Helping a Loved One with Hearing Loss

If you have realized that a loved one has hearing loss, we are here to help you too. Hearing loss not only affects the person who is having difficulty hearing but also impacts their friends and family. It can interfere with communications and even pose a danger if hearing loss prevents them from hearing sounds that would warn them of danger. Therefore, it is important for us to help loved ones help those who are dealing with hearing loss to get the best treatment available to them. Anderson Audiology is here to help you help your loved ones with hearing loss.

Be Patient

It may take some time for a loved one to accept their hearing loss and accept the help you are offering too. The key is to be patient and consistent. Offer to make an appointment and accompany them to our office for a hearing assessment. Let them know that a hearing assessment is a quick and easy process that will give us the information we need to explain to them how we can help them hear better. You might need to try a few different tactics, which is why patience is so important. Depending on the type of hearing loss your loved one has, you can help by making sure they remember to keep their hearing aids in good condition, batteries charged, and keep background sounds like music and television to a minimum during family gatherings.

Reasons Loved Ones Resist Help

Often times those with hearing loss don’t seek treatment and resist help. There are different reasons why they resist help, some are hesitant to get hearing aids while others are in denial or don’t like change. However, once hearing loss begins, it doesn’t get better, so seeking treatment from a hearing professional is the best way to avoid problems associated with hearing loss. It can lead to communication problems, feelings of isolation, anxiety, frustration and depression.

Tough Love

In some cases when a loved one has hearing loss but is resisting help, tough love can be the last resort answer. If you have already tried other approaches that are not working, tough love might be the best option to force a loved one to get help. It isn’t always easy to apply tough love, but it is better than watching your loved one suffer through hearing loss when they could be getting help to hear better. By tough love, we mean refraining from helping your loved one with their hearing issues like you normally would. Some tough love tactics that you might try include:

• Stop repeating yourself when they can’t hear you.
• Don’t speak any louder than normal.
• Stop “translating” what others say that they didn’t hear.
• Stop being the phone interpreter if they can’t hear properly on the phone.

Once you stop helping them through situations where they can’t hear, it may force them to realize that they need to come in for a hearing assessment.

If you are concerned that someone you care about is dealing with hearing loss, contact us at Anderson Audiology and schedule an appointment today with one of our hearing professionals.