Sheila Smart and some of her fellow Lighthouse Group participants, Alison and Alex, share how much they have benefited from taking part in Lipreading Classes, and the importance of ongoing support when you have hearing loss.
Sheila says, “I have severe to profound hearing loss and began using hearing aids in my early 40s. After 20 plus years, I am now at the stage where I need to let people know that, even with aids, I will struggle to follow a conversation. I am quite blunt and say that I am deaf. After we get through the perennial, not so funny, joke of ‘Pardon?’ with hand cupped dramatically behind their ear, the next question I get is ‘Are you learning British sign language (BSL)?’ When I reply that no I am not but that I have been taking lipreading classes, I am faced with two further questions.
“The first is ‘Why not BSL?’. It’s a good question and one that deserves an answer. My rationale is that BSL is a language in its own right and therefore requires the person you are using it with, to also understand and use BSL. I used to be able to converse in 3 European languages and used Makaton and Sign a long in my job BUT when I stopped using them on an everyday basis, I lost the skills and vocabulary that I had acquired. BSL requires to be used frequently to retain the knowledge of signing. It is also another language, an important one for many people, but for me it is not my first language and not one that I would use on an everyday basis. My everyday language is spoken English.
“The second question is what is lipreading? Lipreading is basically using the eyes to help the ears, using not just lip shapes but also expression, gestures, body language and of course the context! Lipreading classes are designed to help train the brain to see and work out what a person is saying. For me, lipreading was about using the skills I already had in understanding spoken English and adding another layer of skill to continue to use it, but I found it was so much more! Having been part of a lipreading class for two years, I would say understanding how lipreading works has boosted my confidence, helped me understand why I have difficulty in understanding when another person is speaking English, why the mistakes in understanding can occur and most importantly it has helped me to manage my own expectations and those of others. I now understand how the speaker can help me, by changing how they say things and how I can explain my needs to them. It has built my confidence in saying this is what I need, rather than using the smile, nod of the head or ‘Really?’ or ‘That’s interesting!’ phrases I had come to rely on when I had not a clue what the conversation was about! I used these, whilst desperately hoping I wouldn’t see a look of confusion or astonishment of the face of whoever was talking to me!
“One of my fellow students, Alison, gave their assessment of the class:”
“I had lipread for years before joining the group and had coped, but, with increasing deafness and its frustrations, I was delighted to find the class. It opened my eyes as to the tactics one could develop in lipreading situations of all sorts. Aspects which now seem obvious, were pointed out and reinforced and the subsequent, greater confidence was very marked.
“The preparation done by our tutor, Debbie, was a hugely important part of the success of the course. Always introducing themes and topics which were varied and topical helped to add a freshness to every session. There was a very obvious sensitivity to the various needs of the group and socially this developed into another welcome part of our meetings. Having a mild hearing loss, I was coping quite well with day to day living, but it opened my eyes to the needs of others and to the various problems that the hard of hearing face. There was frequent sharing of facilities, services and aids which could help and improve everyday concerns.
“So, as well as providing an opportunity to develop lipreading skills, this was a class which had added benefits in a relaxed and supportive environment. Thank you, NESS, Debbie and my fellow lipreaders!”.
Another member of the group, Alex, expressed what lipreading meant to him.
“I am totally deaf in one ear and require a hearing device for the other ear. I have attended the lipreading class in Elgin for the last number of years (apart from the period of COVID lockdown). Previous to that I was learning sign language in a small group in Cullen.
“I really appreciate what NESS has been doing and providing for people with hearing loss and I have found the lipreading class in Elgin a tremendous help in improving my lipreading skills. It has been a lifeline to me, especially at times when faced with feelings of depression as a result of not being able to socialise. The tutor, Debbie Miller, has been excellent, has provided guidance and direction, and has given me confidence, along with the lipreading tuition. She has presented the tuition in a very structured way and everyone in the class felt that she presented it in a way that made it easy to follow. All the people on the course are exhausted at the end of the class due to the concentration, but Debbie is able to hold our attention right to the end. The lipreading class has become almost part of my life. I say this as Bert Smale, the previous tutor, instilled into us when we were new to the class that you never reach a destination in lipreading – it is a continual journey of learning and repetition”.
Sheila continues, “For all of us, we found that learning the skills of lipreading was not just about learning to try to understand the words that someone was speaking to them. It was so much more than that. Shared experiences of the impact of hearing loss on our lives, learning about technology that could help, understanding our own hearing impairment and why it affected us as it did, breaking out of social isolation, the supportive environment, realising you weren’t on your own…. the list could go on and on. I am sure that all of our class will smile when I also add finding out the importance of CONTEXT, Debbie’s favourite word! (If you know the context, you are halfway to working out what the conversation will possibly be about!).
“Our group felt so strongly about the benefits of lipreading that when our funded session came to an end, we formed The Lighthouse Group to continue to practise the skills we had learnt. A lighthouse is a beacon of hope and that is what lipreading is! If you have hearing difficulties, then I think our whole group would say – Join a lip-reading class!”
Thanks to Sheila, Alison and Alex for sharing their how much they have benefited from lipreading classes, and the benefits of ongoing support with the Lighthouse Group.
