Disabled and hearing impairment?

My sister has been disabled for a few years now and when she first became disabled everything was really difficult for her and she felt really frightened. Now she has become, in a way, used to it and has become really good at getting herself around etc. Anyway, a few days ago she had a hearing test which showed that she has moderate hearing loss and now has to wear hearing aids. She is really frightened and feeling confused and is finding this new problem hard to deal with.

My question is How can I help her through this new problem?
Is there any advice you can give me or her?

Thank you.

She is physically disabled, she uses a wheelchair and relies on alot of care.
I'm her main carer but some other people help out as well.

Any loss of functional capacity can be terrifying. I think it is great that you are there for your sister, that she can rely on you. It must provide her a lot of comfort.

You didn't say how your sister was disabled - this information may help with the kind of answers you get. Is she physically impaired or does she have cognitive disablities?

Many hearing impaired people start to learn sign language if they know their hearling loss will get worse. The two of you could learn sign language together. Then you can communicate with each other much more easily should her hearing loss become worse.

Another idea is a support group. There are support groups for everything nowadays, I'm sure you could find one for hearing impaired people. It will help her to see how others in her predicament learn to cope & function. It will also probably make her feel like she is not all alone in dealing with this problem.

Also important, is to review her routine. See if there are activities she does that could be dangerous for her with hearing loss. Just go over everything she does & see how much the sense of hearing is involved in everything she does. She definitely has to learn to let her other senses help her compensate, look around more often, focus on smells more intensely, etc.

Many people wear hearing aids & live completely normal lives. It is something she will get used to with time. You can help her by reaffirming that you are going to be there for her, tell her that the hearing aids will actually make her life much better, she will probably be able to hear more clearly than she did before the hearing aids. Just stay positive, do not make a huge deal of it & she will pick up on your attitude and that will in itself make her feel better.

I wish I had a sister like you !

Good luck !

Hello
See, I am a hearing-impaired person. And I wear a hearing device, Cochlear Implant and before I started to wear a Cochlear Implant, I wore a hearing-aids. Well, I was profoundly deaf and I wore hearing aids and I don't like it. Because it never helped me to hear, it is so annoying only to me. But your sister is wearing a hearing-aids. Well, tell her that hearing-aids won't change who she is. It won't affect her life, it just helps her to hear. And when I wore hearing-aids and Cochlear Implant, it never changed who I am but it changed my life completely because I am not deaf anymore and I don't have to lipread, asking people to repeat, etc. But for your sister, she is really special and tell her that she is very special. She will get used to it. When I wore my Cochlear Implant, I was a little bit scared but I got used to it later. Well, my advice is have fun with her with her hearing impaired and she will like it. She will get used to it, I'm sure. I know this is hard for her to deal with it but being a hearing-impaired person for her won't change who she is. But talk to her about everybody else who is hearing-impaired in the world have to deal with this situation. Me, a hearing-impaired I had to deal with it. BUT it doesn't change who I am and I love it. She will like it and she will get used to it, trust me. Just help her like help her to understand why she have to wear hearing-impaired and tell her it won't change who she is. Help her and she will understand. I really hope this information answer your question...hopefully. Anyway, good luck!!

Change is scary. You get used to a certain level of disability and suddenly there is more. How much more can I cope with? After this will there be even more? What else is going to change? How much will the people I depend on take? Will they still be there for me?

Be patient. Listen. And let her know you are going to still be there for her.

I am ikn a wheelchair when I have long trips to the store, ect. I am also late deafened/hoh. Its no picinic, but just show her you love her. Dont let her veg, but give her stuff to do if she can --fold clothes help with cooking. Independence and self worth are important. Also, contact the local Vr office, or goodwill, They have classes on helping the disabled