Common Coping Techniques For Dealing With Hearing Loss

By Author: J. Clay Mainord
Total Articles: 4
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Closed Captioning

In 1993, the United States passed a law that mandated all televisions at least 13 inches in size have the capability to display captioning for all the programs. The only problem is that a lot of people are not aware that their television comes with this ability. If you are unsure how to use this feature, you may want to check with a friend or technician who can help you with enabling this feature and going through the instruction manual.

Movie theaters offering closed captioning is a completely different ballgame. There are some theaters that offer subtitles during special showings for individuals with a hearing impairment. Some others offer rear window captioning, which allows the captions to be displayed on a panel back at the viewer’s seat. However, the systems are not spread throughout the country as of yet, so it is a work in progress for the hearing impaired to be able to enjoy going to the movies.

Connected Through the Phone

People suffering with hearing loss have struggled for some time with being able to hear when talking over the telephone. New technology is working to ...
... improve that. Smartphones with Bluetooth capability are working to provide the signal directly into the user’s hearing device, which allows them to enjoy a conversation on the phone. Since text messaging has been on the rise, more and more people are able to communicate without having to worry about being able to hear over the telephone.

Reading Lips and Body Language

Reading lips is not as easy to pick up as one might think. However, being able to read lips is not the whole component of communication for hearing impaired individuals. It is more crucial for people to learn a different approach for communicating, which can include reading body language or facial expressions and other important visual cues.

Using strategies to help manipulate your environment is also essential. What does this mean for you? It means taking control of the environment around you and finding ways to reduce or eliminate the noise in the background. Situate yourself to be in alignment with the speaker. Using these strategies will help increase the benefits you receive from a hearing aid or implant.

Learning the proper communication techniques and strategies will help to reduce the level of frustration you are feeling, as well as any depression and anxiety. With all of the technological advancements in hearing aids and implants over the past few years, there is no reason why hearing loss should affect your quality of life. Take the time to seek the advice and assistance of a professional to get you on the path to hearing right away.

Dr. Mainord specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of hearing loss. He previously worked as a Director of Audiology for the Ear Institute of Texas in San Antonio. For more information about Dr. Mainord and our practice visit http://www.calverthearingcare.com or our Blogs at http://hearing-aids-garland-tx.com.