Hearing Impaired: Caught Between the Deaf and Hearing Communities

I began losing my hearing when I was in my late twenties. I really didn't notice it that much but others did. They would say I was talking loudly or complain that I didn't answer them if they asked me something and my back was turned. It didn't interfere with my life though. It was just something I adjusted to and became aware of.

In my late thirties my hearing loss became a real challenge for me. I could no longer hear the tv at a normal level. Conversations were almost impossible if there was more than one person in the room. When people would talk to me I would say things that didn't make sense in response to what I thought they had said. I would misunderstand things my kids were saying and accuse them of having an attitude. I didn't want to admit that at 36 years old I needed hearing aids. Hearing aids were for old people, not for me. I finally acknowledged that I had a problem and if hearing aids could help then I would get them.

Most people don't understand how difficult it is to be hearing impaired. If you have bad eyesight you get glasses. People can see that you have bad eyesight. If you If you have another type of handicap, it is usually visable to people and they make allowances for that. When you are hearing impaired, people just don't get it. No matter how often you tell them that they need to speak up, or that they need to face you when they talk to you so you can read their lips, they forget and go back to mumbling or turn and look somewhere else while they are speaking to you. Then they get aggravated when you ask them to repeat themselves. Or they yell, and it sounds like they are angry about having to speak up.