Father’s Day is a chance to celebrate our dads and recognize the impact they’ve had on our lives. Maybe he took you to your first ball game or helped you buy your first car. He was endlessly supportive of your goals, and always encouraged you to do the best you could do. It’s time to think about how you can give back and show your appreciation for all he’s done for you. Think about your family communication, and if it could be better. Are you connecting with your dad like you used to, and are your kids getting to know him the same way you did?
Hearing Loss Affects Communication
Hearing loss doesn’t just affect one person or make it harder for your dad to hear the TV when he tunes in to watch the news. Hearing loss has a profound impact on communication, affecting relationships and creating divides within the family. When your dad is struggling to hear, it’s impacting his ability to follow conversations, or catch all the things going on around him. It can be a frustrating experience for everyone, and a visit with grandpa can leave everyone upset. This Father’s Day, it’s time to find a solution.
Tips for Communicating with Dad
If your father has hearing loss, here are a few tips you can use to help everyone communicate. Before your Father’s Day dinner, sit down with the family and talk about tips on talking with your dad so he can enjoy the day, and feel loved and supported by his family.
Make Sure He’s Listening: While your daughter might be very excited to share a story about her day at school, she needs to take a moment to make sure grandpa is listening. If she’s half way through the story before he realizes she’s talking to him, he has no chance of catching up. Tell your family to get your father’s attention before they start talking. This will only take a second, and they can either call his name, or touch him on the shoulder. If he’s ready and paying attention, communication will be much easier.
Don’t Yell: It’s tempting to speak loudly when someone is having trouble hearing, but the truth is that yelling doesn’t make it any easier to hear what’s being said. In fact, raising your voice can even make it worse by distorting the sounds! Not only that, but yelling may make you sound angry or upset, and that certainly doesn’t help family communication. Rather than being louder, try to speak clearer. Slow down a little bit and add a few pauses between sentences to give your dad an extra beat to catch up.
Rephrase, not Repeat: To help your father hear and improve family communication, try rephrasing instead of repeating. If your dad is having trouble hearing, chances are repeating the exact same phrase won’t help. Rather, find a different way to say what you want to say, and rephrase to give him the best chance of understanding what you want to say.
Treating Hearing Loss to Improve Family Communication
While these tips are a great way to help your father hear, the best way to improve family communication is to treat his hearing loss. This Father’s Day, take the opportunity to talk to your dad about his hearing health, and encourage him to visit an audiologist. Remind him that he’s not the only one affected by his hearing loss, and that the whole family wants to be able to communicate with him. The best thing he can do is acknowledge that he’s having a hard time hearing and taking action.
Hearing tests are quick and easy and allow us to determine the exact level of hearing loss your dad has so we can suggest the perfect hearing device that will fit his lifestyle and hearing needs. Offer to make the appointment for him or accompany him to our office. We’ll be more than happy to talk to both of you, and make sure your dad gets the device he deserves.
This Father’s Day, give your dad the gift of clear communication, and a pair of hearing aids that will change the way he interacts with the world around him.
