Sorry. I'm deaf. Have you ever felt you are defined by deafness not for yourself and your achievements? I can remember saying the first thing I had to tell everyone about myself was that I was deaf but that it really was the least important thing about me because I am so much more than my deafness

In a health conscious environment many people walk for exercise. There are things which seem obvious which can make it safer for you to walk. Being alert to your surroundings is extra important.

Emergencies have a nasty habit of occurring in the middle of the night. Most deaf or hearing impaired people don’t wear their hearing aids to bed so how do they know if there is an emergency? This is very difficult for those who cannot hear.

Some people do not have an ear or ear canal and certain kinds of tumours, or the operation to remove them, can cause loss of the middle ear. Sound cannot penetrate the damaged portion but a bone conduction hearing aid could be an option.

What do you do if you lose your hearing aid? Panic? Well I suppose that is the first response of many people. Hearing aids, regardless of type often get lost, misplaced or damaged and since they can be very expensive, losing one is likely to cause plenty of stress.

Closed captions, or subtitles, can enhance the experience whether you are watching television, you are at the movies, at the theatre, in an aircraft or airport, hospital, shopping mall or on the internet. There are even noisy environments where captioning can benefit people with full hearing.

Sometimes it can be good to be deaf. Here’s a few times I was glad to be deaf.

Ever been asked if you’re allowed to drive? It’s not a question most people even think about. But it is one deaf people get asked regularly. Research shows deaf drivers are no better nor worse than hearing drivers.

Lip reading, why do you need it? If you are sometimes having trouble understanding speech, one of the best things you can do for yourself is learn lip reading. Learning lip reading can help you communicate better even if you can't hear everything.

An introduction by the new Deafness Editor.