Helping a loved one who is losing their hearing

Maybe you’ve noticed a loved one no longer hears you when you speak to them when their back is turned, or that they’ve begun to mishear certain words or phrases. Or, maybe you’ve noticed they keep asking for the TV or music to be at louder volumes than before.

If someone you know is showing signs of hearing loss, here are some of the ways you can support them.

1. Approach the subject gently

If you’re concerned that a friend or family member is losing their hearing and feel you need to speak to them about it, it’s important to approach the subject gently. Hearing loss usually occurs gradually and they may not have noticed the changes themselves yet. Or, they may not feel ready to acknowledge that they’ve got a level of hearing loss.

Our webinar series ‘Your homelife, your hearing’ offers practical tips and solutions to help make homelife with hearing loss a little bit easier.

If you do approach the subject, it could be useful to ask open questions like “how are you finding hearing me when we’re at home/in busy places?” Or, you could let them know you’re ready to talk about it, if they feel they need to. 
 

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Sometimes my wife and I get frustrated with each other for not understanding things, which ends up not helping anyone

person supported by Hearing Link

2. Follow communication tips

People living with hearing loss often use a combination of strategies to establish context, follow, and contribute to a conversation.

If your loved one is struggling to hear you, you can support them to understand what you’re saying by rephrasing your sentence. Make sure that you get their attention before you speak to them and face them directly. Ensure that your face is well lit, and that you aren’t near any other sources of sound, such as speakers playing music.

Also, be prepared to patiently repeat yourself and never say ‘It doesn’t matter’ as this can feel very hurtful to people living with hearing loss.