DEAR Jasminda,
MY dad is becoming increasingly hard of hearing, but he won’t get hearing aids because he reckons they will make him look old. Mum and I are sick of him mishearing what we are saying.
What should we do?
Tessa N.
DEAR Tessa,
WHILE people with poor eyesight can embrace their myopia or hyperopia as a fashion statement by wearing cool Aviators or edgy large black frames, the same can’t be said for hearing aids.
Despite the advances in hearing aid technology, with hearing devices now incredibly discreet, some people still associate hearing aids with getting old and doddery, and are resistant to embracing them.
Perhaps, one day, the same marketing gurus who have turned eyesight deficiencies into a covetable trend will turn their hand to glamorising ‘ear wear’.
Instead of making hearing aids almost invisible, they may turn them into high-end style pieces.
A name change could make all the difference too.
Nothing quite suggests ‘senior citizen’ as the name ‘hearing aid’, but what if they were called conversation amplifiers, or electronic acoustic enhancers, or bionic ears?
Imagine how much more desirable these listening devices may be if they were turned into bold accessories, much like headphones, which are not attached to any sense of embarrassment.
Until this brave new age takes place, perhaps you can suggest to your dad that it is not the hearing device that is making him look old, it is his constant ignorance of bike riders ringing their bells to ask him to move over on the walking track, his mishearing of conversations where he thinks instead of ‘unstack the dishwasher’ your mum has asked him to ‘unleash the fishmonger’, and his gradual withdrawal from social occasions because he can’t hear over the background noise.
I think you should both have a gentle conversation with him and explain that his hearing loss is not only affecting his wellbeing, it is also affecting yours.
It is exhausting constantly repeating conversations to a person who is hard of hearing.
Maybe he could at least go and have a hearing test as a starting point. He could then trial some hearing devices.
Once he discovers what he is missing out on, it will be a short step towards embracing his newfound quality of life (and yours).
Carpe diem,
Jasminda.
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