Lend an ear to them as they try to be heard

As part of the International Day for people with a disability, Rajan Speech and Hearing is taking the opportunity to provide guidelines for better hearing and talking to ensure someone with a hearing impairment doesn’t miss a moment of the conversation., About 10 per cent of the world’s population has a hearing loss.Hearing loss is on the increase due to longer life expectancies and increasingly noisy environments.It is one of the disabilities that can be treated most inexpensively and with the greatest benefit for the individual as well as for the society as a whole.Communication plays a vital role in social interaction, which is part of an active lifestyle.Hearing is key to good communication. The use of hearing aids can help to significantly reduce hearing loss, but still people put off getting a pair of hearing aids because of the social stigma attached with hearing loss.The technical term for the process of one’s hearing getting worse if one does not stimulate the auditory pathway is auditory deprivation.This means that you are starving your brain for sound and the brain is not being stimulated the way it should. Your brain will, inevitably, get lazy and your hearing will continue to decrease. The worst part being that with your hearing, your understanding of speech can also decline.That’s the saddest issue of hearing loss in our opinion.Do not wait until you need hearing aids.Let the audiologist, your friends and your family guide you to your decision. Hearing aids can only help when you have the available neural material to help you hear better and adapt more quickly. Are you going to be dependent on your hearing aids? To a certain degree, yes, you will.Very much like glasses, we adapt to having hearing aids, because they make us better. In spite of having a pair of good hearing aids a person might still experience some difficulties hearing clearly in certain situations. This is where hearing practice will help you.You will become more and more perfect and naturally surer step by step in course of time.Some of the basic steps are —* Discover simple noises in your immediate surroundings by wearing the aid in different rooms.* Experience each surroundings sounds carefully.* First become familiar with your own voice. As an exercise read out loud and concentrate on your voice.* Learn to understand the voices of others. Wear the instruments when you speak with your family members.* Conversation in a group of people speaking among themselves is one of the most difficult hearing situations. Try to distinguish between the voices by noting their rhythm and tone.* Visit public events and lectures. Find a place close to the speaker.* Talk face-to-face and try to be at the same eye level whenever possible.* If you are not making yourself understood, rephrase rather than simply repeating the same words.* Let the person see all of your expressions. People often use physical cues to help them understand speech.* Make sure your own face is in good light, ensuring the person you’re speaking with can see you properly. Be patient and try not to become irritated if you’re not understood.