Empowering Hearing Health with Hear With You

The Lemons team recently sat down with Gianna “Gigi” Caruso to talk about her journey with hearing loss and the mission behind her new foundation, Hear With You ! Through her foundation, Gianna hopes to break down the barriers surrounding hearing loss, increase awareness, and offer resources and support, while encouraging all deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals to advocate for themselves. Hear With You also aims to promote hearing health amongst the general population.

We hope you enjoy our conversation with Gianna below!

Tell us about your new foundation, Hear With You!

“I'm so excited, it just launched a few days ago! It actually launched on the ten year anniversary of me receiving my Lyric hearing aid, which was probably one of the most special days of my life. I feel like everything naturally fell into place for me to be able to launch this foundation on the ten year anniversary.

At Hear With You, our mission is to bring more awareness, resources, and support to the deaf and hard-of-hearing community. I grew up feeling like I didn’t have a sense of community, a place to go, or people to talk to who understood what I was going through. I want to be able to give back everything I've learned and help others who don't have those same resources.

Hear With You is also for the public population and the general health of our ears. It's so important to be proactive and protect your hearing health. Nowadays with concerts, football games, big stadiums, and even blasting music while wearing AirPods or headphones, we're all susceptible to hearing loss. If you're not protecting your hearing health, that's a big concern and a lot of people don't realize that. I want to be able to provide the resources for everyone about what you can do to protect your hearing when you're in those situations.”

When did you first start to experience hearing loss?

“I was born with moderate to moderately severe sensorineural hearing loss. I was screened at birth and got my first pair of hearing aids at three months old. I'm so grateful that I was screened that young and was able to get hearing aids that young. A lot of babies that are screened at birth don't get the right follow up and care that they need, or they don't get their hearing aids, cochlear implant, or whatever it may be. It’s so important to get it young for your brain development and the social skills we learn as babies and toddlers. I really want to focus on not losing that follow up after a baby is screened at birth and making sure that they get that they need.”

How did your hearing loss affect your mental health?

“There were a lot of different phases in my life where it affected me differently. Middle school and high school were probably the toughest times. It’s a tough time for many people, and then adding hearing loss on top of it… that makes it more tough. During that time I was like, ‘Oh, wait, I’m a little bit different than the other kids in my class’. Kids would want to try my hearing aids on or poke them, so I tried to wear my hair down and cover them. Teachers also weren't always understanding in middle school. I got the Lyric the summer going into high school, and it really changed my life. I also went to a new high school where I didn't know anyone and it was a fresh start.

People didn't know I had hearing loss. I always say that it's sometimes an invisible disability because you're not able to see it. People aren't aware that they may need to do something extra to support you, or they don't realize that your brain is racing, you're trying to pick up the words that you're missing, or you're trying to lip-read. I really had to advocate for myself in high school and tell my teachers and other kids, and that was really hard. It's scary opening up about something that's so vulnerable that other people might not understand.

But as I've gotten older and people have accepted it more, I've gotten more confident in myself. I think my biggest piece of advice for anyone who's going through hearing loss themselves, or just any tough journey in general, is to really stand up and advocate for yourself. There's going to be a lot of people that you can surround yourself with that can help.

I hope that people reach out to Hear With You so we can help you advocate for yourself and help you get the resources you need to do well in school.”

What tools have you used to help with your mental health journey?

“Definitely talking to people! The more you open up and share with close family and friends, the more they'll be able to help you with what you need.

I also set aside time for myself. It's easy to get wrapped up in the day-to-day and get into a cycle of being busy. It's so important to turn your phone off and take time to just focus on yourself and what you need.

For people who have hearing loss, don’t be afraid to turn them off if you need a second to get the noises out of your head, relax, and just be with your thoughts. It can be really tiring and exhausting. I remember when I got the Lyric hearing aid, I was so tired every day because all the new sounds I'd never heard before were overwhelming to me. It was too much and I needed to be able to take breaks, so it's okay to do that.

I also love swimming, going in the ocean, and being by the water because my Lyrics aren't waterproof and I have to take them out to go swimming. It's honestly one of my favorite feelings in the world because I can take them out and escape from reality. Being in the water, feeling the water in my ears, and feeling the wind in my ears…it's my favorite feeling.”

What advice do you have for someone who may be going through something similar with hearing loss?

“I am so big on advocating for yourself. It's so important to teach kids to speak up. I wouldn't have gotten to where I am today if I hadn't learned how to do that.

In high school, it just wasn't clicking for my teachers what I needed. If there was a day when I had an issue with my ears or I needed a break from wearing the Lyric, they asked me to come into school and just sit in class without my hearing aids on. I'll never forget when my dad told them, ‘You wouldn't make someone in a wheelchair take the stairs’. I think that was the ‘wow’ moment for them. I don't think they realized, one, how much anxiety that would cause me, and two, how unsafe that was. You can't hear a fire alarm or other people, and you're not aware of your surroundings. 

That was such a big moment in my life and is why I always say to advocate for yourself. I hope people reach out to me if they need help learning how to do that or need any advice that I can give them. It's so, so important, even though it may be tough.”

We want to thank Gianna for sharing her story and informing us about such an important topic! For tips, support, resources, and more, check out Here With You on Instagram and hearwithyou.org!