Hearing loss is the most common disability, affecting aound 36 million adults in the United States. It is an invisible disability that often results to a feeling of isolation and helplessness, loss of independence and security.

However, there are many ways to respond to and overcome these challenges. Members of caregiving families and their loved ones who had just developed sudden loss of hearing have more difficulty coping with it because of the sudden impact this disability has brought to their lives. Learning to cope with it everyday is a very challenging life experience. Therefore, it is important to make our environment, most especially our home, suitable to meet the specific demands of hearing impairment. Here are some tips on helping our loved ones cope with hearing difficulty when at home.

Relying on technology is the quickest way for your loved ones with hearing difficulty to adapt to the new changes. A variety of products are available in the market to assist them when at home. Popular products are ALDs or Assistive Listening Devices and alerting devices. ALDs amplify a signal to recognize it from background noise, resulting to improved audibility in various listening situations. Examples are wireless headphones for listening to a radio or TV, IR Receiver for watching movies or a Pocket Talker when speaking to people. Telecommunications Devices for the Deaf (TTDs) or Text Telephones can also be provided, enabling our loved ones to read voices over the phone, instead of listening to them. Two-way pagers are an alternative.

Alerting devices, on the other hand, alert your loved ones to various sounds, from a baby crying to a ringing phone. Handy baby monitors and telephone signalers are useful in these situations. Use a doorbell that flashes when buzzed. Choose smoke alarms that have both light and sound features to alert them to a fire. Consider models that have 85-decibel alarm. There are also some types of smoke alarm with vibration features to alert our loved ones while they are at sleep. Look for products that have a label of independent testing laboratory. Contact your local fire department to help you design a fire escape plan, taking into consideration the hearing limitations of your loved ones.

For tornado warnings and other emergency weather alerts, a particular product named special-needs NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) Weather Radio is vital, especially if you are living in areas requiring forecasts, warnings and weather information 24/7. Constructed to fit the needs of the hard-of-hearing, it differs from the usual weather radio because of the visual and vibrating alarms, and display text readout. A special adaptor may be purchased to convert weather messages into Braille version (reading and writing system used by blind people). For more information on weather safety and family disaster plans, reach out to your state emergency management agency or your local National Weather Service office.

There are also techniques that will charge you nothing to help your loved ones with hearing problems when at home. Simply explore your house. Check if your TV has closed-captioning function that allows a text display of the audio part of a TV or cable program as it occurs. Minimize noise in your home. Use doors to confine noisy areas of the house such as the laundry room and kitchen. They should be far from bedrooms and other areas for relaxation. Consult with dog training organizations if your loved one could qualify for a hearing dog. Aside from providing companionship at home, service dogs provide greater independence especially in shopping and outdoor chores. Also, encourage loved ones, including other family members to participate in seminars provided by various hearing loss associations. They provide a wealth of resources and network of support for people with hearing disability and their family members to help them adjust to life changes and new roles.