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SIGNS OF HEARING LOSS
Do you often find that you do not
understand what someone has said to you?
Do you often have to ask people to repeat what they have said two or three
times before you understand what they have said?
Do you turn up the volume on the television or the radio so that
you can hear the radio or the television?
If your answer to any of these questions is yes", then you may have a hearing
loss.
Do you hear any of the following complaints or find yourself in any of the following circumstances with your
family members?
Annoyed at having to interpret a lot.
Confused by the inconsistency in his/her understanding.
Distressed when having to repeat in difficult situations.
Embarrassed when he/she obviously doesn't understand
someone.
Frustrated at not knowing what to do to be understood.
Guilt feeling that misunderstandings are my
fault.
Hoping he/she understands what I'm saying.
Isolation. For both of us.
Just remember that I'm
trying too.
Kind words help us both.
Lonely a lot.
Misunderstandings happen.
Noticeable loss
of intimacy in the relationship. Oh, what happened to being spontaneous?
Please remember, it's hard on me too.
Quite
annoyed and distressed when the TV is too loud.
Repeating is hard on us too.
Somewhat restricted in our shared
activities.
Talking can be stressful for both of us.
Uncertain about whether he/she understood me.
Why
do they talk to me, not you directly?
Extra attention is needed when we talk.
You are becoming too dependent
on me.
Zoo animals communicate with body language. We can too.
Hearing loss is caused by a number of different
circumstances. And in every case, the earlier you have your hearing loss diagnosed by a professional audiologist, Ear, Nose
and Throat doctor or physician who specializes in ear and hearing problems (an Otologist), the better your chances are of
limiting your hearing loss or in developing a plan that will allow you to cope more effectively with your hearing loss.
SOME TIPS TO
COPE WITH HEARING LOSS
1. First and foremost, you must make the person with whom you are speaking aware that you are
hard of hearing. Inform the person with whom you are speaking that they must face you when then speak, and that they need
to speak clearly and slowly. Do not hesitate to remind people of these rules when speaking to you as a hearing person will
often times forget that they are speaking with a person who has a hearing loss.
2. Inform the person with whom you
are speaking that they need not exaggerate their lip and mouth movements as most of the time these exaggerated movements make
speech reading more difficult.
3. If you are in a group (more than one participant in addition to yourself), make
sure everyone understands that only one person can speak at a time.
4. If you cannot understand what someone has said
and you ask them to repeat what they said, do not ask them to repeat what they said for a third time if you did not understand
what they said the second time. More often than not, if you dont understand what was said by the second time it is repeated,
you wont understand it no matter how many times it is said. Ask the person to rephrase what they are saying.
5. If
you understand only a portion of what was said, repeat the portion that you understood and ask the person to repeat the remainder
of what was said. Sometimes breaking a conversation down in to shorter phrases or shorter sentences will enhance your understanding.
6. If you are having difficulty understanding one word that is being said, ask the person to spell the word rather
than repeating the actual word itself.
7. Speech reading is difficult if someone puts their hands in front of their
mouth, or if they are eating or chewing gum. Do not hesitate to tell someone that you rely on speech reading to communicate
and that speech reading is more difficult if there is interference.
8. If at all possible, identify the topic of conversation
before the conversation begins. Knowing what is being talked about will make understanding what is being said much easier.
If you are attending a group meeting ask for an agenda ahead of time, or ask the speaker before the meeting what the topics
of conversation will be so that you have a better idea of what is actually being said.
9. Anticipate what a particular
conversation might be. An example of this is the conversation you might have with a wait staff at a restaurant when ordering
a meal. You can anticipate the questions that will be asked in the process of ordering your meal so that you have a better
chance of understanding the questions being asked. The same concept can be applied in other situations in your daily life
that occur on a regular basis.
10. In a restaurant, try to sit in a corner with your back against a solid surface
as that will reduce the background noise that would otherwise interfere with your ability to hear what is being said.
11.
Speech reading takes practice. Watch some of the older shows on television where it is easier to speech read what the various
characters are saying so that you can practice and follow the captioning to see if you are speech reading correctly.
12.
If you do speech read, position yourself away from the glare of windows or lights so that you have a clear line of vision
to the lips of the person that you are speech reading.
13. In a group meeting get to the meeting early so that you
can find a seat which will not be affected by a lot of background noise and that will at the same time, allow you to see the
faces of all the other people at the meeting.
14. You need not strive to understand each and every word that is being
said. Your main objective is to understand the concepts and general ideas that are being discussed, along with sufficient
detail as the circumstances warrant.
15. If you do not understand what is being said, do not hesitate to ask for clarification
and do not apologize for your inability to understand because of your hearing loss.
16. If all else fails and you
absolutely cannot understand what is being said, ask the person to write out their statement. You may want to make a point
of always having handy a pen / pencil and a small notepad for that purpose.
17. To make communication easier with
a spouse and other family members, you may want to learn some basic sign language. Most sign language instructors will not
charge extra for a spouse or other family member to sit in on your sign language lessons.
18. Join a support group
like Quiet Corner SHHH and take your family to meetings with you.
19. As much as possible control the environment
in which you are having your conversation. Large rooms with high ceilings and hard floors are one of the worst environments
for a hard of hearing person. Sounds bouncing off hard surfaces increase the background noise that you must deal with. Try
to use small rooms with carpeted floors, and avoid rooms that have excessive ventilation systems. Avoid rooms with window
air conditioners as the air conditioning unit will create so much background noise that you will be almost at a total loss
to hear anything that is said.
TIPS FOR A HEARING PERSON WHO IS SPEAKING WITH A HARD OF HEARING PERSON
1. Get the person's attention before you speak.
2. Do not put obstacles in front of your face.
3.
Do not have objects in your mouth such as gum, cigarettes or food.
4. Speak clearly and at a moderate pace.
5.
Use facial expression and gestures, but see #13 below.
6. Give clues when changing the subject.
7. Rephrase
when you are not understood.
8. Don't shout.
9. Avoid noisy background situations.
10. Be patient,
positive and relaxed.
11. Talk TO a person with a hearing disability and not ABOUT him or her.
12. When in
doubt, ASK the person with a hearing disability for suggestions to improve communication.
13. Dont exaggerate facial
expressions and movements of your mouth when you speak as that will only make speech reading more difficult for the hard of
hearing person.
14. Offer respect to help build confidence.
Beth Wilson has put together an article on coping tips for family gatherings for people who have a hard
time hearing. It's worth the read!! The
article is posted on the Beyond Hearing Web Site. The Beyond Hearing Web Site
can be found at http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Prairie/4727/bhframe.htm, from there click on the "Best of BH" in the
yellow column on the left (second item from the bottom), scroll down the list and you will see the article, listed among other
excellent articles that you may want to spend some time reading as well. .
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