Mary's Tale
Mary, our founder, learned about hearing loss at a very young age. You see, her grandmother was deaf, had always been deaf, and could not speak, but she always had a candy for Mary, who remembered for all of her life the many hours she spent sitting on Granny's knee, enjoying Granny's smiles and caresses.
Grandma's sister suffered from hearing loss, and so communicated with Mary by writing on a chalk board. Mary was accustomed to and comfortable with non-verbal communication, and perhaps this partially explains why she did not notice her own hearing impairment. From a very young age, Mary never fully heard what was going on around her, including what was spoken to her directly.
Once Mary entered school, her hearing impairment caused new problems: her poor hearing caused a speech impediment. Mary was accused of being lazy, of not paying attention, and of being careless. Mary was sent to elocution lessons. Because she could not hear speech clearly, she never learned (by imitating, as we all do) to pronounce words properly.
In the school choir, Mary was told to mouth the words (lip-sync). Her behavior was described by teachers as hyperactive and aggressive. They used terms like anxiety, restlessness, fatigue, impulsiveness, and anti-social. In fact, Mary's behavior was all a direct result of frustration, brought about by an inability to participate fully in conversation. Mary felt isolated, did not know why, and spent most of her life suffering the effects of undiagnosed hearing loss, complicated by prejudice brought on by misinterpretation of her behavior. In fact, Mary was in her 50s before a friend (wearing hearing aids) suggested that she did not hear well and should look into hearing aids. Unfortunately, in the mid-20th Century, we were not as aware and sensitive as we are now to physical disabilities.
Among Mary's many friends was one whose family included another person with hearing problems. Mary was more comfortable around others who did not hear perfectly, and over time, her network of friends included many with varying degrees of hearing impairment. Together, they tested many different hearing aids, and a friend with some financial savvy discovered a financial assistance program offered by Canada's federal government. See our Rebate for Canadians page for the details of how that program can reduce the cost of the Hearken H85 by nearly 100% (based on your tax rate during the years you receive the tax credit from Revenue Canada).
Unfortunately Mary has passed, but the effects of her effort and commitment carry on.
The Hearken H85 Hearing Aid
Special Offer Expires October 15, 2009
* After tax credits, if you qualify. To find out, see our Rebate for Canadians page.
