Communication Tips for Individuals with Hearing Loss

When someone has hearing loss, it is important that you communicate with them in a careful manner. The last thing you want to do is end up causing offense or frustration. At the same time, you want to communicate in a manner that will make it as easy as possible for the individual to understand. With that in mind, we are going to take you through some effective communication tips that an audiologist would recommend when communicating with someone who has hearing loss. 

Face the Person Directly

When you are speaking to someone who is experiencing hearing loss, it is vital to face that person directly and speak to them on the same level. It will help massively if there is good light in the room as well. This enables the person experiencing hearing loss to look at your face and read your lips while you are speaking, which can make a massive difference. 

Do Not Exaggerate Mouth Movements

This is one of the mistakes that we see a lot of people make when it comes to speaking with someone who has hearing troubles. They assume that they need to exaggerate every mouth movement they make. However, you do not need to do this. It won’t make it any easier for the person to understand what you are saying. In fact, it will be more challenging because you are not speaking in a natural manner. This is why you need to make sure you speak clearly, naturally, distinctly and slowly. There is no need to shout either. 

If The Hearing Is Worse in One Ear, Adapt to This

In a lot of individuals who have hearing loss, they will only have it in one ear or it will be worse in one ear than the other. If this is the case in your situation, make sure you adapt to this. Sit on the person’s better side for hearing, as this will increase the chances that they will be able to hear you without any sort of issue. 

Do Not Get Frustrated If You Need to Repeat Yourself

Finally, no one likes to repeat themselves, but please avoid showing any signs of annoyance or frustration we can assure you that the person with the hearing challenge feels a lot more irritated. Showing your frustration may cause the person to retreat and they may not want to participate in any more discussions going forward. Therefore, you need to be very mindful when it comes to the way in which you communicate and the expressions you have on your face.

As you can see, you do need to consider your method of communication carefully when you are speaking with someone who has hearing loss. It is important to make sure that you do not offend them and that you speak in a manner that is going to be easy for them to understand. We hope that the tips that we have provided above will help you to do this.