Seth Krieger

Seth Krieger was diagnosed with mild-to-moderate bilateral sensorineural hearing loss in 2003, when he was five years old. The audiologists at the CARE Center of the House Ear Institute fitted him for Oticon Adaptos and a Phonak FM system for school. Within the first year, Seth’s hearing loss progressed to moderate-to-severe. It has remained more or less stable since then. Today, Seth attends the academically rigorous Chadwick School in Palos Verdes. He plays saxophone in the 6th grade orchestra and performs with Village Voices, an after-school vocal ensemble. He is studying to become a bar mitzvah next August at Temple Beth El in San Pedro.

Seth enjoys shooting air-soft guns, designing and playing videogames, skateboarding, snowboarding and sailing. He loves to read (mostly fantasy fiction, but also mysteries and nonfiction) and watch movies (with the subtitles on). A proud Boy Scout, he recently achieved the rank of First Class with Troop 658, and is in line to lead his own patrol next fall. Seth is devoted to his many animals. Active in the area 4H club, he has won ribbons and trophies showing his pet rabbit and chickens, and is currently training his Australian cockatiel, Pepper, to whistle the theme from “The Andy Griffith Show.”

In Seth’s Own Words

First Impressions: “When I was diagnosed with a hearing loss, I often would want to go to school without my hearing aids. It was a very unnatural feeling. After a few months, it started to seem normal, though there were a few things that still bugged me: the whistling whenever something came close to my ear. And as a little kid, I loved to play tag or anything rough, but whenever I fell, I was scared I would break my hearing aids.

Learning Curve: “I made lots of mistake with my hearing aids. One time, I left them on a low table. My dog ate one. Luckily it was insured!”

Pet peeve: “I don’t like it when my friends say something I can’t hear, and then won’t repeat it.”

On assistive technology: “I’m glad that I live in an age when technology moves so fast. A year ago, I switched from my old Adaptos to my new Epoqs. The Epoq is a more compact and better-quality aid. Another gadget I have to help me along at school is my FM made by Phonak. The FM makes it so I have a direct wireless feed from the teacher’s transmitter to my hearing aids. It also has a surround-sound feature for group discussions. I think I have an advantage over other children in school because of my FM. But some disadvantages would be swimming or water sports: I can’t hear in the water because I have to take out my hearing aids.”

On implantable hearing aids: “I would really, really like to have implantable hearing aids, so I could have normal hearing whenever I’m in the water. The technology is still experimental, but I can hardly wait until it’s ready to go. “

On the House Ear Institute: “My audiologists at the CARE center have been really supportive and careful to make sure there are no mistakes. I really like Dr. Luxford. He gives me great advice on how to keep my ears cleaner.”