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Strategies for spouses of hearing impaired
Hearing Loss | Last Active: Jun 9 11:59am | Replies (13)Comment receiving replies
Great understanding and observations from spouse point of view. From the view of the person with hearing loss I appreciate your patience. It takes time to process speech and a surprising amount of energy. I find that a brief hesitation by the speaker often results in me being able to intelligently respond. When I am in a small group and several conversations are going on at the same time it is difficult to hear and participate. This leads to feeling of isolation and no interest in communicating with others and perhaps depression. In Rochester MN I am trying to start a support group to help myself and others talk about our issues and relationships (especially with significant others). I would appreciate any ideas from Mayo Connect participants.
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I encourage you to look into starting an HLAA chapter in Rochester. That way you will get some support from an established organization. Support groups can be so helpful. Not just to the person with hearing loss, but to their family members and friends who are willing to sit back and listen to their stories with an open mind. Learning about auditory fatigue, assistive technology, speech processing, etc. is priceless. There's no cost to develop an HLAA chapter, but there is a great deal of support that can be gained through HLAA. http://www.hearingloss.org for information.
I did this myself many years ago. I can't begin to explain how much I've learned from other people with hearing loss. I've had wonderful audiologists and ENT specialists through my 50 years living with poor hearing but can honestly say I have learned more about living well with it, and being able to explain it to others from the PEOPLE I've met through HLAA than from any of the professionals. Good luck to you.
Here's a thought to ponder. Do you know that it takes a person with hearing loss an average of 5 seconds to respond to a basic question they are asked (especially in a setting with background noise)? 5 seconds feels like 10 minutes to someone waiting for an answer. What do others think when that happens? Why does it happen?