Corona and deafness

[Dementedswan]

If you have a hearing disability, how are you coping with communication?

Not the same but I have auditory processing issues and can't identify sounds when there is mild background noise (particularly speaking) and with a mask on I was basically ineffective at my customer service job.

I wear hearing aids, but rely on lip reading. I have two dc and when things start opening up they need to get out into society. I can't even manage the school run .

No one else hard of hearing and struggling?

I'm really struggling. I have hearing loss in both ears, more significant in one than the other & rely very heavily on lip reading. At 2m distance, with a mask on I've got no fricking idea what anyone is saying!! 😢

A friend, in a non-NHS key worker role, has not been able to wear her hearing aids for months at work because of wearing masks. Since she also relies on back-up lip reading, communication has been really difficult.

Same, even stood right in front of someone I've no idea what they are saying or even if they are talking to me . If masks are to stay for the foreseeable I really don't know how I will cope or the detrimental effect it will have on my dc.

On the plus side, due to my health conditions amd mental health I have had a first dose, but I still don't feel comfortable asking people to remove their masks to communicate. I'm back on meds to try and manage, but with all the negative press about the AZ and news saying masks here to stay for a long time. I've no idea when my family will get a semblance of normal.

Deaf people are clearly not being thought about again .

I wear hearing aids, and like most people with hearing loss, I also lip read.

I'm finding mask wearing difficult. DD comes with me to medical appointments (the only place I go these days as I'm also cev) so I don't miss important questions.

But it's what it is. There is little alternative,is there?

One thing I have found a life saver is that my mobile phone controls my eating aids. So I can video call friends/family as their voices come from my phone, directly into my hearing aids. That's made video calling a possibility. Before I got these hearing aids, my mobile was for texts only.

I missed an entire set of questions the other day. I honestly could hardly make out a single word. Fortunately my dd was with me so could handle the conversation.
Its a mix of not seeing lips, physical distance and background noise.

I've found things more difficult & feel like I have lost my independence a bit. I wear 2 hearing aids but do rely on lip read more than I probably realised! I've been able to carry on working from home, my headset connects to my hearing aids. But going out & about on my own is not as easy so I've avoided it as much as possible. I get the weekly shop delivered & go with DP if we need to go to a shop etc. Luckily DS is in year 6 & can take himself to & from school.

I'm a bit nervous about going for my jab, not been called yet, waiting for my age group so it will likely be a mass hub. Im hoping there will be a volunteer who can guide me round & repeat questions for me.

Its all little things which are not the end of the world, just make me feel a bit vulnerable which I'm not used to!

Same here. Haven’t got a clue half the time. I honestly don’t know how I haven’t been sacked.

Badly. It’s difficult to wear a mask with hearing aids and lip reading is impossible. I go out as little as possible because I barely hear anything anyone is saying.
It’s made me very miserable and anxious.

I honestly think more awareness needs to be made about this.

Maybe I'm in extreme category as a person in support esa group due to hearing loss and mental health. I've been in that group for 15 years. Manages to get off ADs with help from cbt and mental health nurses taking me out of the house.

That was a few years ago, now I have my children and I have no idea how I can give them a sense of normality with masks being enforced. I can't even the them to school .

I'm now back on AD'S for full disclosure.

It was hard enough before covid, one to one fine mostly... Two people maybe be able to join a conversation of one speaks directly to me... three plus ...no chance .

@Dementedswan I have similar issues in groups of people.
Since last March what's worse is all our staff meetings are now held on Teams, it's virtually impossible to follow the train of conversation. My DD also has reduced hearing and showed me how to turn on 'live captions' which is better than nothing but doesn't pick up every word, often puts up a random word & clearly struggles with our local Scottish accents. She seems to be managing ok as her teachers are also sending her typed up instructions & teaching points. My headteacher had been asking me for my thoughts in advance of the meeting & sharing on my behalf but sometimes I'd want to react to what others are saying so she'd asked the person taking minutes to share their screen with me so I can read as they type but it depends on how good a typist they are whether they keep up & it actually makes any sense 🤨

I have two hearing aids and teach. It's not easy at all. My school have been really supportive and have said that kids can remove masks to talk to me in my lessons, but I give them the choice (I don't want to make any of them unduly anxious) and many of them don't want to.

My mask straps do get tangled in them at times, but I literally cannot function without.

I wish we could get rid of masks so so much.

I'm really struggling, I'm group 6 for a heart condition, got flagged again due to being put back on meds and previous mental health.

For most getting back to some normality albeit mask wearing is great...I've not been in a shop or anywhere since masks wre introduced. Even during summer. My dc have been no where as in unable to take them.