Hearing Loss and Familial Relations

I have been thinking on this topic for some time now. When a person has deafness that occurs in their adult years, they, as well as their family, face added stressors in life. Having grown up as a hearing person and suddenly beginning to lose hearing, the newly deaf person must make necessary changes in order to communicate. Examples of this would be a mother who becomes ill and loses her hearing, a person that has grown up utilizing the English language in all of their affairs, a young man, in college, that must learn a whole new way of life etc. My point is that it is never just the person who is facing deafness that struggles and faces stressors. It is their family members as well.

When a person begins to lose their hearing, they may fight with everything in them to continue to hear as much as possible. I believe that is innate in every person that once had full hearing and suddenly finds themselves with hearing loss. The person may attempt to read lips, grasp for clarity on words spoken to them, or simply jot down notes periodically. Their whole life has centered around hearing sounds, speaking the language etc.; consequentially, when those abilities are seemingly taken from them, they may turn inward and process through a bit of denial. I believe this is all normal.

The family of the late-deafened adults also have their own sets of stressors. Once their family is unable to communicate with them, they must begin their own research on the topic. Some family members may learn sign language while others might insist that the newly deafened person continue to speak. Some family members may feel overwhelmed and might go through a period of denial themselves.

Deafness rarely affects only one person. All family members, of the deaf person, are affected by the deafness. Each person that is affected will strive to process through it in their own unique method. However, not all methods are pliable. A mother that is late deafened must find a new means of communication with her children. This can be quite stressful on all parties. The children might even be somewhat confused, since their mother has been hearing up to a certain point in time and then suddenly hearing becomes an issue. The college student must research their resources in the community and learn to effectively communicate in school. There is help in the community for anyone that is dealing with being late deafened.

I urge you, if a member of your family is facing deafness, to seek out new methods of communication that work best for the person that is late deafened. Many communities now offer sign language classes. Many colleges now offer assistance to the late deafened adult, should they be in college. There are those in the community that are available to help the late deafened person and their family.