Hearing issues, in a sense, can be dealt with therapeutically

By Janie Gunn
For the Noblesville Daily Times

Our senses add to the quality of our lives. Our ability to hear well impacts us on many levels of our body. I talked with Dr. Donna Segal about how healthy hearing contributes to wellness.

Dr. Donna Segal developed Perception Plus, a healing center focused on the sense of hearing. The mission of Perception Plus is to assist individuals with their ability to receive and utilize their auditory sense by focusing on the body’s ability to heal itself.

Dr. Segal takes a holistic approach to healing this vital sense.

She received her clinical doctorate in Audiology in January 2006 from A.T. Still University of Health Sciences in Mesa, Arizona. Previously, she obtained her Bachelor of Arts in Speech and Hearing Science from Indiana University in 1983 and her Master of Science in Audiology from Purdue University in 1985. She has dedicated her career to helping others in their overall communication needs.

Growing up with a grandfather who experienced a severe hearing loss, she saw firsthand the impact that the auditory sense has on one’s life and its affect on family and social interactions. She also studies nutrition and the critical impacts it has on the body’s overall wellness. Along with her formal education, she has studied a variety of Eastern cultural practices which has broadened her offerings to be able to offer patients both traditional and alternative treatment options.

Her area of interest includes hearing aids and aural rehabilitation. This involves working with patients with hearing aids to retrain their brains to adapt to the different sounds that they hear with amplification. The challenge is related to the adaptation and relearning that the system does as it shifts its perception. The individuals’ success is greatly improved when he or she understands and actively participates in their own healing.

She has studied and is very challenged by the area of tinnitus and hyperacusis related issues. She also teaches a tinnitus course at the doctorate level each year. This is where she felt the need to implement her conventional audiological training as well as blending alternative approaches to these frustrating conditions.

Tinnitus is commonly defined as ringing in the ears. It is defined as a conscious experience of sound that originates in the head of the owner. In many cases, patients are left with a feeling of hopelessness as this is a difficult condition to heal. It is also classified as objective or subjective.

Hyperacusis is a super sensitivity to sound of all types, even the normal sounds you hear every day. They are perceived as being louder than they are and can cause excruciating pain to the person dealing with this issue. In our modern society we are inundated with excessive noise pollution. The increased mechanization of society puts us all at a risk for audiological issues. This is a challenge with what is known as the cocktail party syndrome, the inability to filter out all those conversations going on around you. The person feels isolated and can experience severe depression when dealing with any of these issues.

One exciting therapy that Dr. Segal implements is sound therapy. This therapy was developed by Dr. A.A. Tomatis of Paris, a former ear, nose and throat specialist who implemented scientific studies on this unique treatment that are used in Europe for more than thirty years now. The therapy consists of listening through headphones, to high frequency music recorded through a device of his invention known as the Electronic Ear. The music is filtered to gradually reduces the low frequency sounds and adds the higher frequencies in a systematic scientifically proven manner. The music is the classical music of Bach, Mozart and the like which is soothing to the brain and recharges the hearing capabilities. The therapy works directly upon the cortex of the brain and it mobilizes the complementary forces of the human system to bring about balance.

Dr. Segal’s patients are thrilled with the success that they have encountered with the variety of treatment options she offers. Their lives go from feeling a sense of hopelessness to being filled with aliveness and vitality. She also works with a team of professionals to offer the individual ways to address all the underlying issues if appropriate. She strongly supports the synergistic affect of the body and its functions and agrees with the philosophy that the body is a reflection of the subconscious mind. Emotions hold the body and mind together and integrating these practices allows the individual to develop healthier patterns of living their life with peace and contentment. Perception Plus is located in the Manan Hearing Center at 116th St. and Allisonville Road. Visit her Web site at www.perceptionplus.com or call her at 691-2369.

About the author: Janie Gunn is the owner of Source Yoga Center in Fishers, Indiana, 8609 E. 116th Street, 915-YOGA (9642).