Fire Star Press: what did you say

Friday, February 5, 2021

Hear Ye, Hear Ye

In general, I'm not one to worry about the aging process. No, I'm not crazy about the loose skin on my neck or my slightly saggy jowls but I'm a low-maintenance sort of gal so you won't see me doing Botox or having surgery. As far as the fading color of my hair, many of the women in my family develop beautiful white hair as they age; I hope I will be one of them. True, I may add blue, pink, or purple streaks but that's just a way to express myself. I'm all about color and sparkle.

I'm now 58 years old and so far, I don't have too much to complain about. I've had hypothyroidism for years. I've developed a touch of arthritis in my shoulders along with some rotator cuff issues. However,I have also developed an issue that completely blindsided me: hearing loss.😲 I went in for my annual hearing check not really expecting any changes. Leaving with the recommendation that I begin wearing hearing aids really took me aback. It took me a couple of weeks to come to terms with it. Yes, my daddy was hard of hearing my entire life but he worked on jet engines in the Navy before hearing protection was required. My mama didn't suffer a noticeable hearing loss until she was in her 80s. Somehow, the thought that hearing loss might impact me at this age had never crossed my mind; hearing aids weren't even on my radar for a few more decades.

Now that I've had a couple of months to adjust, I'm okay. Most days I even remember to wear my hearing aids, LOL. I'm also now one of those people dealing with hearing aid batteries, which seem to last a week at the most. I find it amusing that, when the batteries need changing, my hearing aids play the opening bars of Beethoven's Fifth.😂