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Holiday Auditory Exhaustion Syndrome is Here!
Hearing Loss | Last Active: Dec 6, 2022 | Replies (29)Comment receiving replies
When you say they think we are daft or stupid, do they actually say that to you or is that just what you are thinking? I always struggle in group situations, but no one has ever told me I am stupid or anything since I can't understand. I do know I feel self conscious about not being able to hear and sometime think people are either getting frustrated with me. I do know a lot of times I end up zoning out because I just can't keep up and my brain "shuts down". Thankfully with family I am usually pretty at ease and don't worry so much and if I have questions about what was being talked about, my hubby is pretty good with filling me in. The hardest though are when we have our work lunches with my department. We work from home, so the only time i get together with them is a few times a year at these lunches. We have a bowling/lunch holiday get together coming up and I am happy to see them but worried about what I will miss.
Replies to "When you say they think we are daft or stupid, do they actually say that to..."
It’s an important strategy for people with hearing loss to communicate their interest and engagement in a social situation with body language, eye contact, and physical location in the center of the conversation, because if we don’t we are easily dismissed as absent. I will never sit passively and silent on the sidelines, waiting to be included. I’m always actively engaged and contributing to the conversation. Joking, arguing, asking questions, showing interest, growing my relationships at every moment I’m there.
I’m also very assertive about asking people to repeat when I’ve missed something. I’ve never been slighted when I’ve asked for help, and I think that’s because there can be no doubt that I’m fully present.
Yes it does require extra effort. I know that going in, and I am up to the challenge. It’s worth it to me. Our attitude toward the challenge is something we can control.
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No one has ever told me that I'm daft or stupid, but I do know that in some situations people choose not to sit next to me or include me in difficult social settings. People tend to take the easy road when they have a chance.
The conversation about daft or stupid relates more to an 'inside feeling' than to a reality. We are not daft or stupid but, in some situations, we may present that way from other people's viewpoint. As a group, people with hearing loss are just as intelligent as others are.