Communication Tips if Your Loved One Has Hearing Loss

When a loved one starts to lose their hearing, it can be a challenging time, you can no longer communicate as easily with them and they might be closed off to the issue as well. In these circumstances, you can improve your communication with them using the three tips below, read on to find out more. 

Gain the Person's Attention 

When someone starts to lose their hearing, it becomes more important for them to pay attention to what someone is saying, this can be hard if a person is not used to paying close attention to the dialogue. Their mind may wander which contributes to the hearing loss issue.

Before you talk to a loved one with hearing loss you need to get their attention so that attention is not a barrier to hearing you properly. Make sure they are looking at you and focusing on what you are saying, this increases the chance of them hearing you without shouting. 

Speak Clearly at A Natural Pace

When someone has hearing loss the obvious thing to do is to shout what you want to say at them, in theory, if you increase the volume of what you want to say it should help them to hear you – unfortunately, this is not the case. When you shout, your mouth changes shape, the sounds distort and it makes them harder to hear. 

It's better to practice speaking more loudly without shouting and stand closer to them at the same time. This will not only increase the chances of you being heard but it will allow them to lipread and improve communication overall. 

Reduce Background Noise 

People lose their hearing to various degrees. For some people, your hearing loss is only slight, especially at the start, but others can experience severe hearing loss that significantly reduces their ability to hear and understand loved ones or people in groups. There are several solutions to this, one of them is by reducing the background noise. 

Heavy traffic can be louder than 80 decibels so if you live near a road, it's a good idea to close the windows. You might also want to switch off any loud fans, the radio or the television when talking to your loved one. Reducing the background noise makes it easier for you to be heard and understood. 

People start to lose their hearing at different ages, but with over 50% of people experiencing hearing loss over the age of 50 and 71% over the age of 70, it's clear that most people will experience hearing loss at some point in their lives. When this happens, it can be tricky for loved ones to communicate with each other. 

Even if your loved one is in the process of having a hearing device fitted by an audiologist, you may still have some communication issues in the home. Remember to gain the person's attention before speaking, don't shout and reduce any background noise so they can hear you better.