What has life been like living with Tourette Syndrome for almost 30 years? From 15 to 43 years old? Click to read more…
Getting Personal: Lean On Me
Advocacy is at the heart of Deaf/Tourette. But what ultimately inspired me? Bobbie and Zayna.
It Takes A Village
We’ve heard “it takes a village” many times over the years. But what is a village?
‘Tis the Season to be Grateful
With the holidays upon us, I look back at the many gifts I received and ponder…
The High Cost of Deafness
The High Cost of Hearing Loss When I first lost my hearing, it was frightening and lonely trying to navigate in a world I used to belong to. Everything had changed, from my ability to communicate to employment opportunities to the possibility of returning to college. Years went by and after being welcomed into the Deaf Community after learning ASL, I quickly found out that my hearing loss was to be an expensive existence. This isn’t to say that I have to pay everything out of pocket. There are some excellent services and advocacy groups that help the Deaf and Hard of Hearing to secure the things they need to increase awareness and function in a hearing world. …
Getting Personal: The Tears of a Clown
Many times, over the years, we come to understand that laughter is the best medicine. It can make us forget our troubles, makes others feel better and can even be good for our actual physical and mental health. But what about when we laugh to keep from crying? Those times when we joke around and laugh to put others at ease but inside we’re hurting? Sadness, depression and anxiety can take us for an emotional rollercoaster ride that can leave us feeling like nothing is going right; with highs and lows that cannot exactly be quantified with accurate descriptors. It’s a painful and bewildering feeling of hopelessness. Sometimes with no actual cause. It’s a wave that comes over you …
What Does It Feel Like: Part Two
What does it feel like to lose your hearing? Read inside…
Getting Personal: Stress and Work and Me
It’s the New Year and I want to talk a little about overcoming stress and anxiety in the workplace, while working with Hearing people….. Faith that things will get better is what keeps me pushing to do better and keep living life, but sometimes I have to hit “Pause” and step back.
Fatherhood Tales: Being Deaf and Raising a Hearing Son
No one ever said being a father was easy. In fact, I’ve found the challenges of fatherhood to be harder as a deaf father of a teenage hearing son. Now, let me be clear: I love my son. There isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for him if he needed it. I have been there since before he was born. And it hasn’t been easy, especially when I broke up with his mother. It was very painful time and full of adjustments, concessions and agreements… with disagreements sprinkled here and there. Still though, these are things many families deal with. However, as many deaf parents of hearing children will attest, when your child becomes a teenager and puberty rears …