Share Books on Hearing

Give books about hearing loss to clients and community organizations to increase awareness.

Idea at a glance

Learning how others manage the challenges of living with hearing loss can increase one’s motivation to seek help. Share books about hearing loss with clients and organizations in your community to encourage people to take action on their hearing and improve their quality of life.

Numerous novels and non-fictional accounts of hearing loss exist. You could purchase a number of these books and share them with clients, allowing them to borrow them for a short period of time after their first appointment. For those individuals that are on the fence about taking action, reading a book about hearing loss in the comfort of their own home could help them through the process of acknowledging their communication challenges.

You could also share books with your local libraries, schools, and community organizations. This could help raise general awareness of hearing loss in your region. Holding lectures and open talks at these organization could help promote the books and inform your community about the services your clinic offers. 

Inspiration

Katherine Bouton, a former editor at the New York Times, has written several books about hearing loss, drawing on her first-hand experience. She writes about the challenge of living with progressive hearing loss, including the use of several types of hearing aids and eventually a cochlear implant, and about the rapidly changing world of hearing devices.

Nick Coleman was a successful music journalist when he lost his hearing. His book, The Train in the Night: A Story of Music and Loss traces his personal journey from that moment on.

In Sound: A Story of Hearing Lost and FoundBella Bathurst tells her story of losing and later regaining her hearing, exploring her changing relationship to listening and silence, music and noise.

Potential impact

Reading a book about hearing loss could change someone's attitude towards the issue. Reading about how others have dealt with similar challenges and issues could increase a person's motivation to get help and successfully manage their hearing loss.