Additional recommendations about: Accommodations - 3/3

This is the last part of the list about Accommodations that could be considered when hyperacusis and tinnitus arise:

12. As sound tolerances improve, patients tend to have little difficulty weaning themselves off drugs that have helped initially. Consult with the doctor when taking any medication. Since our ears are most sensitive in the morning and at night, alarm clocks are hard. Even alarm clocks in a nearby bedroom are difficult. Clock radios are better, but keep the volume down. A great idea for an alarm is connecting your bedside lamp to a security light switch timer. Set the timer as the alarm. When the timer cycles in - your lamp turns on and wakes you very quietly. Bose just introduced a clock radio that slowly turns the volume from zero to a preset volume when the alarm goes off. Keep bathroom doors closed if you get up before we do. Vibrator wristwatches are also available and prove to be a gentle way to wake up in the morning.

13. Most of us have difficulty talking on the telephone. Consider purchasing a Handset Amplifier from Radio Shack ($25.00) which has a volume and tone control. If you reduce the volume and tone control all the way down, the normal ear can barely hear anyone talking on the other end. The unit can be velcroed to the side of any existing telephone, and can easily be readjusted when someone else in the family uses the phone. Also, please make sure to turn the ringer down on all your phones. If needed, you can buy a strobe light box made exclusively for the telephone from Radio Shack. It has three adjustments - flasher, ringer, or both. A wonderful business phone system is the Partner Plus by AT&T. What makes this system so unique is that you can control the volume of the three problem areas - incoming audio, ringer, and speakerphone. The volume on all three areas can be reduced below normal (normal to the normal ear) limits.

14. Fan noise is particularly bothersome to many of us. Ceiling fans can be almost whisper quiet if you find the right one. Hunter (brand) ceiling fans are an excellent buy. Some of us have a difficult time getting to sleep if traffic (planes, trains, and automobiles) are nearby. Some even have difficulty with crickets at night, rustling leaves, and birds singing in the early morning.

15. Remember that the whine of the fan to cool the hard drive on a computer is soft, but high pitched. Fortunately, the QZ2000 noise cancellation headset or foam earplugs can help you with that. If you get to choose a new computer, the network can give you some recommendations on quiet computers.

16. Some printers are quiet considering the dreaded alternative of a dot matrix printer. Photocopy machines and typewriters are difficult for us when they are in operation. Your tolerances may depend on the acoustics in the room and how tight your working quarters are. @

Texts extracted from The Hyperacusis Network web page (Supplement section), with the permission of its editor. (see “related links” in this blog)