Hearing loss is a sensitive subject. In most cases, people deny it in the vain hope that it will go away. However, hearing loss virtually never disappears of its own accord. But what does take leave of you, gradually, is your enjoyment of life.

Hearing Loss is Happiness Lost
When you can’t hear clearly, you soon find yourself feeling lost and isolated.
Relationships often wane as people find it tiresome to make themselves understood. Family members get cross at having to put up with the blaring TV. Friends get impatient when they ring you repeatedly only for you to keep missing their calls.
When we chatted with Ronald Pang of Clariti, the sleek new hearing centre at Centrepoint, we were struck with how sincerely he wants to raise the awareness level of hearing loss.  He made a very interesting point about vision difficulties versus hearing difficulties.
“When we don’t see clearly we wear glasses. When we don’t hear clearly, we wear hearing instrument. Wearing a hearing instrument will improve your quality of life,” Ronald said.

“Life is too wonderful to half-live it in muted or muffled tones
It is as simple as that. Wearing glasses has become a social norm, with no stigma attached. Many ladies even like to pop on non-prescription spectacles for fashion purposes!
Sadly, some see the wearing of hearing instrument as embarrassing. This mindset will no doubt change if Ronald Pang and Clariti have anything to do with it!

Ronald’s Career Bonus: Many Happy Faces!
Ronald Pang was long ago inspired to pursue a career as a hearing professional on account of the many happy faces he sees when successfully helping a person to hear well again.
“Many people, especially first-time hearing instrument user, are overjoyed to the point of tears. When we don’t hear clearly it affects only ourselves. When we don’t hear clearly, it affects those around us.”
Ronald shared with us the very happy story of Clariti customer, Neo Yan Cheng…

Don’t Miss the Dance!
In Neo Yan Cheng’s own words, let’s listen to her inspiring story.
I discovered my hearing problems when I was 7. I have problems listening to conversation especially in noisy environments. While those with normal hearing could blank-out “background” noises, I was constantly irritated by them.
I wore hearing aids for more 15 years but I had not found any hearing aid or someone who could help me overcome this problem. I needed hearing comfort.
In the past, my hearing dispensers would adopt a “give and take” approach when programming my hearing aids. That means setting my hearing aid to a lower gain to manage the noise. This approach compromised my overall hearing ability.
I have great passion for the arts in music and dance. I am an avid dancer trained in traditional Chinese dance.  Due to my inability to hear the music clearly. I can only dance by feeling the rhythm and beats that resonates from the music. Despite this, I was selected to perform in Singapore Youth Festivals and won gold medals.