Hear for You helps young people who are deaf or hard of hearing to navigate the difficult teenage years
Being a teenager is a difficult enough time in a young person’s life. Imagine being deaf on top of that. Trying to pick up the social nuances of relationships when you don’t always hear a conversation; having to constantly tell people what those ‘funny things’ on your ears are. Right at a time in life when you are trying to work out your own identity and don’t want to have to explain yourself to the world.
Artarmon’s John Lui knows what it is like to live as a deaf person. John was born deaf and is national manager of Hear for You, a non-profit organisation which helps teenagers who are deaf or hard of hearing navigate this difficult stage in life.
Hear for You was set up 16 years ago and operates under the umbrella of The Shepherd Centre, a charity which teaches children with hearing loss to listen and speak.
“There are a lot of teenagers who have hearing loss but they don’t know anybody else in the same situation,” John says. “So, they feel very socially isolated and that they’ve got to work harder to fit in.”
Young mentors share their own experiences of what life as a deaf person is like.
In the Hear for You program, volunteer mentors – young adults who are also deaf or hard of hearing – work with a small group of teenagers on topics including self-advocacy, communication and conflict resolution. They also have “fun days out” like tree top adventures and escape room experiences.
“We give them the opportunity to connect with their peers,” John says. “And hopefully get them to feel more comfortable sharing their experiences. If they know that there are other people going through the same situation, it makes it not as onerous.”
While a lot of advocacy for young children with hearing loss is done by their parents, as they get older, teenagers find themselves more on their own.
“It can all be overwhelming,” John says.
At the core of the four-month program is for participants to start thinking about and understanding their own journey with their deaf identity.
“So, then they don’t spend so much effort trying to fit in as ‘normal’ people and just be okay in their own skin,” John says.
“From there, if they start to understand their identity, and the practical realities of what it’s like living as a deaf person, then we start this pathway in their mind for self-advocacy and for them to be empowered to do things for themselves. That’s the important part.
“Because by virtue of being deaf or hard of hearing, they need to learn life lessons earlier than the hearing peers. But if they can do that, they’re going to be ahead of their hearing peers.”
Events like tree climbing allow young people with hearing loss to meet others just like them.
At the heart of the program is showing teenagers with hearing loss that their disability should not be a barrier in life, John says.
“Sometimes the young people tell us ‘I didn’t realise that being deaf, there’s so many things I can still do,’” John says. “That is why having volunteer mentors with hearing loss is so important, as they are real examples of how to succeed and overcome barriers.”
John himself is a good example of someone who has never let his disability get in the way.
He has been a member of the Australian National Deaf Tennis squad since 2003, with a few medals to show for his efforts. This year, the team played against the world’s best deaf players at The Australian Open Tennis Tournament. A three-day tournament for deaf players occurred on the same courts, in tandem with the main event.
John says the experience was ‘incredible’, and after years of trying to get more resources for deaf tennis, highlights the important role of advocacy.
“For deaf sport it’s a big thing,” he says. “Because it means an international sporting organisation (has) come on board said, ‘Yes, we will support deaf sport.’”
To find out more about Hear for You, visit the organisation’s website.