Is anyone with a hearing impairment considered "deaf"?

I am deaf in LE and moderate to severe in RE....as well....different people say i am different things...I can hear some very loud noises like when the hubby is yelling not at me but for me...:)
So, you could say i am deaf or really really HOH....i really dont know what i am any more so i am just gonna go with ....i am me :)
 
jillio said:
Yes, Loghead, I am hearing, and have an adult Deaf son, as Bott stated. And, yes, I do work as an educational advocate as part of my job responsibilities.
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Ohhh OK. So do you specialize with children who are deaf and hard of hearing? In the school board I am with, there are teachers specifically dubbed "deaf and hard of hearing teachers" and they go around to schools making sure they are making accomodations and they also make sure you're up to speed. Not sure if other school boards have them or not.
 
Loghead said:
Ohhh OK. So do you specialize with children who are deaf and hard of hearing? In the school board I am with, there are teachers specifically dubbed "deaf and hard of hearing teachers" and they go around to schools making sure they are making accomodations and they also make sure you're up to speed. Not sure if other school boards have them or not.
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Most public schools have special ed teachers that are ot well educated about the needs of deaf children in the classroom. In fact, most deaf children in the public school system don't even have a TOD on their IEP team. I personally, right now, work in a university, but also contract out for K-12. Yes, my expertise is in the area of deaf and hoh, but I also work with blind/low vision students, students with LD, and students with mental health diagnosis.
 
deafdyke said:
Hearing impairment just sounds so clinical, like there's something wrong with you. It would be like identifying as hetrosexually impaired if you were gay. I much prefer hoh.
I'm hoh, but ID as both deaf and hoh. I can hear but not at all the way a hearie can.
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Erm, I don't mean to offend or anything, but do you mean that most deaf people don't consider it an ailment, or that something is wrong? I mean, I'm missing bones in my ear.... I haven't spent much time in the deaf/hoh community, so I don't really know.
 
jillio said:
Most public schools have special ed teachers that are ot well educated about the needs of deaf children in the classroom. In fact, most deaf children in the public school system don't even have a TOD on their IEP team. I personally, right now, work in a university, but also contract out for K-12. Yes, my expertise is in the area of deaf and hoh, but I also work with blind/low vision students, students with LD, and students with mental health diagnosis.
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Jillio-- you're not tooo terribly far off from us... too bad you can't come over here and advocate for A-monkey when he's ready to go to 'school'... :) :)
 
deafnotblind said:
Erm, I don't mean to offend or anything, but do you mean that most deaf people don't consider it an ailment, or that something is wrong? I mean, I'm missing bones in my ear.... I haven't spent much time in the deaf/hoh community, so I don't really know.
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Who wants to be identified with a label that puts such a huge focus on his/her impairment? Some hearing people have admitted to me that they subconsciously focus on what I am incapble of doing whenever they hear the word, "hearing impaired" as opposed to "deaf". After learning that and doing research/studies, I have come to the conclusion that adding "impaired" to any word to describe someone just puts the person in a negative light by others even though the person themselves isnt bothered by it.
 
Adamsmomma said:
I will most definitely (there's that word I have trouble remembering how to spell LOL) keep that in mind!!! Won't be much longer... hard to believe how fast the time goes!
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Don't I know it!! My own son graduated from college last week-end. I have no idea where the time went!

I have also been known to do pro-bono work for friends.;)
 
jillio said:
Don't I know it!! My own son graduated from college last week-end. I have no idea where the time went!

I have also been known to do pro-bono work for friends.;)
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Congrats on the college grad!!! Although I look forward to that-- I don't want to rush the time in ANYWAY!!

Btw, you rock Jillio ;)
 
shel90 said:
Who wants to be identified with a label that puts such a huge focus on his/her impairment? Some hearing people have admitted to me that they subconsciously focus on what I am incapble of doing whenever they hear the word, "hearing impaired" as opposed to "deaf". After learning that and doing research/studies, I have come to the conclusion that adding "impaired" to any word to describe someone just puts the person in a negative light by others even though the person themselves isnt bothered by it.
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I agree w/Shel... like someone stated in my 'Offensive' thread-- I certainly dont look at my son as being impaired because he can't hear out of one ear... is he different from the majority of his peers, yes, but is he 'impaired'??

I KNOW the healthcare field uses the term as a general blanket statement, just like visually impaired, or mentally challanged~~ but on a personal level, I think it does denote a flaw-- and well... I don't see any of my deaf friends or my son as flawed, they're the way they were made to be!! So that's my take on it :) :)
 
Deaf is the common term for hearing loss, so any type of hearing problem and people will just say they are deaf but the reality of the matter is that there are various levels. So to keep it short people just keep it down to one term. I do agree with jillio that some terms are just very insensitive, and people should be able to define themselves as who they are.
:) But that's just my view on things.
 
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Hrm, I have a slightly different view on this. I see my hearing loss as a flaw. To me, not seeing it as a hinderance takes away from the difficulty of overcoming it, giving less meaning to personal strength.
 
Terminology and Labels are just forms of "Political Correctness"

AlleyCat said:
I think it is entirely a personal preference. Most who are deaf hate being labeled as "hearing impaired" as it makes us sound like we are disabled. Some also call themselves hard-of-hearing. Call yourself whatever you are most comfortable with. There was a thread about this before, so perhaps you could find that and see what the feedback is from others.
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I agree with AlleyCat. The whole time I was growing up I was told that I was partially deaf or hard of hearing. I have in fact moderate-profound hearing loss, but was raised to survive mainstream, mostly by lip-reading, reading facial expressions, body language and by the support of my mother who would repeat things for me, especially in crowded environments. I had hearing aids when I was in school but now as an adult I prefer not to wear them. A zillion times when I faced embarrassments or abasements I wished I could label myself as truly deaf. Only recently since introducing myself to Deaf Culture and deaf community through the internet have I really felt I could call myself such and finally belong. :ty:
 
dunshawhearing said:
Deaf is the common term for hearing loss, so any type of hearing problem and people will just say they are deaf but the reality of the matter is that there are various levels. So to keep it short people just keep it down to one term. I do agree with jillio that some terms are just very insensitive, and people should be able to define themselves as who they are.
:) But that's just my view on things.
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People do the same thing when it comes to blindness. They call themselves blind just because they are legally blind without glasses. That isn't considered legal blindness and as long as you can see 20/20 or even 20/40, you are not even visually impaired. Treasure the sight you have and don't make it sound worse than what it is. When you are legally blind without correction, then and only then will you know what it means to be unable to see well.
 
Hear Again said:
People do the same thing when it comes to blindness. They call themselves blind just because they are legally blind without glasses. That isn't considered legal blindness and as long as you can see 20/20 or even 20/40, you are not even visually impaired. Treasure the sight you have and don't make it sound worse than what it is. When you are legally blind without correction, then and only then will you know what it means to be unable to see well.
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Well, if a person wants to call themselves legally blind, that's up to them. My mom just had glasses and liked listening to audio tapes she took them out on my library ticket. It didn't bother me.

In some ways it is easier to be completely blind. Since I'm completely blind most of the time now I can speak with authority on this issue.

My hardest time wasn't as a totally deafblind person. It's as a low vision and HOH person when my sight first started to deteriate.
 
I'm not going to debate whether it's more difficult to be totally blind or visually impaired with you dreama. I've never been able to see, so I can't even begin to make that kind of comparison just as you can't either since you've never been totally blind.
 
Being completely blind most of the time isn't the same as being completely blind all of the time.
 
Hear Again said:
Being completely blind most of the time isn't the same as being completely blind all of the time.
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I agree.

Can not truly compare it. One can imagine but to truly know one end or the other. You have to experience it.
 
Babyblue said:
I agree.

Can not truly compare it. One can imagine but to truly know one end or the other. You have to experience it.
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Exactly.

That would be like me saying I know what it's like to be Deaf because ever since I had my second CI surgery I'm 100% deaf without my implants.
 
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