Communicating with others is an essential aspect of daily life. However, when we have hearing loss communicating with others can be very difficult, which can be socially isolating. While wearing hearing devices will help those with a hearing loss in various situations, there are other strategies we can use along with our hearing devices to get the best benefit out of them. These strategies can be useful for everyone whether or not you have a hearing loss or use a hearing device.
Verbal Strategies
- Be assertive
- Let people know you have a hearing loss or have difficulty hearing them. Let the speaker know how they can help you communicate by ensuring the speaker’s face is visualised by the listener. Ask the speaker not too shout but speaker slightly slower than normal. As shouting may distort the speaker’s voice.
- Ask for clarification
- Context at the beginning of a conversation will allow those with hearing difficulties to understand the situation, however, if you are unsure what has been said ask the speaker.
Non-Verbal Strategies
- Reduce background noise
- Try to reduce background noise when possible such as turning off the TV or radio while having a conversation. When possible try dinning in restaurants and cafes where there is lots of soft furnishing.
- Have the speaker face you
- We all lip-read; this is a strategy we all use that allows us to figure out words that we may have missed during a conversation.
- Lighting
- Dim lighting will make it difficult to visualise the speaker’s voice. When possible ensure that the lighting is on so you can see the speaker’s face clearly. When possible, try dinning in restaurants and cafes that are lit well or dine in during the day.
- Reducing distance
- Reducing the distance between you and the speaker will allow you to hear the speaker better but also see the speaker’s face clearly.
