Hearing Center: Communication For Those With Difficulties

If you are partially deaf or experiencing some degree of auditory impairment, one of the most important things you can learn is how better to communicate with others. This is one of the first things that can become a challenge for those who are losing their ability to hear. Conversation becomes difficult and frustrating. Talking on the telephone may become an impossibility. Large gatherings can become an exercise in anxiety. You should know, however, that you are not alone. Others have been where you are now and have used techniques and tools to help them cope. Here are some communication techniques you can use. A hearing center may be able to help you implement them. Positioning When two healthy people have a conversation, very little thought goes into how they stand and where they are in relation to each other. If you have some degree of impairment in how you hear, however, you will have to think more specifically about how you position yourself. It is always good to be facing the person you're talking to. This allows you to get unfettered access to the sound waves, and it will also help you read facial expressions, gestures, and other context clues that can help you get the full meaning of what is being said. Eliminating Distractions Background noise and other distractions can make it very difficult for those with impairments to hold a conversation. This is true even if the person is fitted with a listening aid. A hearing center will advise you that many such devices amplify all of the sounds you hear equally. This can prove to be its own distraction. While the volume is improved, it can make it even more difficult to discern the words that are being said. Better models have been developed that can distinguish between different sounds and amplify accordingly. Ask For Help If you are suffering from being unable to hear properly, it's not rude to speak up and ask others to help you out a little. Everyone hears differently, so tell the people you're speaking to exactly what they can do to accommodate you and make communication easier. Unless they have a reason to think otherwise, people will naturally assume they can talk to you the way they talk to everyone else. Make it clear that you have hearing loss and you need them to speak more clearly. Most people will be more than happy to follow your instructions. Those that aren't...well, perhaps they weren't worth talking to in the first place!