It’s a bit of a difficult time for us all at the moment isn’t it? A lot of changes for everyone to adapt to. But I have also seen wonderful acts of kindness within society. A lot of people doing such lovely things, helping people out even in the smallest of ways.
As you’re aware from my previous posts, I work in a large supermarket, which can be tricky to hear in, and keep up with conversation a lot of the time.
With an increasing amount of people now wearing masks to protect themselves, this makes understanding what people are saying a lot harder than usual.
Going from struggling to hear, but using lipreading and vibrations to assist, to not being able to understand people at all is a bigger and more frustrating change to learn to cope with, that is really hard to explain to someone who is hearing.
With the two-meter rule in place, I can’t even get closer to try my best to listen. Either way, it can take me a lot longer than usual to work out what you’re saying. Here is how you can help:
· Face me – aim the sound in my direction
· Speak clearer and louder than you usually would
· Understand it can take longer to process and piece together what has been said
· Be aware – not everyone feels comfortable about being open about their deafness, so just always be aware that someone could be Deaf or Hard of Hearing
I’m not asking for people to stop wearing masks, of course not. I just want to spread awareness, to remind people of the challenges.
It can be difficult when something like this happens and no one really understands how you feel, or how frustrating it can be, it can feel isolating when you’re still surrounded by people.
So, if there is anyone out there who just wants to talk to someone about how they feel, I’m always here for a chat.
I hope everyone is well and staying safe – it will pass!