Losing my hearing at the age of 37 was a huge blow. This wasn't something that happened to people my age, surely? This was an older generational affliction. People didn't just lose their hearing in their mid 30s, did they?
I thought that I was fairly D/deaf aware before losing my hearing. I believed it was my communication skills that were lacking for not being able to sign; I could never understand why signed programmes were only on in the dead of night; but I never really got the full extent of how the world is not designed to be accessible for those with partial or complete hearing loss. I still don't.
The pandemic and resulting lockdowns have highlighted a few glaring inequalities in our society today in relation to the D/deaf and Hard of Hearing (HoH) communities. For starters, why on earth are the daily briefings from Number 10, still not accompanied by a BSL interpreter? The Welsh Assembly and Scottish Parliament have recognised the importance of communicating vital information directly to those that rely on BSL, but not the English Conservative government. Petitions calling for this have been rebuffed by the government claiming that this cannot be done in a covid-safe way, but other nations seem to manage it. Grade 2 surgical masks with clear face panels have only recently become available, after a year of face masks being worn, to assist with lip-reading in places were levels of protection greater than a standard face covering are required (such as health and social care services). These are just two small examples of how the D/deaf and HoH communities have been ignored during the coronavirus outbreak.
One of my biggest concerns is how will I enjoy the world, once certain "normal" activities resume? For nine months prior to the first lockdown in March 2020, I had withdrawn from society due to adjusting to not only the loss of hearing and tinnitus, but also hyperacusis which is extreme sensitivity to certain and/or loud noises which can cause me distress and pain. I'd just begun to venture out again at the beginning of March to only be shut away in a world of silence again.
I am longing to go out to a club, to the cinema, fly on a plane while I am still young and able enough to enjoy these things, but am terrified of how this will impact my tinnitus, hyperacusis and this constant feeling of pressure in the right side of my head. Many people are anxious about the world opening up again; social anxiety has become quite an issue. For me this lies in the inability of being able to control my environment; even visiting friends/family with small children and dogs in particular, causes acute pain due to not being used to the levels of noise children and animals are capable of making.
I do feel that society has become more deaf aware as part of becoming more aware about hidden disabilities in general (thanks to the Sunflower Lanyard) and the stigma of mental health is slowly melting away as more campaigns to raise awareness have been exceptionally visible over the past year. That said, I am worried that the consideration and compassion that has materialised by pulling together through all of this, will slowly fade away as we continue to be battered and encouraged to look after only ourselves, by a corrupt and sleazy government. The days of Thatcher telling us that society doesn't exist feels only around the corner once again.
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