Episode notes
Memoirist John Cotter describes his partial loss of hearing through a series of anecdotes. Running along the Massachusetts coastline, he found he could no longer hear the rush and ebb of the ocean waves. He danced at a wedding to what he thought was an indiscriminate wall of cacophony but when his wife said it was “Billie Jean”, John’s brain was able to assemble the sound together through memory. John was diagnosed with Ménière’s disease, which affects hearing and causes vertigo, but received little in the way of treatment advice beyond being told to get on antidepressants. This wasn’t necessarily bad advice because he entered a deep depression from losing the ability to teach, to enjoy his favorite music, and even to talk to friends on the phone. Gradually, he finds hearing aids that are effective, learns to read lips (which he does in this interview conducted over Zoom), and finds music again.
Get your copy of Losing Music: A Memoir wherever books are sold. Learn more about John Cotter by visiting his website, www.JohnCotter.net.
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In this episode...
Guests
- John Cotter
About the show
Join host John Moe (The Hilarious World of Depression) for honest, relatable, and, yes, sometimes funny conversations about mental health. Hear from comedians, musicians, authors, actors, and other top names in entertainment and the arts about living with depression, anxiety, and many other common disorders. Find out what they’ve done to address it, what worked, and what didn’t. Depresh Mode with John Moe also features useful insights on mental health issues with experts in the field. It’s honest talk from people who have been there and know their stuff. No shame, no stigma, and maybe a few laughs.
Like this podcast? Then you’ll love John’s book, The Hilarious World of Depression.
Logo by Clarissa Hernandez.
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