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The Florida Department of Health works to protect, promote & improve the health of all people in Florida through integrated state, county & community efforts.

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Living With Hearing Loss

Division of Community Health Promotion

The Mayo Clinic has a great deal of information on living and coping with hearing loss. It is not medical advice and it is not meant to substitute for the medical advice of a physician.

These tips can help you to communicate more easily despite your hearing loss:

  • Don't be hesitant to tell people that you have a hearing loss.
  • Ask the person  you wish to speak with to face you.
  • Ask the person you wish to speak with to turn off background noises or move to a quiet area.
  • Tell the person you wish to speak with how to best communicate with you—many times their reluctance is just because they don't know what to do to help you understand.
  • Let the person know he needs to
    • speak slowly
    • speak clearly
    • speak without exaggerated mouth movements
  • Let the person know that they need to rephrase if repetition doesn't work
  • Let the person know that even the best lipreaders only catch 30% of English and ask them to be patient if you need to clarify what they're saying
  • Consider using an assistive listening device or alternate forms of communication (i.e. writing notes, sign language, etc.)