I have worn hearing aids for 45 years. I have used a BAHA for nine years and it has been the best solution for me. It has given me the chance to come to terms with my life, to regain the confidence that was disappearing as I got older. It also stopped me being identified as a deaf person and to move away from all the baggage people associate with deafness. So I wanted to tell people about BAHAs and about deafness and I became an advocate.

I decided the best way to be an advocate was to give talks, to put across my views and opinions, and to reinforce the fact that deafness is not one condition but many different challenges under one umbrella. Coping with deafness is all about feeling good about yourself and facing life, not hiding away. Its about explaining to others what you need and not pretending you can hear when you can't. I have found that if you trust other people  they will respond in a positive way. If you live a lie then life gets worse.

Talking to groups can be a nerve racking experience but when it goes well it is truly life enhancing. In my talks I try to be myself and to put across what makes me tick. I like to make my audience laugh. When they do they are on your side and they listen to what you have to say. Maybe talking about deafness should be a serious experience but I am not a serious person. I have to be who I am.

My talks have ranged from an assembly for young children to a conference entitled 'Advancing Technologies' where I was one of many speakers. I have spoken to Special Needs Coordinators, Teachers of the Deaf, Baha Users, audiologists, health workers, parents and support workers. The largest  was in a vast room at Doncaster Rovers football stadium at an Inclusion Conference. The smallest was at the Ear Foundation to eight Teachers of the Deaf. Sometimes its great and I feel as if I have really connected. Sometimes I think I have not got through. But thats life.

So why not give it a go yourself. The best talks are not from experts with their technical vocabulary but from people like us who have lived with deafness and who use BAHAs each and every day. We understand the advantages and the problems. By talking out we help others to come to terms with what can be a debilitating disability. At the recent Advancing Technologies Conference in London the speaker who had the most impact was not one of the many technical experts but a profoundly deaf six year old boy who sat next to his Dad and answered questions from the audience about his cochlear implant. He told them how it was and he made them laugh. He got through.

The main challenge is to get out there and communicate. Deafness itself is still misunderstood. BAHAs are still confused with cochlear implants. As users we still face problems, the lack of spare aids when ours need to go for repair, the reluctance of many health authorities to give bilateral implants, and the expense of accessories that make such a difference, for example the connecting leads from BAHAs to iPods so we can listen to our music.

If we talk out we can make a difference. If we stay silent we have to accept things as they are. Being an advocate means that you are helping others and by doing so you are helping yourself. Speaking out gives you confidence and shows the world that you are not beaten by your disability. You become a part of the process that makes life better for all deaf and hearing impaired people.