Do your loved ones suffer from some form of hearing impairment? If they do, you are likely to have experienced some form of miscommunication or difficulty in communicating. In fact, there are many others who also struggle with communicating with hearing-impaired seniors. And unfortunately, your loved ones with hearing impairment may also find it difficult to focus or think, which can lead to a whole slew of other issues like irritation, boredom, distraction, and inattentiveness. Not to worry, there are ways to better communicate with your loved ones. Here are 4 ways to improve the communication experience with your hearing-impaired parents.
Pick the Right Position
One way to communicate better with your hearing-impaired loved ones is to pick the right position. And this means you should try to face them directly and on the same level. This is because it allows your loved ones to see you directly and be able to be closer, so they would be able to understand you better. At the same time, you should position yourself so that the light shines on your face rather than on your loved ones. This is because light shining on your loved ones may not only distract them but can make it more difficult for your loved ones to see you better.
Speak Slowly and Clearly
Speaking slowly and clearly is one way to better communicate with your loved ones. Do not rush the conversation, and instead give time for your loved ones to hear what you say and process the information. This allows them to read the words that you spoke more clearly, therefore making the conversation easier to follow for them. However, take note that you should not be yelling or exaggerating mouth motions. This is because shouting can not only alter the sound of speech but can also make it significantly more difficult for your loved ones to read and understand what you are trying to say.
Keep Your Hands Away
To improve communication with your loved ones, you should aim to keep your hands away from your loved ones. This is especially important for your face because placing your hands in front of your face can block out important facial expressions or sayings, which can cause poorer communication. At the same time, try to steer clear of making your speech more difficult to comprise with things like eating, smoking, or chewing. Such things will compromise communication between you and your loved ones because it blocks them from being able to fully see and understand what you are trying to say. At the same time, they can be an audio distraction and make it even more difficult for them to decipher what you are trying to say.
Rethink What to Say
You also need to rethink what you want to say for better communication with your hearing-impaired loved ones. After all, speaking too quickly or using overly complicated language can make it very confusing and frustrating for your loved ones to understand. Them being hearing-impaired is already an issue they have to deal with, the last thing you want is to add to their list of worries. Therefore, rethink what you want to say, and pause between your statements or phrases while checking to see whether you were understood by your loved ones before continuing on with your conservation.
