Masks and deafness

[MaskingDeafness]

My hearing has deteriorated to the extent that I need hearing aids (late forties).

Even with them, I find myself looking at people's mouths when they talk so I can make absolutely sure I am understanding properly.

AIBU to be worried about how masks could affect communication with those of us who are hard of hearing?

How are other people with hearing difficulties coping with this?

(I've seen the ones with clear panels but judging by my FB posts, the vast majority seem to be buying full fabric ones.)

I can hear perfectly normally. I work in health care, communication is a nightmare between people wearing masks.
We're really struggling to talk to each other, and to patients in them. These are people who hear normally.
We haven't yet had people with reduced hearing, but considering how much we're struggling with each other, I'm sure its a lot worse for hearing impaired. In that situation I'd use written information, or I'd do what I often do anyway, and stand well back and take my mask off so that we can hear and see each other properly.

There are apps that you can use that will transcribe what people are saying. Lots of us that have hearing impairments are struggling with the masks. I think we'll just have to be more honest and blunt about our impairment when we're struggling.

I’m deaf. To put it bluntly I’d rather have trouble following what people say than catch COVID from them. Get people to write things down for you.

@negomi90 that's interesting, I hadn't realised it could be an issue for everyone.

@SouthJersey I am relatively new to all this, what apps would you recommend?

I am also late forties and wear hearing aids. Everyone at work is required to wear masks and I'm finding it really difficult. I didn't even realise that I look at people's mouths when they speak, but I obviously do! Also, speech is more muffled so my hearing aids just magnify this, so what I do hear is very mumbled, as well as quiet. I have had to ask several people to lower their masks (all 2m apart). And when I wear a mask all I can hear is my loud breathing! I really hope we can move past the need for masks soon

I know I struggle to understand conversations or discussions when I can't see faces or mouths. My understanding is most people lip read to some extent and rely on visual clues to follow conversations. I'm short sighted and without glasses find it's hard to follow a face to face conversation. There will need to be more written discussions or use apps to pass information on. As pp said more openness about difficulties in hearing or comprehension will be needed if masks become essential everywhere.

I honestly don't have an app to recommend yet. I learned about the apps from a hearing impaired group on FB that I joined when everyone started wearing masks. But since I've essentially been at home and haven't needed to communicate with people outside of my family (and I just make them repeat themselves until they are ready to strangle me!), I haven't yet had a chance to try an app.

Google Voice type, for me. It's not perfect,but helps to fill in the gaps.

I struggle to process speech (although there is nothing wrong with my hearing per se; just what my brain does with the sound), so I also use lip reading to some extent to help. And it being muffled (even if I could see their lips) would be a barrier too. But then I haven't been talking to anyone wearing a mask anyway, so it hasn't been an issue for me so far.