# @davidmsmith15 on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/B6YJ6usB7ha
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/29187689-davidmsmith15-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/postThumbnails/c8d71f21cf.jpg
- **Posted:** 2019-12-22T14:05:32.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** David Smith 🇺🇸 (@davidmsmith15) — https://gondola.cc/davidmsmith15

## Caption

A common question I get about playing sports with hearing aids is “what happens when the ball hits you in the ears?” Well, it obviously hurts! Thankfully I can only recall a few times in my 30+ years that I either got l hit in the ear, or I got hit hard enough to affect my hearing aids directly.
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One such time was in 2013, when we were playing against France. I went up for a block and took the ball directly off my forehead. Normally when this happens, the ball ricochets out of play, I adjust my hearing aids, and then move on to the next play. This time, however, my hearing aid somehow got disconnected from my earmold and went flying onto the court. I quickly ran over to grab it before anyone had a chance to step on it. Only then did I realize the ball was still in play! With the hearing aid still in my fist, I got back to the net to get ready to block again. The setter set the ball back to the opposite and I went up to block with one hand open and the other in a tight fist, not necessarily the most ideal technique for blocking. .
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We got another touch on the block to keep the ball in play and then I realized I had another problem, I needed to get ready to spike the ball but I couldn’t do that with a hearing aid in my hand. So, as I transitioned off the net to get ready to spike, I quickly opened my mouth and popped the hearing aid in there for safe keeping! Somehow, we STILL didn’t end the point and I had to get ready to block again with my hearing aid rattling around in my mouth. France finally put the ball away and I quickly spit the hearing aid out and ran to the sideline to hand my very confused coach my broken hearing aid and went back to get ready for the next side out! Thankfully that little hearing aid was a pretty tough guy and I was able to get it functioning again after the match.
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Anyone else out there have some similar stories? .
#deafathlete #deaf #hardofhearing #hearing #deafcommunity #deafawareness #hearingloss #volleyballplayer #oticon #myoticon #usavolleyball #TeamAdidas #Adidasvolleyball #Adidasathlete
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oticonusa oticonpeoplefirst adidasvolleyball adidas

## Stats

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## Tags

usavolleyball, teamadidas, volleyballplayer, deafathlete, hardofhearing, oticon, deaf, deafcommunity, hearing, myoticon, adidasvolleyball, hearingloss, adidasathlete, deafawareness

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