Easy on the ears
Posted: May 13, 2014
Carrie Spangler, AuD, ’05, wakes up every day, puts on hearing aids, and enters into a colorful world of sound. With severe hearing loss in both ears due to lack of oxygen at birth, she’s made helping others with hearing loss her life’s work. Her career path, based on her own journey, drives her personal and professional passion to change lives in this purposeful occupation.
Growing up in mainstream schools in Ohio, Dr. Spangler didn’t know anyone else with hearing loss. Her experience inspired her to help launch programs for young people in her community who had that in common, including Stark Project for Education Audition in Kids, a specialized program to assist preschool-aged kids with listening and language skills. She also co-founded Hearing Impaired Teens Interacting Together (Hit It!), an advocacy and social support group in Stark County, Ohio. This program was based on the dedication she felt to help teens with hearing loss, providing a nonthreatening environment where they can learn more about themselves and others.
“Audiology has significantly improved over the years,” says Dr. Spangler. “Technology opens up a lot of doors for people with hearing loss to access listening and spoken language in our hearing world, and audiologists are professionals who can give that gift to people in an effective way.”
She also says there’s much more to audiology than just hearing aids.
“Hearing aids are a tool that can help individuals live well with hearing loss, but you have to look at the whole person, not just the hearing loss itself,” she explains. “I see audiology continuously moving toward a whole person approach, making sure individuals have the social and emotional comfort and the ability to overcome communication barriers in lots of different situations.”
Dr. Spangler has worked with her state legislature to develop and pass a bill implementing universal newborn hearing screenings in all birthing hospitals in Ohio. This technology did not exist when Dr. Spangler was born, which led to her late hearing loss diagnosis at age 4, where she missed a crucial period to develop listening and language skills. Additionally, she worked with state representatives to obtain a line item in the current state budget to help provide hearing aids for kids whose insurance will not cover the cost.
She takes any opportunity possible to make a difference in the lives of children who have hearing loss, especially those families just finding out about their child’s needs.
“I strive to be a positive role model in their lives because they’re going down a new road and don’t know what to expect,” Dr. Spangler says. “I also hope to inspire others pursuing a career in audiology and show them how important this work is on a daily basis.”
Dr. Spangler can’t imagine life without the tools necessary to listen in our hearing world. She considers herself a No. 1 advocate for those with hearing loss, and strives to make the world just a little easier on the ears.