Tinnitus masker issues associated with use of tinnitus maskers: the "safe" level of continuous sound depends on the duration of the sound. For maskers worn continuously, or most of the day, a safe level is no more than 70db, in accordance with EPA maximum safe exposure level for 24-hour environmental sound. Maskers louder than 45db or so (the ambient background level of an average home living area) may start to interfere with understanding conversation (about 60db). Masking of high frequency tinnitus (>6,000hz) is difficult because of the resonance characteristics of the human ear as well as high frequency limitations of in-ear devices.
The Gifts of the Body the patients and the caregiver. The book contains ten short stories, the titles of each being associated with "gifts" which are various functions of the body, both physical and emotional: sweat, wholeness, tears, skin, hunger, mobility, death, speech, sight, hope, and mourning. The caregiver experiences each "gift", as he/she deals with patients who have AIDS, showing the different shared relationships in each case. Each patient is a distinct case, differing in terms of age, financial situation, attitude toward the illness etc., showing the reader that this disease affects all types of people. The book is written in the "no-frills style"