Communicating with people who have hearing loss can be difficult. You may become frustrated when they don’t understand you, and they can pick up on this non-verbal frustration and become irritated.

When someone starts having hearing loss, they can still hear most things. The person might not notice it because the sounds that are hard to hear are high-pitched voices and low noises. Even with hearing aids, people may have trouble hearing. This is why it’s important to learn how to talk to people with hearing loss.

When you are talking to a person who cannot hear, make sure that they give you their full attention. You should call them by their name first so they know the conversation is for them. Make direct eye contact with the hearing impaired individual while you talk to them so they can read your lips if need be. When you are speaking, speak clearly and pronounce each word carefully. Do not shout or get angry because this will just increase their frustration and make it seem like you are annoyed with them.

If you’re communicating with a hearing impaired person, try to have conversations that have as little background noise as possible. It can be hard for them to read your lips if you talk too fast, so speak at a slower rate. Avoid exaggerating your gestures. You should also communicate with people groups that include both regular hearing and hearing impaired individuals, but give no one preference over the other.

Make sure that when you are talking, you finish your sentence before walking away.  If someone is hearing-impaired, they might have trouble understanding what you are saying so if they seem confused or offended, don’t say the same thing over and over again. Instead use words that are easy to understand and gestures to help them understand.  When speaking with a hearing-impaired person, come up with a discreet signal to inform the hearing impaired individual when they are talking too loudly, since people with hearing loss sometimes can’t hear their own voices.

It is hard to communicate with someone who has a hearing problem. It can be frustrating to repeat yourself, but remember that it is also frustrating for the person who has the hearing impairment. Try to keep your mind calm and caring in order to make communication easier between the two of you.