Furstrations of a Hard of Hearing Girl

For my ASL 2010 class I had to read chapter 4 of The Deaf Community in America: History in the Making and there was this section explaining what it is like to be deaf and hard of hearing. As I read I was like "yeah, that's right!" People seem to think that just because you have hearing aids everything is perfect. It is still artificial hearing and sometimes I still can't hear what people are saying. Sometimes the hearing aids are uncomfortable or everything is too loud so I don't wear them. On top of being hard of hearing I have this sensitivity to sounds. When things, the world, is too loud the sound gets distorted and it hurts. My audiologist told me the name for this and why it is happening and I understand but others don't always get it. People have said to me "How are you hard of hearing but something is too loud?"Even after explaining exactly what it is that is going on I still get the same reaction and it is so frustrating. I like how this text explained it and I will now do the same when people act ignorant or are just rude and not understanding.

HARD OF HEARING

• Hard of hearing people can hear many sounds, but not all sounds.
• Hearing aids are often helpful for hard of hearing people.
• People who wear hearing aids usually cannot hear everything. If you see someone wearing a hearing aid, don't think the person can hear everything you say.
• Being hard of hearing is like watching television with the sound turned low, so that you can barely hear.
• Or it is like trying to play with a toy car that has two wheels missing. You can play with it, but it does not work as well as a car with all four wheels.
• Some hard of hearing people with hearing aids understand only a few words; others understand many words.
• Some hard of hearing people have good speech; others do not speak clearly.

With this list I fall in the category of the hard of hearing person that can sometimes only understand a few words with my hearing aids especially if the person speaks really low or has a soft voice. I also do not speak clearly, I mumble according to others but it sounds clear to me. I also sound loud to myself so I don't like to speak too loud because it is weird. Reading that list just resonated with me because I could relate and it was like they were talking to me. I get so frustrated and angry when people who should understand just don't. They think you're making things up or just being difficult when that's not it at all. I can understand that dealing with someone who has a "disability" is difficult but you should really think about the person who has the "disability" and try to image how hard it is for them to live with it and deal with it without making it harder.


Reference
Melvia M. Nomeland. The Deaf Community in America: History in the Making (Kindle Locations 929-931). Kindle Edition.