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So, I was first diagnosed with a hearing loss when I was in the fourth grade.
My parents had kind of suspected things along the way, I failed many school screenings but it was never really anything significant
a lot of ear infections, things like that, so they just thought eventually it would remedy itself, and it didn't.
So, in the fourth grade, I was fit with my first hearing aid. And, at first, it seemed like kind of a cool experience. I got to pick out all these fun colors.
My audiologist was awesome, she was very nice. And it was great. So, I got fit with my hearing aid. It was just the one side.
And, it went well for several years. And then come middle school, kids kind of started to be mean, as kids will be
and I had a boy walk up to me one day, out of the blue in the hallway, and just say, "Eww, a hearing aid."
And that just kind of changed everything for me because, at first, it was just about me, my thing,
and that was the first time that I saw that people see you differently when you have something, quote-unquote, wrong with you.
So from that day it took me about two years until I would wear my hearing aid again.
And my parents didn't really notice much because I was very independent with it, they never had to help me along the way.
So, a little while later, my dad's like, "Hey, you know, what's going on here?"
And then I finally realized, about my freshman year of high school, that I was only hurting myself by not allowing myself to hear better
So, I started wearing it again and just realizing you have to have that confidence in yourself, to kind of fight off those people who are mean to you.
And I just feel like a lot of people don't understand the impact that they can have by just a few simple words, and what it does to a person.
When I was little, I loved my hearing aid, I thought it was the coolest thing ever. Like I said before, I picked out the brightest colors.
My first one was sky blue, and then I had one of the transparent cases that was like a royal blue, and I had pink and green, and my latest one was purple and that was just a year ago.
So I really, I kind of used it as a fashion accessory, and I wore my hair up a lot, my earmolds were always glittery, so I didn't necessarily try to hide it at all
So, I mean, I never really thought of it necessarily, like when I was first diagnosed I didn't fully understand the fact that, you're different, you need to wear a hearing aid, you know
I didn't feel the need to be ashamed of it at all, so I just picked my favorite color for the year that I was getting it and went with it.
If I were able to talk to myself, back in the day, I definitely think I would just let myself know that it gets better.
It's not going to affect you long term, these people, they come and go in your life.
And the person who was rude to me in the hallway was of no significance to me, and was essentially just a random stranger
And just having somebody point out your differences, it can be hurtful, but you need to understand that, basically, I think it is a Dr. Seuss quote
"Those who matter don't mind; those who mind don't matter," or something like that, and I think it's really just you need to understand that you need to look out for Number One.
It doesn't matter what they think of you, you need to do what's best for yourself. And, just if that doesn't work out, talk it out with someone and
your friends, if they're really your friends, they're going to understand you and they'll completely accept you for who you are.