Guest guest Posted September 26, 2006 Report Share Posted September 26, 2006 whenever we meet adults that are d/hoh we usually say something...if joey's with me, he'll get very excited...there is a cashier at walmart who has one ha, she wears her hair down so i wouln't have known...but she was happy to show joey, and tell him how much cooler his were:) he loved that. next time we went we had a different cashier and joey told her " the other lady has a hearing aid like me " he loved it. We've also been at sandwich shops and joey pointed out one of the boys working there who had a HA...he only knows a couple of deaf kids and they live about 6-7 hours from us, and he's only met them once... i do have a client who is profound in one ear...and she loves me, b/c i can talk to her...the other girl in the office almost whispers and doesn't look right at her...she jsut looks to me to translate:) i told her that joey was hoh, and i think it put her at ease a little, b/c i think she still has some self concious issues..esp when she couldn't hear the other girl. I don't know if it's proud? or if I jsut get excited...I think a year ago, I would have been uncomfortable? maybe not uncomfortable...but definately wouldn't have talked openly about it...but at that point i didn't know joey was hoh and i wouldn't have known what questions to ask! ________________________________ From: Listen-Up [mailto:Listen-Up ] On Behalf Of saraandchadd Sent: Tuesday, September 26, 2006 10:30 AM To: Listen-Up Subject: Meeting HOH adults When you meet a HOH adult at the store or where ever....do you get think tingly proud feeling? Am I just being a pregnant hormonal woman? I go to this pizza place every week while Hannah is in dancing and I met the owner for the first time yesterday. He turned around and I realized he had a CI implant!!! And I was so proud!! Is that wrong of me??? Now I feel committed to that place! But just asking if I'm the only one..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 26, 2006 Report Share Posted September 26, 2006 whenever we meet adults that are d/hoh we usually say something...if joey's with me, he'll get very excited...there is a cashier at walmart who has one ha, she wears her hair down so i wouln't have known...but she was happy to show joey, and tell him how much cooler his were:) he loved that. next time we went we had a different cashier and joey told her " the other lady has a hearing aid like me " he loved it. We've also been at sandwich shops and joey pointed out one of the boys working there who had a HA...he only knows a couple of deaf kids and they live about 6-7 hours from us, and he's only met them once... i do have a client who is profound in one ear...and she loves me, b/c i can talk to her...the other girl in the office almost whispers and doesn't look right at her...she jsut looks to me to translate:) i told her that joey was hoh, and i think it put her at ease a little, b/c i think she still has some self concious issues..esp when she couldn't hear the other girl. I don't know if it's proud? or if I jsut get excited...I think a year ago, I would have been uncomfortable? maybe not uncomfortable...but definately wouldn't have talked openly about it...but at that point i didn't know joey was hoh and i wouldn't have known what questions to ask! ________________________________ From: Listen-Up [mailto:Listen-Up ] On Behalf Of saraandchadd Sent: Tuesday, September 26, 2006 10:30 AM To: Listen-Up Subject: Meeting HOH adults When you meet a HOH adult at the store or where ever....do you get think tingly proud feeling? Am I just being a pregnant hormonal woman? I go to this pizza place every week while Hannah is in dancing and I met the owner for the first time yesterday. He turned around and I realized he had a CI implant!!! And I was so proud!! Is that wrong of me??? Now I feel committed to that place! But just asking if I'm the only one..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 26, 2006 Report Share Posted September 26, 2006 whenever we meet adults that are d/hoh we usually say something...if joey's with me, he'll get very excited...there is a cashier at walmart who has one ha, she wears her hair down so i wouln't have known...but she was happy to show joey, and tell him how much cooler his were:) he loved that. next time we went we had a different cashier and joey told her " the other lady has a hearing aid like me " he loved it. We've also been at sandwich shops and joey pointed out one of the boys working there who had a HA...he only knows a couple of deaf kids and they live about 6-7 hours from us, and he's only met them once... i do have a client who is profound in one ear...and she loves me, b/c i can talk to her...the other girl in the office almost whispers and doesn't look right at her...she jsut looks to me to translate:) i told her that joey was hoh, and i think it put her at ease a little, b/c i think she still has some self concious issues..esp when she couldn't hear the other girl. I don't know if it's proud? or if I jsut get excited...I think a year ago, I would have been uncomfortable? maybe not uncomfortable...but definately wouldn't have talked openly about it...but at that point i didn't know joey was hoh and i wouldn't have known what questions to ask! ________________________________ From: Listen-Up [mailto:Listen-Up ] On Behalf Of saraandchadd Sent: Tuesday, September 26, 2006 10:30 AM To: Listen-Up Subject: Meeting HOH adults When you meet a HOH adult at the store or where ever....do you get think tingly proud feeling? Am I just being a pregnant hormonal woman? I go to this pizza place every week while Hannah is in dancing and I met the owner for the first time yesterday. He turned around and I realized he had a CI implant!!! And I was so proud!! Is that wrong of me??? Now I feel committed to that place! But just asking if I'm the only one..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 26, 2006 Report Share Posted September 26, 2006 Yes, we definitely get all excited. I recently met (sort-of) a cashier at our local grocery store who had aids in ... she came up behind me to tell us how to work the self-check-out machine. But she'd walked away before I could actually engage her in conversation, and I thought chasing her across the store might be just a tad too bizarre. But to be honest, the kind of conversations we have depends on the person and how long they've been D/HOH. Younger people are usually delighted to see Ian's blue aids and to talk with him. People who've been D/HOH for most of their lives are usually pleasant, encouraging and delighted to meet him/us. (We don't often meet D/HOH people around here) But older adults who got their aids due to age, who are not terribly pleased that they now have their own ... those are not usually what you'd call uplifting encounters. Those conversations usually start with a version " oh the poor boy ... " And depending on the setting, my mood and if the person is sincere (versus condescending) I will talk about Ian, about hearing loss and talk with them. When I was working at the polls (here in NY we had a primary election) my co-worker was an older gentleman who wore IITE aids. He had a terrible time hearing me unless his aids were facing me (and I suspect he is more than a touch under-aided). He found Ian's blue aids and swirled molds to be an absolute shock. Ian walked in to bring me coffee, chatted a bit and was his usual self. Ian was wearing his usually ball cap, so it wasn't until he turned to leave that the gentleman saw his swirled molds and blue aids. The gentleman's mouth was literally hanging open. He'd never seen brightly colored aids before and couldn't believe that Ian didn't want to make then " more discrete. " He was impressed by Ian's total nonchalance about his aids and that Ian doesn't find them embarrassing. We had quite the conversation once Ian had left. Then, of course, there was the day I saw a little girl, about 7, across a mall store and realized that she was wearing a CI. Her mother must have though I was insane as I made a bee-line towards her and said something stupid like " I saw your daughter and I'm just so excited ... " I probably looked like a mad woman. (grin) And then we ended up talking for about 20 minutes. They weren't local, just visiting, but that made my day. Best -- Jill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 26, 2006 Report Share Posted September 26, 2006 I am with you . My awareness is so increased, and I also find that when I see people that are functioning so successfully with hearing loss that I feel really happy and proud for them. I always go the extra mile to make sure that my communication efforts meet them part way. Something I never thought about before! But I also have to fight wanting to talk to them about their hearing loss, as I am sure they prefer to just go about their business. I remember how frustrating it was when my Grandfather would not deal affectively with his hearing loss (He ran big equipment for the forest service his entire life. He tried to wear hearing aids, but they were always squealing, so he would take them out, and then he really couldn't converse unless you were practically sitting on his lap, which was fine up to a certain age. I wish I knew then what I know now, as I could have helped him so much. > > When you meet a HOH adult at the store or where ever....do you get > think tingly proud feeling? Am I just being a pregnant hormonal > woman? I go to this pizza place every week while Hannah is in dancing > and I met the owner for the first time yesterday. He turned around > and I realized he had a CI implant!!! And I was so proud!! Is that > wrong of me??? Now I feel committed to that place! > > But just asking if I'm the only one..... > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 26, 2006 Report Share Posted September 26, 2006 I think that is pretty normal. Maggie always noticed hearing aids and would show people hers, in stores, restaurants etc. Now that Maggie is older (15) she is the one that the little kids look up to. There's a little girl that we know from church who has a CI and she loves Maggie because she has hearing aids! Maggie had a deaf swim coach who she adored and that girls mom was a great help to me when Maggie was first diagnosed. Actually, the older girl gave me a huge burst of hope since when I first called the mom, the daughter answered and she spoke so well I assumed she was not the deaf one but she was!! I was amazed and it gave me incredible hope. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 26, 2006 Report Share Posted September 26, 2006 I think that is pretty normal. Maggie always noticed hearing aids and would show people hers, in stores, restaurants etc. Now that Maggie is older (15) she is the one that the little kids look up to. There's a little girl that we know from church who has a CI and she loves Maggie because she has hearing aids! Maggie had a deaf swim coach who she adored and that girls mom was a great help to me when Maggie was first diagnosed. Actually, the older girl gave me a huge burst of hope since when I first called the mom, the daughter answered and she spoke so well I assumed she was not the deaf one but she was!! I was amazed and it gave me incredible hope. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 26, 2006 Report Share Posted September 26, 2006 I think that is pretty normal. Maggie always noticed hearing aids and would show people hers, in stores, restaurants etc. Now that Maggie is older (15) she is the one that the little kids look up to. There's a little girl that we know from church who has a CI and she loves Maggie because she has hearing aids! Maggie had a deaf swim coach who she adored and that girls mom was a great help to me when Maggie was first diagnosed. Actually, the older girl gave me a huge burst of hope since when I first called the mom, the daughter answered and she spoke so well I assumed she was not the deaf one but she was!! I was amazed and it gave me incredible hope. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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