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Community News
Dating Someone with Hearing Loss
So your partner has a hearing loss. They struggle every day with situations that people without hearing loss can never truly understand. It can be difficult for you as the partner without a hearing loss at times too. Your loved one’s hearing loss doesn’t take away from who they are or your love for them, but it does present a unique challenge in relationships. It can cause arguments, resentment and frustration that nobody wants affecting their relationship.
We have 6 things to remember when dating someone with a hearing loss so you can support your partner the best way possible and strengthen your relationship.
Be Patient
Constantly struggling to listen and hear is exhausting for someone with a hearing loss. It requires a lot of extra energy and effort that can wear them down. Certain environments are more difficult for your partner such as a noisy restaurant with multiple voices and sounds or a dark place where they can’t read your lips. Each situation brings a challenge and it’s important to be patient.
Remember, they are doing their best. Even with hearing aids and lip-reading techniques, it isn’t always enough. They understand and recognize your frustration because they’ve likely dealt with it throughout their whole life. But, as a hearing person, your experience is very different from theirs. Be compassionate and patient as they are trying.
Communicate Clearly
People with hearing loss struggle to hear clearly and it can be annoying for both parties involved in conversations. Mumbling is the common perpetrator of poor communication. Make sure you are speaking clearly, enunciating and directly facing them to make it easier for your partner to hear you. With these practices, they can read your lips and their hearing aids will pick up speech better.
Be Willing to Repeat Yourself
As irritating as it is when you have to repeat yourself for the third time because your partner can’t hear what you are saying, remind yourself that it isn’t their fault. They can sense your frustration and once you start refusing to repeat yourself saying, “nevermind, it wasn’t important,” it will hurt their feelings. It’s incredibly discouraging for your partner because it is important for them and they’re doing their best.
Your partner genuinely cares to know what you said and wants to carry on the conversation. Remember, it isn’t their fault and it’s upsetting for them too. Negative reactions remind them that they’re different and may make them feel unworthy or less than. By staying positive, calmly repeating yourself as many times as necessary and understanding their position, you can avoid hurt feelings, resentment and fights.
Ask Questions
Don’t be afraid to be curious and ask questions. It shows you care and want to learn more about your partner’s experience. Ask about their hearing loss to learn more, work together and be open to finding new ways to improve your communication. It may be an adjustment at first, but your partner will appreciate the effort and it will make a difference in your day-to-day lives.
Help Them Understand, Not Just Hear
It’s easy to hear sounds or words, but to truly understand them is a bit more difficult. Processing words is harder for someone with a hearing loss because their brain and ears don’t function together the same way as someone without a hearing loss.
Your partner may ask you to speak louder, slower or face-to-face so they can understand. It’s common to become annoyed when it frequently happens, but it’s important to remember that all your partner wants is to hear what you said and talk to you. If they didn’t care, you would know.
Don’t Baby Them
Babying your partner looks like a number of things. It can be telling new people about their condition, speaking for them, not inviting them places because it will be hard for them to hear, or treating them as though they can’t deal with it on their own. For you, it comes from a good place, but for your partner, it’s usually a sensitive situation. People with hearing loss are usually used to feeling like outsiders so they try to be as normal as possible. They want to do the same things as others, have the same opportunities and be independent.
It’s worth noting that each person has different boundaries when it comes to hearing loss. What is acceptable for one person might not be for another. Allowing them to advocate for themselves and starting the conversation about it will define boundaries so you know when it’s okay to step in and help.
If you’re concerned about hearing loss affecting you or your partner, choose the NexGen Hearing clinic nearest you to book your no obligation hearing assessment
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Coldest Night of the Year
The Coldest Night of the Year is Canada’s National Walk for Homelessness. Since 2011, it has raised more than $43 million. The Coldest Night of the year is a winterrific family-friendly walk to raise money for local charities serving people experiencing hurt, hunger, and homelessness. Team up, walk, and fundraise! It’s cold out there… but there’s no place like home. The event takes place on February 26th in 168 locations in Canada. The event features family-friendly 2 or 5 km walks and Covid-friendly virtual options. See the website for more details on how you can get involved with your local event.
Assistance for an Ageing Workforce
“We’re dealing with an ageing workforce that will have more people with chronic pain issues, more people with vision or hearing loss, and there are different supports available depending on the degree of challenges you are dealing with,” says Nate Toevs, Marketing Manager for the WorkBC Assistive Technology Services program. “We know we can bring a lot to the table that can make a huge impact for that individual, which in turn will impact the company that they work for.” The program provides funding for assistive technology, ergonomics, restorative supports including canes and crutches, hearing aids, vehicle modifications, and more. Contact us for more information.
Chiropractic Care for Newborns
Why on earth should a newborn see a chiropractor? Chiropractic is about assessing and improving function rather than pain. Babies go through thousands of milestones in their first year of life alone. It is important that these milestones are reached and occur in the appropriate time frame. Assessing your baby’s nervous system function and removing any interference may allow your baby to appropriately reach these milestones. Adjustments for a baby look very different than for an adult. Often, all that is needed is sustained pressure – the same pressure you would use to check the ripeness of a tomato. It is safe, gentle and effective.
Information and Energy are Key to Health
Have you ever considered that in a state of total wellness, the body’s cells and organs always know what to do, and do it perfectly? The latest science is revealing the mechanisms that allow the body’s optimal functioning, and also what can cause it to lose resilience and efficacy, and to even malfunction. All of the science, along with NES’s extensive research and testing, has demonstrated that the root cause of malfunction – as well as the source of optimal functioning – exists beneath the physiology of the body. We must look to the physics underlying our biochemistry.
Fresh Air & Exercise Boost Wellbeing
Have the icy roads and snowy conditions kept you from enjoying your daily walks? We know the importance of daily exercise and fresh air to our health. Luckily, February on the coast usually comes with more favourable walking conditions. Outside our door is the beautiful nature of Vancouver Island. Whether it is just a walk around the block or a hike up a mountain, the fresh air and exercise boost our wellbeing. So lace up your shoes and wear VoxxLife socks with HPT for enhanced balance and stability. Additional benefits include; enhanced pain relief and management, especially PDN pain and improved mobility.
Total Wealth Planning
As of 2021, 22.8% of Canadians are 65 or older. It’s important to have conversations around Total Wealth Planning for your family. Considerations: *Talk about money openly with family, *Establish a family member as a point of contact to divert calls from scammers, *Regular finances review; involve the family in discussions with your advisor, * Discuss the creation of a Will and Power of Attorney while the senior is still of sound mind. If you want to learn how to help the senior in your life, contact us today.
Hearing Loss Tools
Every day comes with its struggles for people who are deaf and live with hearing loss. There are actually side effects of dealing with a hearing loss, especially if left untreated. Often they deal with listening fatigue and an increased risk of burnout, which can be linked to mental health issues. But there are solutions available and technology is advancing every day to improve the well-being of the deaf and hard of hearing community.
Communication Strategies
We have laid out various tools and techniques you can start using to limit side effects and start improving your day-to-day life.
Communication Strategies
- Each hearing loss is unique, but the recommended forms of communication are the same and if practiced, can truly make a difference.
- Those with hearing loss rely on their vision to take body language cues and listening to fully understand language. Since they’re already good at lip-reading, making sure you have their attention and there is a direct line of sight to the person you are speaking with is essential.
- Reducing background noise as much as possible will make it easier to focus on what someone is saying rather than listening to everything at once. You can turn down the volume on the TV or move to a quieter area if necessary.
- Tell people you have a hearing loss. People will usually understand and make an effort to accommodate, but you have to communicate your needs whether it’s asking them to speak louder, mumble less or enunciate their words more.
- Tell people you have a hearing loss. Often, others will understand and make an effort to accommodate, but you have to communicate your needs to see improvement. Asking someone to speak slower, focus on enunciating consonants and speak towards you are ways to help their voice sound clearer.
- Consonants fall into the frequency where hearing loss lives, which is why it’s difficult to hear the sounds such as ‘th’, ‘ch’, ‘f’ or ‘sh’ because you can’t define what the words are. Sometimes if they are speaking a bit louder it can help, but if they start yelling it only becomes more difficult and stressful.
Apps
There are tons of apps on the market that are helpful for the deaf and hearing loss community in all kinds of situations where it can be difficult to hear.
- Google released an app called Live Transcribe. It uses ASR technology to turn spoken words into text on an android phone screen in real-time. It works for 70 different languages and all it needs is a network connection. The app could be very helpful in situations such as live conferences, meetings or loud spaces when ordering a coffee.
- Rogervoice, an essential app for those who are deaf and hard of hearing, produces a live transcription of phone calls and delivers the transcription directly to your phone. Similarly, Voxci transcribes voice mails and sends them to you via email or text.
- TapSOS comes in handy during emergency situations and it won the AbilityNet Tech4Good Digital Health Award. By using this highly visual and interactive app, people that are deaf and those with hearing loss can communicate with emergency services without having to listen or speak. Its features include stored medical history and important personal information as well as GPS tracking to pinpoint locations.
Learn more or book an appointment today by visiting nexgenhearing.com.
Sources:
[http://hearing.wustl.edu/Hearing-Education-Center/Communication-Strategies/Strategies-for-the-Hearing-Impaired-Listener](http://hearing.wustl.edu/Hearing-Education-Center/Communication-Strategies/Strategies-for-the-Hearing-Impaired-Listener)
[https://www.starkey.com/blog/articles/2015/07/listening-fatigue-1](https://www.starkey.com/blog/articles/2015/07/listening-fatigue-1)
[https://www.hearatlanta.com/hearing-loss-articles/what-are-the-dangers-of-hearing-loss/](https://www.hearatlanta.com/hearing-loss-articles/what-are-the-dangers-of-hearing-loss/)
NexGen Hearing, NexGenHearing.com
New Year’s Resolutions for Seniors
The new year is always a good time to consider some positive changes you’d like to make to set you on the path to a happier, healthier you! These New Year’s resolutions for older adults are a great place to start. 1) Give your brain a boost – keeping mentally fit can be done by joining clubs or even doing a crossword puzzle each day. 2) Eat more veggies – sticking to a healthier diet is important as we age. 3) Move more – sign up for exercise classes or work out with a friend. 4) Spend more time with loved ones!
Why Wear Compression Socks?
How much do you move during the day? If you spend a lot of time sitting, your calf muscles that usually help pump blood through your veins do very little. This can cause swelling and blood to pool in the lower legs. Standing all day can have the same effect. Walking is a great exercise to help the calf muscles do their job. Socks with compression squeeze your legs to move blood up your leg whether you are sitting or standing. Voxx Knee Highs offer gentle compression, are comfortable to wear and have HPT to help with pain, balance and stability.
