will cope with communicating with the dentist or the hygienist.

Dentists nowadays wear face masks which makes it impossible for someone with a hearing impairment to hear what is being said.

I informed my dental practice some time ago of my hearing loss and they are very supportive and helpful. Instead of phoning to remind me of my appointment as they had done in the past they now send a reminder by text.

My dentist removes his mask whilst he is dealing with me and makes sure I understand what he is going to do. We usually have a bit of a chat before I lie back in the chair.

However, today I was to have a filling which meant that I would need an injection and he would need to use his drill. Instead of putting his green mask back on he decided to use his Perspex face mask to enable me to ‘see’ what he was saying which I thought was very considerate of him.

He then started to explain to me what work he was going to do. As I was lying down and had to look at him sideways I found it very difficult to hear or to lip read what he was saying. I did manage to get an idea of what he was going to do but not all of it.  I didn’t ask him to repeat as I knew I still wouldn’t have made out what he was saying.  So I just lay back and let him carry on.

He is a really nice friendly chap, and I trust him completely so I wasn’t too concerned and knew that he would do a good job.

I then went on to my lip reading class, well this will be fun as one side of my face was frozen as a result of the injection.

I was a bit late for my class and they had started on speech recognition which entails holding a small mirror to our faces and practising words and sounds without using our voice. There was quite a bit of hilarity as I tried to do this but my mouth was all over the place. So there was no chance of me lip reading to anyone for quite some time. 

We all had a good laugh about it and it wasn’t long before my frozen face thawed out.

When I noticed that Phantom of the Opera was at our local theatre I thought I would really love to see that but felt there was no point as I wouldn’t hear the dialogue or the music. 

I had been to a captioned performance before but to be honest I found this really difficult as the captions were high up on each side of the stage. I found it so tiring to keep looking at the words on the caption and then try to follow what was happening on the stage. By the end of the evening I was holding on to the back of my neck as it really started to ache with constantly looking up. 

As Phantom of the Opera was at a different theatre I wondered if their captions would be situated in a better position. So my friend Rita and I decided to go to the theatre box office and find out what dates they were showing their captioned performances.  

They chap we spoke to was very helpful once I told him what we were after but unfortunately he wasn’t able to tell me where the captions would be positioned. However, we decided that as we really wanted to see the show we would go ahead and book it. 

We had a really good seat near the front of the stage. I noticed that the captions were about half way up the stage and not quite as high as the other theatre. I thought good that looks a bit better.

Once the show started I soon realised that it wasn’t going to be as easy as I thought. The captions only came up with three lines of dialogue at a time.  So as I tried to quickly read the words then look to see what was happening on the stage the next set of words were up.  I found that the constant turning back and forward meant I either missed some of the dialogue or what was happening on the stage.

Oh dear, I felt really disappointed but thought that I would persevere. Once I was able to get the names of the performers and what the story was about it did make it easier to follow. Although I couldn’t hear the words to the songs by looking at the captions I then knew what was being sung.  I remembered hearing the wonderful music many years ago when I was able to hear so it helped that I was able to see the words.

The other problem I had was that when the music and singing reached a ‘crescendo’ it was just too loud for me and I felt that I was always fiddling with my hearing aids putting them up or down.  I know that I could have turned my hearing aids off but I wanted to feel the atmosphere in the theatre.

Even with all these problems I came away thinking that without the captions I would not been able to follow the story and get the opportunity to see such a fantastic show.

I had a lovely week's holiday to Krakow with my friend Rita. It was warm and sunny so we enjoyed sitting in the large square, Rynek Glowny, where there are so many lovely restaurants with outside seating arrangements.

We found that the Polish people were very friendly and most of them spoke very good English. 

I had recently read a book called ‘The man that broke into Auschwitz’. This is a true story about Denis Avey, co-written with Rob Broomby so one of the trips I felt I would like to go on was to the Auschwitz-Birkenau museum.

It is about an hours’ drive from Krakow. We were then introduced to our English speaking tour guide. We were given audio equipment and headphones to enable us to hear what she was saying. I decided to try using this and although I could hear her voice I could not make out what she was saying. I tried the T-loop on my hearing aids hoping that the clarity of speech would be a bit better but unfortunately it didn’t help. I did manage to speak to the guide and I asked her what facilities they had for deaf or hard of hearing. She said that she did not think there was anything available and had never heard of a loop system.

I think that if a person has moderate hearing loss then I am sure with the audio equipment they would have been able to hear what she was saying. It is times like that that I can get frustrated and sad at being deaf, I really would have liked have been able to hear all the facts and the things that she was describing. Rita did tell me a few times what she had been talking about as we moved around.

We were shown the gas chamber, crematorium and display cases of human hair, suitcases, (some with names on them and where they were from), children’s shoes, artificial limbs and many personal effects.

In some of the corridors there were photographs of prisoners in their striped uniforms, their faces haunted with heads shaved. On the photographs it showed their date of arrival and date of death.

There were lots of information boards/visuals which enabled me to keep up with the horrific things that happened in Auschwitz and the scale of torture that these poor people were subjected to. 1,100,000 Jews died there along with hundreds of thousands of other nationalities.

The three and a half hour tour was very well presented and although very emotional and distressing I was really pleased that we went.

I spent a really enjoyable day last Friday at Hearing Link’s ‘Living Well with Hearing Loss’ in Edinburgh taken by Linda Sharkey. This was a full day course covering many topics including sharing knowledge, connecting people and a display of equipment and gadgets. We were also treated to a very nice lunch. 

Linda welcomed us all and explained the topics that we would be covering. She then asked us to introduce ourselves. Hearing Link courses are always very popular so I was not surprised that some of the participants came from as far as Dundee and Aberdeen. 

One of the first things we were asked to do was ‘Avoiding’. We were to walk about the room with our heads down, avoiding eye contact. We were also asked not bump into anyone, just turn away if someone came too close. 

We were then asked how we felt when we were avoiding the people in the room. I personally felt quite sad, vulnerable, and isolated. I think most people in the group felt the same. 

We all wore name badges with a coloured dot so for the next part of the exercise we had to walk about the room with our heads held high and smiling. We had to look out for the person in the group wearing the same coloured dot on their name badge and ‘high five’ them as we passed. This was done with great hilarity and was a bit of fun and we all felt so much better after this part of the exercise. 

We then had to participate in a bit of ‘Role Play’. We had to break up into four different groups and choose from a list of five problems. These problems were what some of us might encounter as a result of our hearing loss. 

One person was nominated to give advice, acting as an ‘agony aunt’, with another of the group asking for this advice. We had to talk this through in front of all the people in the room. It was interesting that each group chose a different subject to discuss so we were able to benefit from the help and advice offered. It was really nice to see everyone being involved and interacting with each other.

Wow wasn’t the Olympics brilliant. What a great achievement for Team GB. The organisation was superb and I thoroughly enjoyed it all.

The opening and closing ceremonies were just amazing. It must have been such a thrill to be in the stadium and witness such once in a lifetime events.

As much as I enjoyed watching the opening and closing ceremonies I was not able to enjoy the music or hear any of the singing. The subtitles do help and by sometimes recognising the words of the songs I then can ‘hear’ what is being sung. I have been told that the music was brilliant so I feel a bit sad that I was not able to hear it properly.

Using subtitles can be a bit of a hit or miss, especially when the programmes are live. They can just suddenly stop then I lose track of what is being said, it is so frustrating. Also sometimes the wording that does come up is complete “gobblygook”, so I have to try and work out what it should be. I have had many a laugh when they do correct it and I realise what was meant to be written. Also when I was watching some of the events with hearing friends they said that the subtitles were so far behind the speech. I decided then to turn the subtitles off as I thought it might be distracting for them.

I did use my loop system sometimes, just to get some sound and the atmosphere of the events. I found it all very exciting, and with heart thumping cheered on all our wonderful Olympic athletes.

When I was volunteering at Hearing Link's Intensive Rehabilitation Programme in May I met some lovely people. One of the ladies that I met, Linda Watters had had a cochlear implant for about 8 months when she came to the course.

Linda lost her hearing almost overnight due to an illness. She was of course totally devastated and she really struggled with hearing aids. She was offered a cochlear implant after six months. She coped very well at the course and really enjoyed it. She said that being on the course was a great experience.

We have kept in touch and we met up for lunch last week. I was really interested to hear how things have progressed for her with her implant. She is getting on great and the implant has given her the confidence to get out and about again. She has recently given a talk about her experiences with her implant.

While we were having lunch Linda noticed that a chap sitting at a table opposite us had a cochlear implant. I said to her that we should talk to him and find out how he copes with his implant. When his partner went to order the food I approached him and said I hope you don’t mind me interrupting you but I am deaf and I see that you have a cochlear implant. I explained that my friend Linda also has one. I thought I could detect an “accent” and he said that he was Canadian.

When his partner came back to the table we introduced ourselves. His name was James and his partner was Annie.  They were here for a three week holiday, staying in a castle in Lanark. Linda and I were very impressed with that!

James has been deaf for most of his life. He had an illness when he was five years old and he said it was the medication that he was given that caused his hearing loss. He got his cochlear implant 8 years ago and he said that it made a huge difference to his life. It did take a lot of hard work but he did really well with it.

I asked Annie how long they had known each other and she said they had been together for ten years. She explained that she met James on the internet and chatted for a while through emails and online chat. She said that he had a great sense of humour. She had no idea that James was deaf until she asked him to phone her. That was when he admitted that he was deaf and couldn’t use the phone.

Annie decided to meet James anyway as he sounded really nice.

The first meeting was difficult but she decided to meet him again. This time she took a pad with her so that she could write things down for him. In her lovely Canadian accent she said that she ‘just fell in love with him’ and his deafness wasn’t an issue as far as she was concerned.

Linda and I thought it was a lovely story. I am sure a lot of people that are deaf including me would not have the confidence to meet a stranger in these circumstances.

Well today I felt a bit of an idiot but instead of being embarrassed I just laughed and thought what I am like!

The story starts with me losing a wheel trim from my car. I popped into the local car parts shop to get a new set of wheel trims. The assistant asked if I would like them fitted for me at a small extra charge. 

As the chap was fitting them he said that my wheels looked a bit rusty. I asked him if there was a paint that I could buy and he said he would get a spray can of paint and do it for me. I thought that was very kind of him. So I went away feeling very happy with nice painted wheels and new wheel trims.

Anyway a couple of days later I heard a noise from my car, a bit of a clanging noise. I seemed to happen when I put the car into first or second gear and when I turned a corner. I thought oh no I hope it is not the gearbox that could cost quite a bit. It seemed to be coming from the passenger side but of course I don’t really hear anything from the right side and any hearing I have left is on the left side.

I popped into the local garage that I have been to before to explain my problem. I told the girl at reception that I was deaf and she had remembered me. She asked a mechanic to have a look at my car and he took it for a run.

When he came back he had a big grin on his face. He said that there is nothing wrong with my car but he found a can of spray paint in the boot that was banging around each time I drove the car. I hadn’t realised that the chap that sorted my wheels had put the can in my boot. Silly me but pleased nothing wrong with my car.

Although I try to stay upbeat and positive in coping with my hearing loss and tinnitus, there are times when it really gets me down.

Last week wasn’t a good week. For some reason my tinnitus was really bad and I had earache for most of the week. Of course this makes trying to hear a lot harder and more stressful.

There was an incident last week that really upset me. In fact it happens quite a lot. I was out with my friend and we met someone we knew and stopped for a chat. I noticed that the conversation is mostly directed at my friend and at no time did I get eye contact from the other person during the conversation.

I am sure that they are not aware they are doing it. Do they think that as I am deaf I probably won’t hear them anyway. When this happens I always make a point of looking at them whilst they are speaking in the hope that I will catch their eye at some point and made to feel included in the chat.  

Oh I am very lucky really in that my family and friends are very good at letting me know what they are talking about. However it does make me realise how difficult and upsetting it can be to cope with my hearing loss in some situations.

I know that in my involvement with Hearing Link and having just been to the Intensive Programme as a volunteer I should know how to deal with such a situation and be more assertive. In most situations I am assertive but I would find it difficult and embarrassing to have to say to someone ‘Excuse me I am here too’.

I thought it would be nice to get some family and friends together for a jubilee lunch.  Any excuse for one or two glasses of wine – well maybe three or four – Hic.

The house was decorated and the food was laid out. Everyone soon began to enjoy themselves and chatted away. As with all social occasions I do miss out on a lot of the conversation.

As everyone sat round the table enjoying their lunch I had to concentrate quite hard to lip read and to try and catch what they were saying. A few times I did ask what they talking about and it did help when I knew the subject. I was then able to contribute to the chat from time to time, discussing the wonderful Jubilee celebrations and the lovely outfits of the Royal ladies.

In the evening I settled down with “another” glass of wine to watch the Jubilee concert. It is such a pity that I can’t hear the music properly. However if I turn on my loop system I can then get the atmosphere and the beat of the music.

As some of the acts were from my era I knew the songs and was soon singing away with them while I topped up my glass again – I can’t have finished the bottle surely!!  I thought the concert was brilliant and the lighting on the palace was amazing.

Although my hearing loss is such a nuisance at times it did not stop me from having a really great day.

I was invited by my step-daughter Sarah to visit her in Lisbon, Portugal before they head off to pastures new in Richmond, Virginia.

As with previous holidays I have always feel a bit anxious about how I will cope.  However, I must try not to let my hearing loss stop me from doing the things that I would have done had I not lost my hearing. 

Sarah met me at the airport with my little 3 year old step-granddaughter Charlotte.  I said to Sarah that I might need her help as I may not always make out what Charlotte was saying.  I find that I have difficulty hearing what children are saying. 

On the way to the airport Sarah told Charlotte that when she was speaking to me she would need to look at me as Grandma’s ears are broken.  Yes I suppose that is a good way of describing it to small children.

Once we got back to their flat Charlotte wanted me to play with her.  This is where it got a little bit more difficult.  She had a fluffy white cat and I was to have the black and white one.  She then told me what she wanted me to do.   Just do it Grandma!  says Charlotte.  Oh dear I couldn’t make out what she wanted and she was becoming a bit frustrated with me. 

Eventually I had to ask Sarah to tell me what she wanted me to do.  I was to bring my cat for a visit to her house, which was a cardboard box on the floor.  Okay now I know so I said to Charlotte would you like me to visit you with my cat.  Her little face lit up and she gave me a lovely smile.  Great we are sorted – what about the next game!!

On my way to collect my friend Rita for our usual Saturday outing I had an accident with my car. I crashed into another car as I turned a corner. I am not sure how it happened. There was not too much damage and luckily neither the other driver or I were hurt, but it did shake me up a bit.

Later in the evening I texted my family and friends to tell them what had happened.  I then settled down to watch the 'Voice' on the television. As it is a singing competition I decided to use my loop system in the hope that I would be able to hear the music. Of course, when using the loop it cuts out the background sounds.

My daughter, Yvonne decided that she would pop up to make sure that I was okay. Normally I would hear the doorbell as I have a receiver in the hall and one in the living room. Unfortunately, as I was using the loop system I did not hear the doorbell.

There was poor Yvonne standing at the door wondering why I wasn't answering. She texted me to say that she was at the door but I didn't hear my phone either.

A while later I decided to look at my phone and saw her message. I went to the door but she wasn't there. I then realised that the message had been sent half and hour earlier. I felt upset and frustrated that she had come to see me and I didn't hear her and she just went home again. 

After an upsetting day a nice hug from my daughter would have made me feel better.

I think that if I want to use my loop system again I will have to buy a doorbell with a receiver that has a flashing light.

Further to my blog regarding the problems I had with my bank.  I said that I had written a letter to the manager.

I received a response from the manager. I made it quite clear in the letter that the only way to contact me would be through Type Talk or to text me. Well, the manager telephoned me and left a message on my answer machine. Oh dear!  Of course I had no idea who it was but luckily my son was coming for tea so he listened to it for me. He said it was the bank manager and could I contact her regarding my complaint.

I decided to go into the bank the next day. However, the next day my phone rang again and it was not through Type Talk.  I said that I was sorry that I could not hear them and could they please ring me back using Type Talk and explained how to do that. I had a feeling that it may be the bank manager trying to contact me again. I also said that she could send me a text. Within a few minutes I did get a text.  She apologised for all the inconvenience in my dealings with them. She said that she would like to offer me £25 compensation and if that was acceptable would I be happy to close the complaint.

I said that I would come into the bank the next day to see her. I did ask her why she telephoned me considering what my complained was about. She seemed a bit embarrassed and said "I know, I realised that I shouldn't have".

I accepted her apologies and the offer of £25 which I have donated to Hearing Link.

In my previous blog I wrote about my frustrations with my bank regarding their failure to contact me using Type Talk or texting me, which they said would not be a problem.

I went to another bank to enquire about saving accounts for my grandchildren. This bank has glass screens at their cash desks which makes it difficult for me to hear the cashier. I asked if they had a loop system and she said they had.  She brought the portable loop to the desk. It made such a difference and I was able to hear her quite clearly. I explained what I wanted and she said it would be best to see a financial advisor and I was given an appointment to see someone the following week.

On the day I had to see the financial advisor I had to go into my own bank to get the money to open the savings account for my grandchildren. The cashier was behind a glass screen and I asked her if if they had a loop system.  She seemed a bit vague and didn't seem to know what I was talking about. I couldn't believe the difference in the two banks in their dealings with deaf or hard of hearing people.

At the other bank I approached the cash desk to say that I had an appointment. It was the cashier that I had seen previously. She smiled a me and immediately reached for the loop system.  I was pleasantly surprised that she had remembered me and that I needed the loop without me asking for it.

I have now written a letter to my own bank telling them how disappointed I am in my recent dealings with them. I am hoping that this will make them more considerate in dealing with people with hearing loss.

I went to my bank to find out what they had available for savings accounts for my grandchildren. I was told it would be best if I saw a financial advisor.

An appointment was made for Monday of the following week. The cashier asked for my contact details as he may need to contact me. I told her that I was hard of hearing and explained the only way to contact me was by texting me or using the Type Talk facility. She said that would not be a problem.

A few days later a message was left on my text phone and also on my mobile. I had to ask my neighbour to listen to the message for me. The message was from the financial advisor asking if I could change the appointment time from 2pm to 3pm. He left a mobile number so I text him to say that was okay. 

The next day (Friday) I noticed that another message was left on my mobile. I was with my friend Rita so she listened to it for me. It was the bank again telling me that the financial advisor was leaving that day, could I come in to make another appointment.

I was really frustrated, I was assured that if necessary they would contact me using text of Type Talk. I went into the bank to make another appointment and to ask why they did not contact me by text or Type Talk. I saw the same cashier again and she apologised. My contact information had not been given to the financial advisor.

No appointments to see another financial advisor were available for three weeks so I decided to go to another bank.

As much as I was looking forward to my Thailand holiday I was feeling anxious about going to the check-in desk as I find it quite difficult to hear what is being said.

The check-in operator is usually typing away as she asks the questions. I do tell them that I am hard of hearing but I still find it difficult. My daughter Yvonne came with me to the check-in desk, as she knew I might have a problem. With concentration and a bit of lip reading I managed okay. Good, first hurdle over. 

One of the problems that I have when flying is that my ears become painful as we descend and I can hear absolutely nothing for a while after we land. I have to pinch my nose and blow to try to get my ears to pop.

So there was I all the way to the arrival area holding my nose and blowing hoping they would clear before we met Bill and Tui.  

Throughout the holiday I felt happy and relaxed and accepted that I would not be able to hear all that was said, especially when we got together with Bill and Tui’s friends. It was easier for me to talk to one person at a time or just watch and try to pick up what was happening by lip reading or watching their expressions or gestures. If I was really struggling I knew that Lesley or Bill would help me. 

A few days into the holiday I found that my earmoulds were hurting my ears as if they had swelled with the heat. I ended up with little sores on both ears, which was very uncomfortable. A little antiseptic cream applied every day helped but they didn’t really heal until I came home.

Bill and Neing decided that it would be more of an adventure if we stay in basic traditional thai huts instead of hotels. Lesley and I were to name them ‘mud huts’ or on one occasion ‘the posh hut’.

In one of the very basic huts we stayed in Lesley said that she could here all the little animals scurrying along the roof. Of course I slept like a log – didn’t hear a thing!!

Although the accommodation was basic the food was excellent. We spent many a night just enjoying the atmosphere whilst Neing sang Beatles songs on his guitar. He also taught Lesley and me the elephant dance which caused great hilarity. Of course I taught him some Scottish dancing. 

The next day we went for a mud bath. Thai ladies covered us in a mud mixture which had ingredients that make you feel relaxed and cleanses the skin. While we were waiting for the mud to dry Bill took photos of us doing our elephant dance to everyone’s great amusement.

We visited the long neck tribe village. They have stalls full of lovely hand-made jewellery and other handed crafted gifts. A little girl had five rings around her neck, one for each year of her life. The older ladies had as many as thirty rings around their neck. 

Remember the hand brake or lack of. I did wonder why Neing always put a large stone at the back wheel if we were on a slope. Well now I know – as we were taking our bags out of the back of the jeep it started to roll down the hill. Lesley, Tui, Bill and I just roared with laughter as Neing ran to try and stop it.

Hilarious end to a fabulous holiday.

We arrive in Chaing Mai in the north of Thailand for a five day holiday.

Neing, a tour guide that Bill had used on a previous visit, met us at the airport in a little battered red jeep.  Oh my goodness can’t believe we will tour about in that!

We could not get into the first hotel so Neing drove us through the back streets to a hotel where we saw many beautiful young ladies sitting outside enjoying the sunshine!! Yes - to our amazement we were in the ‘Red Light’ district of Chaing Mai. Our adventure begins ...

We did notice that there were no seatbelts in the jeep and I wondered why Neing did not use the hand brake – all will be revealed later. There are three hundred temples in Northern Thailand. Neing took us to visit the beautiful Doi Suthep Temple. Gifts and flowers can be bought to present to the Buddha. 

We had an amazing trip to the Hot springs where we bathed in the warm water. On entering the spring we were given a bag containing eggs which we boiled in the ‘boiling spring’. The eggs with a little soy sauce were delicious.

Our next trip we went on an elephant safari. We hold on for dear life as the elephant makes its way down steep slopes to the water. Of course the elephant fills his trunk with water and promptly sprays Lesley as I as we squeal with laughter.

Well, arrived in Bangkok where Bill and his wife, Tui met us and drove us to their home near Pattaya.

The next day after Lesley and I had slept for over 12 hours Bill and Tui took us to the Floating Market. It was amazing to see all the market stalls and floating kitchens filled with all sorts of colourful and wonderful food. We took a boat trip around the market wearing the traditional thai hats.

Bill and Tui arranged something different for us each day. We visited beautiful temples, cultural shows and lovely beaches.

One evening with Bill, Tui her daughter Katai and their friends we went to a festival on the beach where we released floral tributes into the water as we made a wish. We also had to light lanterns and let them float into the sky. It was an amazing sight.

Another trip a to Walking Street in Pattaya. It was so vibrant and alive. It was just bustling with all different nationalities. We were amazed at the glamorous lady boys inviting us to have our photos taken with them. There was lots of street entertainment, with dancing and juggling acts. For us it was a totally different world and we just laughed so much.

We visited lovely restaurants with Bill and Tui’s friends. It was great to try all the different thai foods. Lesley used her finger spelling on many occasions at these social outings to help me understand what was going on.

We had many lovely evenings sitting on the patio at Bill and Tui’s house with their friends. They all made me feel so welcome. Of course I think that the large bottle of Scotch malt that I took with me may have had something to do with that!

My brother lives in Thailand with his Thai wife and her daughter and he invited me to visit them.

I really wanted to go but felt a sense of panic at the thought of travelling all that way on my own. Would I cope at the airports and on the flights. Most times I have travelled abroad I had a friend with me.

However, after a horrible cold winter the thought of some lovely sunshine proved too much to miss. I contacted my brother, Bill to arrange a suitable time and he was delighted that I had finally found the courage to come.

I was to travel from Glasgow to Dubai then onto Bangkok. I was excited but apprehensive.At the time of booking my flight I explained that I had hearing loss and could I please have assistance. It was arranged that someone would meet me at Dubai airport and escort me to the check in desk for my onward flight to Bangkok.

A few months before I was due to travel my niece (my brother’s daughter) contacted me and asked if I would like a companion for my Thailand adventure. Wow, yes that sounded great. She stays in Manchester so we arranged to meet in Dubai and travel onto Bangkok together. 

My daughter Yvonne drove me to Glasgow airport and from the minute we started off I felt excited but no longer apprehensive about what lay ahead.

I met Lesley at Dubai and we were like a couple of kids ready for what was to be an amazing experience.

I asked Lesley if she would learn to finger spell as it would help me if I was having difficulty in social situations. She mastered it very quickly which was a great help for me. Thailand here we come……………

After my frustrating visit to the audiology department I felt so ‘fired’ up about the situation with their computers that I decided to send an email to my MSP at the Scottish Parliament. I had written to her previously regarding funding for lip reading classes. 

I am hoping that she can be of assistance again in highlighting the problem with the computers at the audiology department. I have not had a reply to this email yet but hopefully I will hear from her soon. I sent a copy of the email to Linda Sharkey at Hearing Link and to Nicola Noon at Scottish Council on Deafness.

Linda and Nicola have passed my concerns to the National Manager for Audiology. She has promised to look into the matter. I will keep my fingers crossed that with the right people on board the problem with the audiology department computers can soon be resolved.

To be continued ...

I attended my local audiology department before Xmas to have my hearing aids adjusted. Whilst the audiologist was doing the adjustment to my aids his computer system ‘froze’. He said that it keeps happening and he has reported it many times. He asked me to come back in six weeks for a review of the adjustment.

I was not happy with the adjustment that was made and I felt I could not wait six weeks. I managed to get an appointment for 9 January due to a cancellation. I saw the same audiologist that I saw before Xmas and as he was trying to do the adjustments to my hearing aids his computer crashed AGAIN. 

After trying several things to get it working he eventually had to switch it off which meant any adjustment he made to my aids was lost. By the time he got it all working again (ten minutes) my half hour appointment had come to an end. He said that it was a waste of an appointment and I would have to come back again another time as he had other people to see. 

I was so upset and frustrated that not once but both times I have visited the department recently the computer system has failed. He also said that it was the third time it had happened that day. He said that he has been reporting the problem since September but there is NO MONEY to buy new computers for the Audiology Department.

It is upsetting and stressful having to cope with hearing loss and the challenges and difficulties we have to face on a daily basis without feeling that we are being let down by the department that we depend on so much.

I retired in 2008 I thought I could do some voluntary work. I noticed that my local BHF charity shop was looking for volunteers. I went in to speak to the manageress to offer my services and I told her that I was hard of hearing. She was very understanding and said that my hearing loss would not be a problem. She previously worked with a deaf person and she had learned finger spelling.

The day that I started I expected to work in the “sorting area” upstairs, but Linda the manageress asked me to work on the shop floor and manage the till when necessary. At first I thought oh my goodness how will I cope with this but it was really great having contact with the customers. I walked home after that first day feeling very pleased with what I had achieved.

However, at the beginning of this year I realised that my hearing loss was getting worse and I was struggling to hear the customers. While serving one customer she was looking at something in our display cabinet and as she was looking down I could not hear what she said. I told her that I was hard of hearing and could she please repeat what she wanted. She then looked up and said ‘Oh don’t bother’ and walked out of the shop. 

After that incident I decided that rather than put myself through the embarrassment and stress I would just leave. Then I thought I am not going to let one rude customer stop me from enjoying my voluntary work. After having a chat with Linda we decided that I would work sorting out the donations and tagging the clothes instead. 

Happy New year everyone.

I had a lovely Xmas lunch with my friends from the lipreading class. We are like a little family and really enjoy each other’s company.

I first heard about the lipreading group in my area from an advert in my local library. It is organised by the Midlothian Adult Literacy and Numeracy Initiative (Malani). The classes are free of charge and run in 10 week blocks during school term times. 

People can join in the course at any time and continue for as long as they feel necessary. I decided that as my hearing loss was getting worse I would give it a go. It has been one of the best things I have done. I know that most of us who have hearing loss have probably been lip reading for many years. 

When I joined the class I was not sure what to expect but I was made very welcome and soon settled into the group. Our tutor, Morag was born deaf and she is amazing. Each week she has a different topic for us and we have learned so much. The classes are fun and interesting and she always makes sure no one is left out. 

She uses a whiteboard to write everything down and we also have a loop system for those that need it. She also taught us how to finger spell which is really good as we can teach it to our family and friends.

Morag encourages us to share information and experiences and I soon became confident enough to speak out and not be embarrassed. Confidence building is a very important part of her lip reading class.

We have also had visits from various organisation either to give us information on how to access equipment or help that we may need or just to join us in class to find out how lip reading classes really benefit deaf and hard of hearing people. As a result of one of these visits one of my lip reading friends and I were asked to do a feature item for a newspaper. We had to tell them how we cope on a day to day basis and the challenges that we face.  

I feel very lucky to be able to attend my lipreading class. However I know that not everyone has the opportunity as so many classes in Scotland are closing due to lack of funding. As part of a campaign to urge the Scottish Government to fund lipreading classes we each sent a letter to our MSP at the Scottish Parliament telling them how vital these classes are to people like us. 

Got together with my dear friends Anne and Cathie, they are very much a part of my ‘support network’.  They like my new hairdo – well friends are meant to make you feel good!!

I really enjoy getting together with them and having a good gossip but I was having a bit of a struggle today to hear some of the things that they were saying. I had to ask Anne to come and sit beside me on the sofa to make it easier for me to hear her. They are both very good at making sure I am not left out of the conversation and repeat things if necessary but I still don’t manage to catch everything. 

Then Anne went into the kitchen and Cathie and her carry on a conversation which of course I cannot hear. I listen to Cathie’s part of the conversation and try to get an idea of what they are talking about. Anne comes back with coffee and warm fruit scones with jam and cream – yummy.

Went to the hairdressers today, looking forward to getting a new look ready for the festive season. What I used to enjoy was being able to have a chat about holidays, what we’re doing for Xmas, have we got all our presents yet.

Getting the new look means having a colour on the grey roots which means I have to take out my hearing aids. I say to her I won’t be able to hear anything now, she continues to chat away as I try to lip read her in the mirror. I have to say sorry I am not catching what you are saying. She squeezes my shoulder, smiles and she says it is okay just relax. I try to but still feel a bit tense as I can see in the mirror the other hairdressers having a good old chat with their clients as I sit here in silence but she smiles at me as she works away, she understands.

Then an hour later feel much better loving my new hair style, hearing aids back in able to have a chat with her while I pay my bill so all is well again.

It’s a cold wintery blustery day and here I am trying to write my first blog …

I have sensorineural hearing loss and my hearing has got worse over a period of 15 years. It's at the stage now where I do feel the impact of hearing loss. Communication is getting really difficult; even on a one to one basis the clarity of speech is not good. 

I cannot use the telephone and I have a screen text phone which I find useful and it does give me some independence. Unfortunately not all my family and friends are comfortable with using it. I miss just picking up the phone to have a chat and to hear a friendly voice. Oh yes, it is good to see the text on the screen phone - at least I don’t miss anything, but it is not the same as hearing the voices.

Conversations are short and to the point, not getting all the gossip. Yesterday I got a phone call from a friend, she did not use the text relay facility and I had to say to her I could not hear what she was saying and could I call her back using the text relay.  As I did not know who was speaking I dialled 1471 and had difficulty in hearing the number but after a few tries I finally got it and phoned her back. I suppose I should have asked her to phone me back using the text relay system; why did I not think of that at the time?

Living alone with hearing loss is a huge challenge for me. But you know, when I manage to overcome a particular problem I do feel a sense of achievement. I say to myself – it's sorted – well done.