Your child may have been diagnosed with deafness when they were just a small baby – or perhaps their diagnosis has been more recent. In either case, you may still be coming to terms with your child’s deafness and you may have questions about your feelings, about how other parents cope and about the technology.
Recognising your emotions
No doubt, like many parents who have learned that their child is deaf, you will have been through many emotional ups and downs. You may have felt shock, disbelief, guilt, sorrow, grief and even anger. This mix of emotions may have taken you by surprise – but other parents tell us that it is not unusual. Allow yourself the time and space you need to experience and deal with these emotions.
We trust you have been told how much can be done with a combination of effective technology and educational support. It is important to remember that your child will make progress – and you need to celebrate and nurture their achievements along the way.
Remember: your goal is to help your child grow and develop as other children do. With the help of the Let’s Listen and Talk – Toddler programme, you will learn how to guide your child through the process of developing the ability to communicate.
Handy hint
It can help to talk to other parents to find out how they are coping with these feelings and what has helped them. If you have any concerns or questions you can also talk to us – we are here to help!
If you have not already seen them (especially if you have not completed our Baby programme), you might like to watch our videos of deaf children and their families talking about a range of issues.
Technology and terminology
Like many parents of deaf children, you will be constantly bombarded with the jargon and terminology many professionals use when talking about your child’s diagnosis.
You will also have had to become the everyday maintenance engineer for your child’s hearing technology – checking batteries, keeping it clean, and making sure it is working as effectively as possible all day, every day. This can start off as a daunting task – but becomes second nature to most parents over time and with practise.
Getting to grips with terminology
We have put together a short course on ‘Getting to grips with technology and terminology’ that is free to all Let’s Listen and Talk subscribers. This course will help you learn (or refresh your memory) about the different parts of the ear, the different types and causes of deafness, the different types of hearing test, and how to maintain your child’s hearing technology.
You can dip in and out of the different lessons in the course as and when you need to. Click here to check out the ‘Getting to grips with technology and terminology’ course.
Check our information area
You can quickly and easily find guidance papers and videos supporting the Toddler programme and the ‘Getting to grips with technology and terminology’ course in the Information area on this website.
Click on the Mark Complete button (if visible) to record your progress and continue to the next page.