Tips for Communicating with a Loved One with Hearing Loss

Creating the Best Environment

• Reduce the background noise whenever possible. Turn off the television, radio, air conditioner, etc. Understand that some situations are more difficult than others, such as in the car, in background noise, etc.
• Face your loved one directly.
• Get on their level. If they are sitting, have a seat. Stand when they stand.
• Face the source of light. Do not have the light behind your or in your loved one’s face.
• The intensity of your voice significantly decreases over a distance. Try to be within 4 feet of your loved one. Refrain from talking from another room.

Things You Can Do

• Get your loved one’s attention before you speak.
• Speak in a normal fashion. Shouting distorts your speech, making it even more difficult to understand.
• Keep your hands away from your face while you are talking.
• Refrain from doing extraneous things like eating, drinking, smoking, chewing gum, etc. This makes your speech difficult to understand.
• If your loved one is having difficulty understanding something you are saying, rephrase the sentence. Repeating the misunderstood word will only lead to frustration.
• Recognize that listening for someone with a hearing loss is hard work! They will have a harder time when they are tired or feeling ill.

Things to Understand about Hearing Aids

• Hearings aids take time and practice to become accustomed to. Your loved one has to work at learning to hear sounds again.
• Hearing aids do not restore hearing. Nothing can restore the damage that causes a permanent, sensorineural hearing loss. Today’s digital hearing aids greatly help in compensating for the hearing loss, but they do not totally restore one’s ability to hear and understand speech.
• Hearing aids are not indestructible. They are tiny computers that are placed in a very hostile environment (the ear!). It is common for hearing aids to fail, especially if they are not cared for and cleaned regularly.
  

Better Technology, Better Service, Better Hearing!

Parr’s Pro Hearing Services 2211 Autumn Wood Drive Huntingdon, PA 16652 (814) 643-0319 (814) 641-HEAR (4327)

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