Christmas can be a challenge for people with hearing loss. Here are 7 ways you can support

For many people, Christmas can be the most social time of the year. The holiday season is often filled with parties, lunches, dinners and all kinds of celebrations with family, friends and colleagues.

However, for adults with hearing loss, these social gatherings can present unique challenges. Communicating with others can be arduous, especially in group conversations. And even more background noise (e.g. Christmas music or children playing), the more arduous it is.

With age-related or acquired hearing loss, the ability to hear usually begins to deteriorate age 50 and over. One in six Australians you will experience hearing loss, so it is possible that someone at your holiday table will have difficulty hearing.

Unfortunately, many adults with hearing loss struggle with these challenges in silence. Our tests shows that adults with hearing loss often hide their hearing loss from others, even close family members and friends, out of a sense of shame due to the stigma.

However, there are a few things you can do to accommodate a loved one with hearing loss this Christmas.

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Read more: ‘I stay away from people’ – combined vision and hearing loss isolating more older Australians

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Stigma and stereotypes

Stigma occurs when someone is treated differently by others because of a particular physical or social characteristic.

By A series of testswe conducted surveys and interviews with adults with hearing loss, their families and hearing care professionals to understand the stigma experiences of adults with hearing loss. Our study also included video recordings of actual conversations between adults with hearing loss and their families and friends.

The results it has been suggested that people often associate hearing loss with negative stereotypes about aging, disability, reduced intelligence, having a problem or weakness, and being different. For example, one participant with hearing loss told us:

Once they realize that you can’t actually understand or hear what they are saying, they treat you differently. And it’s not always positive, it’s often negative […] Even people who know you, my twin brother, he thinks there’s something wrong with me because I can’t hear him well.

The most common stereotype associated with hearing loss was aged age. For example, one adult with hearing loss commented:

I think it’s just a sign of aging. Like wearing glasses and gray hair.

However, because hearing can begin to decline in middle age, many adults with hearing problems do not fit this stereotype.

We see this stereotype also appear in popular media. For example, in the TV show Bluey, the character Bingo dresses up as “Grandma, I can’t hear anything” in several episodes.

IN our researchpeople with hearing loss have reported feelings of embarrassment, shame, frustration, sadness and fatigue caused by trying to cope with hearing problems during everyday conversations.

In the results questionnaire Currently, during peer review, almost two-thirds of people felt that other people made fun of their hearing loss or treated their hearing loss as a joke, which often made them feel uncomfortable.

Example this teasing can be seen in a real conversation we recorded with a hearing-impaired grandfather and his extended family over afternoon tea.

After an elderly man constantly has trouble hearing his granddaughters, his wife teases him with the question, “Do you have hearing aids at Grandpa’s?”, which makes his son and granddaughters laugh.

Although this type of teasing may seem lighthearted, it can make a person with hearing loss feel embarrassed if they have hearing problems.

Key finding from our intelligence study was that adults with hearing loss respond to experiences of stigma by not telling others about their hearing loss.

Similarly in international study conducted on 331 adults with hearing loss whose results had not yet been published in a peer-reviewed journal, one in four patients had not told anyone about their hearing loss. Others only told certain people in certain circumstances.

That’s why your holiday gatherings may include family and friends who, unbeknownst to anyone, will be facing the challenges of hearing loss.

Support your loved ones with hearing loss this Christmas

For adults with hearing loss, experiences of stigma can cause them to withdraw from social situations, participate less in conversations, and become more socially isolated and lonely.

However, greater awareness of hearing loss and inclusive communication can support fight stigma. Here are some uncomplicated ways to augment inclusion for people with hearing loss during the holiday season:

1. Consider the location of the event – ​​how noisy is it there? When possible, choose quieter restaurants and social gathering places. Outdoor settings will typically be less raucous than indoor settings (apps like Ambient menu may support you choose).

2. If you can, mute ambient sounds (e.g. TV, radio, music).

3. Talk face to face as often as possible. This enables lip reading, so people don’t have to rely solely on hearing. If you know someone has difficulty hearing, move closer to the person and speak clearly and a little slower.

4. Arrange seating so that everyone faces each other. Round tables are the best.

5. Give people the opportunity to choose where they sit at the table or in the restaurant. Adults with hearing loss can position themselves in the center of the table or next to specific people they want to hear.

6. If you are attending an event where there are speaking engagements, apply a microphone if possible.

7. If you notice that the person is not joining in the conversation, you can ask them if they can hear well and if not, what you can do to support.