A potential employer just contacted me..

[Tastee]

So I have been out of a job for a little bit now. I am finishing up school nd searching. Here is my issue.

I have issues with my ears. I have tinnitus in one ear. I don't wear headphones/earbuds because I don't want to further injure my ear.

I got a call back from a restaurant for a summer job on the beach. My dream. I just recently had to not take a local restaurant job because they demand us to wear ear pieces and I simply can't run around all day with an ear piece in my ear.

I don't want to because of my hearing, and because i believe its unhealthy to have that type of mechanism attached to your ear, on your head, while transmitting frequencies. I just can't get myself to not think it's not harming me.

I don't even know if this new job will require me to wear an ear piece. but I'm so anxious because I really want the job, I don't want to wear an ear piece, and I don't want to say "sorry, I can't work here because i can't wear an ear piece" another time. It's embarrassing but at the same time I need to do what I need to do.

I don't want this anxiety to ruin my opportunity to a great summer. I am just losing it. If they email me back, I may have to just ask "do you wear ear pieces?"


any suggestions?

[MyNameIsTerry]

It seems to me that its a case of Cognitive Distortion here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognitive_distortion

Do any of those look familiar to your situation? Overgeneralisation, magnification and minimalisation, perhaps?

What you need to do is also consider the positives here because right now you are only considering the negatives, the earpiece issue.

There is every chance that:

- they don't wear earpieces there.
- if they do, they may be happy to come to some arrangement because of your tinnitus.
- if you have to turn down the job, it is not a failure or embarrassing because you are protecting your health of which you also hold some strong beliefs over the debate on radio frequency devices close to the brain.
- deciding a job isn't for you isn't embarrassing to the employer/interviewer so why should it be to you?

From a practical point of view you could enquire beforehand or tackle it on the day but using a format that you create to handle the situation. Follow the format and it shouldn't be embarrassing because you make it about the positive elements, protecting your health.

I have asthma and if I applied for a job that turned out to be in a smokey or dusty environment I wouldn't feel embarrassed turning it down on that basis although I mail feel a little that way because I would feel like I have wasted their time. However, how was I to know about that? So, how can I have predicted it and not applied?

[gregcool]

hi tastee.i agree with terry..have a good think about it ..i have had tinitus now in both ears for 20 years and live with it quite easy..i find if i have headphones on or some kind of sound,i dont hear my tinnitus..plus many many people work with ear pieces in nowadays..people on tv shows weather men etc ,bouncers people working in MC DONALDS ect etc....many many people where them and i wouldnt have thought they will cause you any harm..im sure they are very safe..but its you that has to be happy with them..take terrys advice above and look into it..good luck