"Hard of Hearing"

RoseRodent

RoseRodent

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I am sure this has been done but I haven't seen the thread if it has. I hate, hate, hate the term "hard of hearing". Why? Not so sure. Maybe because it seems so weird, I use a wheelchair but I am not described as "hard of walking" - it seems such an odd way to describe it. Another reason is that it so easily gets mixed up with being only very slightly deaf, the old ladies who say they are "a bit hard of hearing" as in have mild-moderate age-related loss. People can't really grasp that if you tell them you are HOH that you actually have bigger hearing troubles than occasionally asking for stuff to be repeated.

I once had someone say that they hadn't realised when I told them I was hoh that I actually needed hearing aids, they had thought that... and the sentence finished. Oh how I'd love to hear the end of it! :giggle:

Then deaf has its own problems, there's the deaf/Deaf debate, the "you are only deaf if you hear "nothing" debate", and of course that if you choose to use the system my local audiolgy department has where you are mildly deaf, moderately deaf, etc. you end up with "severely deaf" which sounds odd, and especially as it sounds as if you are more deaf than someone who is merely deaf, and the most "severe" form of being deaf is profoundly deaf.

I tend to go with "severely hearing impaired" for most situations to try to get over to people that no, I can't hear you even (especially!) if you shout.

Is deaf an identity or a level of hearing loss? If you can hear but you cannot understand are you functionally deaf anyway? And where oh where does "hard of hearing" come from?!
 
RR, it's interesting you being this up, I had the same perspective you describe before I actively dove into researching Deaf Culture and anything hearing or not-hearing related I could find: I always thought 'Hard of Hearing' meant mild hearing loss associated with age, something very different from the more significant moderate, severe hearing losses a child or younger person might have, and definitely not anything like deafness. I thought being HOH was so mild that hearing aids weren't warranted, and the only accommodation required was to speak clearly and/or loudly :O . I suspect this is the perspective many hearing people have.

I'm actually glad for the sake of clarity that my daughter's loss is profound, and we have such a 'black and white' situation that can be described very easily as 'deaf' (until you get into the confusion that arises when she has her CIs on and speaks and hears along with the hearing kids around her, then it gets tricky again).
 
I think many of us have said for each person to call themselves what they're comfortable with. Even if you have a HOH loss, you don't have to call yourself that if it seems more work than its worth. Call yourself whatever seems to suit you best.
 
I am not fond of the term Hard of Hearing myself, because of the very terminology it uses. Hearing. It portrays the impression that they have only a little bitty problem with their hearing, and therefore are more hearing than deaf. Historically, that gives them a preferred position in society over someone who is D/deaf. Additionally, it creates confusion for others. When someone says, "I'm hard of hearing", most people automatically begin to speak to them in a louder tone of voice thinking that will solve all problems. It is also a term generally associated with aging and when applied to a child creates all kinds of misperceptions, especially when trying to find educational accommodations.

However, people are free to i.d. as they choose. It has been my experience that those who i.d. as HOH are primarily involved in hearing culture and have really no desire to embrace Deaf Culture. Those who i.d. as deaf have connections to both cultures, and those who i.d. as Deaf primarily are connected to Deaf Culture. It really is dependent upon the way one views one's hearing loss.
 
Well i Agree,When I tell people im HOH they think I just have a little hearing loss and I have alot.But I rather say HOH than hearing impaired.
 
planetdoodle said:
Well i Agree,When I tell people im HOH they think I just have a little hearing loss and I have alot.But I rather say HOH than hearing impaired.
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Agree with you there...."hearing impaired" is more problematic that HOH.
 
planetdoodle said:
Well i Agree,When I tell people im HOH they think I just have a little hearing loss and I have alot.But I rather say HOH than hearing impaired.
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Me too but I wont call the person HOH if that person is not comfortable with the term. Just like I hate the term hearing impaired so I would rather be called Deaf.
 
I had two friends growing up who had dwarfism. Later in life the term "little people" became the preferred term within the community, so I used it even though I could not help but feel I was offending. Then again, I couldn't come up with anything better.

Political correctness makes so many descriptions weird. My rule, I don't even mention people's "deviations from the mean" unless its relevant to the conversation. I mean, I don't say "my black friend..." unless being black is pertinent. My grandmother, on the other hand, would say "our maid, who was colored of course..." I just say, "my friend" and leave it at that. If the person I'm talking to later says, "why didn't you tell me?" I say, "why does that matter?"

I say, be proud of who you are and all your strengths and struggles. Don't let the world determine how you define yourself. Go with your gut during your best mood. That's probably who you are or at least who you aspire to be.
 
Hearing Impaired is lot worse than HOH. Hate that word.

Lucky I don't have that problem calling me hearing impaired or HOH cos I am way too Deaf for be called that.
 
Why is the phrase "hearing impaired" so bad? I guess I consider myself HofH or hearing impaired, doesn't matter to me what it's called, but I hardly ever verbalize either phrase.

I usually just say "I need to use hearing aids, so I won't be able to hear you.." and then whatever applies: "on the phone" or "after I take them out" (like at the hairdresser's), or "in a noisy restaurant" (if making plans to meet someone someplace), or "unless I can see your face" if someone is trying to talk to me but is looking elsewhere, or whatever the situation might be.
 
Hearing impaired is like there something wrong with you and some of words go with impaired isn't good either. If you look google or other places and it comes up with:

Damage
Deterioration
Weaken
Handicap
Diminished
Worse
Ineffective
 
Well, all those words do describe my hearing, so I don't have a problem with it.

But as I said, usually I just describe myself behaviorally, as in "I use hearing aids..." I never really thought about how I came to say that particularly, but I've done a lot of communication and behavior analysis over the years, and got into the habit of describing behaviours rather than using labels.

Maybe related a bit to my experience in dog training, too. I wouldn't be likely to say "That dog is aggressive." I'd say "That dog approaches people quickly while barking and growling, and it does not back off." Paints a better picture by describing behavior instead of using a label that might mean different things to different people.
 
describing behaviours rather than using labels.
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"I have a hearing loss," just in case they don't notice, or I'm on the phone.

Today I was talking to a pharmacist, she had an accent. I had to watch her lips closely. I picked up a questioning attitude from her, but she saw my HA's and was fine with it.

HoH is such an old fashioned term. I'm not HoH, I wear HA's. Today with HA's may people function as people with hearing loss when they used to be considered deaf.
 
That's very true. I'm in that category, I guess.

It truly is amazing what technology can do for us.
 
Beach girl said:
Well, all those words do describe my hearing, so I don't have a problem with it.

But as I said, usually I just describe myself behaviorally, as in "I use hearing aids..." I never really thought about how I came to say that particularly, but I've done a lot of communication and behavior analysis over the years, and got into the habit of describing behaviours rather than using labels.

Maybe related a bit to my experience in dog training, too. I wouldn't be likely to say "That dog is aggressive." I'd say "That dog approaches people quickly while barking and growling, and it does not back off." Paints a better picture by describing behavior instead of using a label that might mean different things to different people.
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In that case, you are free to refer to yourself as hearing impaired. There are those, however, and they are definately in the majority, that do not perceive themselves as broken or in need of fixing. So be careful when using that term to define others.
 
Speedy Hawk said:
Hearing impaired is like there something wrong with you and some of words go with impaired isn't good either. If you look google or other places and it comes up with:

Damage
Deterioration
Weaken
Handicap
Diminished
Worse
Ineffective
Click to expand...

Right. It goes right back to the pathological view of deafness. I find that far too limiting and stratified for my taste. I much prefer language that empowers the individual, and allows them a self concept of wholeness.
 
As I wrote above, I rarely use either term (hard-of-hearing or hearing-impaired) when speaking to describe myself. I've used the abbreviation HofH on this site more in the last few days then I have probably ever used that phrase in face-to-face conversation.

I usually say "I wear (or use) hearing aids." Straight-forward and factual, and no one has to parse through what it means.
 
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