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May 1, 2012

Celebrate better hearing and speech month with the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association

Since 1927, the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association celebrates Better Hearing and Speech Month each May. This month of awareness is a good time to analyze your own hearing and determine if you are one of the estimated 28 million Americans who have a hearing loss that can be treated. You may have a hearing loss if you:

– frequently ask people to repeat themselves

– often turn your ear toward a sound to hear it better

– understand people better when you wear your glasses or look directly at their faces

– lose your place in group conversations

– keep the volume on your radio or TV at a level that others say is too loud

– have pain or ringing in your ears

"People who see themselves in these statements should see an audiologist for a hearing test," said audiologist Trevor Courouleau.

"Even a very slight hearing loss can have an impact on your daily life," said Courouleau. "Hearing loss is treatable, and there is no reason for anyone to miss all the important sounds of life."

Annual hearing checkups is a good idea for people age 45 and up, according to audiologists, the professionals who specialize in preventing, identifying, assessing, and treating hearing disorders.

Audiologists can prescribe hearing aids and assistive listening devices, and they can teach people with hearing loss how to concentrate on hearing all sounds.

Audiologists are certified by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and in Oklahoma are licensed by the state. The Oklahoma Speech-Language-Hearing Association maintains a database of certified and licensed audiologists in our state. Locate them on the web at www.oslha.org.

The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) is the national professional, scientific and credentialing association for more than 145,000 audiologists, speech-language pathologists and speech, language, and hearing scientists.

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