5 Ways to Have Better Conversations With Someone Who Has Trouble Hearing

Looking to connect more deeply with someone experiencing changes in their hearing? Try these five simple strategies to make your conversations clearer, more inclusive, and more meaningful, for both of you.

Audiologist Stephanie Jaffe

Published 1/26/2026,

Updated 1/26/2026

2 min read

Reviewed by

HearUSA editorial team

Hearing lossTips and tricks

On this page

Communication Tips for Hearing Loss

Five Steps to More Inclusive Conversations

Encourage a Hearing Test

Communication Tips for Hearing Loss

Building Better Communication With Loved Ones

Do you know someone who often misses the punchline when everyone’s laughing, or struggles to keep up with conversations at the dinner table?

We all want our loved ones to feel truly included. Taking the time to communicate clearly with someone who wears hearing aids or has difficulty hearing is one of the simplest and most powerful ways to show care.

Research¹ tells us that real-life communication is quick, responsive, dynamic, continuous and unpredictable.

H. Pintado, hearing care professional, recommends family members get involved in understanding how their loved one’s hearing loss might be affecting them. Through this process, he says, families can come together to create strategies that can help everyone feel heard, valued, understood and better connected.

The Good News?
The good news is that even small changes can make a big difference when communicating with people experiencing changes in their hearing health.

Five Steps to More Inclusive Conversations

Try these strategies to make your conversations more inclusive

Step 1: Have Their Attention Before You Start Talking

When you have something to say, it’s natural to launch in with enthusiasm, but connecting² with someone who experiences changes in their hearing health requires a different approach. First, make sure your loved one is focused and ready to connect. Try saying the person’s name gently and clearly to mark the start of the conversation.

When talking to someone who has trouble hearing, make sure to get their attention before you speak

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Step 2: Speak Clearly and Face Them Directly

People with hearing aids or those who experience changes in hearing health use more than just spoken words to understand what’s being said³. There are also cues from facial expressions and lip movement (non-verbal communication) as well as a speaker’s tone, pitch and pace (known as “paraverbal communication”⁴).

Pintado recommends that when speaking to someone with hearing loss, remember that you have a role to play in getting your message across in a way that’s easy to receive.

For better connection when speaking with someone who may have challenges hearing clearly, face them, remove sunglasses if possible, make eye contact and try not to cover your mouth with hands or cutlery.

If eating out at a restaurant, sit across from them so that your face and mouth can be seen⁵. Speak clearly, and naturally, pausing now and then to slow down the pace⁶.

Step 3: Address Loved Ones in Quiet Environments

Background noise can make it harder for people wearing hearing aids to pick up on the conversations around them. It can also lead to what’s known as listening fatigue, when the extra focus a person places on listening becomes distracting and tiring⁵.

Did you know?

Pro Tip:

At home, you can set the stage for clear communication by turning off the TV, noisy devices and appliances. When heading out, opt for quieter cafes and environments. Hearing aids will often have noise-reducing technology, which can also help⁵.

If you can’t reduce background noise, try moving to a quieter area⁶ so that your conversations can be heard, and everyone has a chance to contribute.

Step 4: Don’t Shout – Use a Natural Voice

Speak at the level of a typical conversation or just lift the volume slightly if required, to keep conversation flowing in a relaxed manner⁶. Shouting will cause speech to become distorted, making it harder overall to understand what is being said.¹

Speak calmly and clearly, keeping your voice natural so the conversation feels easy and relaxed

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Step 5: Rephrase Not Repeat

If a person who experiences changes in hearing health hasn’t heard you, try to rephrase what you are saying rather than repeat the same sentence multiple times⁵. Experts suggest that this can help enhance understanding, as some words will be easier to lip-read than others³.

A gentle rewording might make all the difference; this approach helps everyone stay engaged and feel heard and supported.

Encourage a Hearing Test

Stronger Connections Start With Clear Conversations

These communication tips can help your friend or loved one to participate actively in every conversation, so everyone can enjoy the moments that matter, together.

To learn how hearing aids can support better communication, reach out to a hearing professional.

Book appointment

Sources:

1 Neal, K., McMahon, C.M., Hughes, S.E. and Boisvert, I., 2022. Listening-based communication ability in adults with hearing loss: A scoping review of existing measures. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, p.786347. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.786347/full

2 HearUSA: 5 tips to better relate to your loved one with hearing loss: https://www.hearusa.com/hearing-loss/help-a-loved-one/

3 National Health Service. Communication strategies: For those communicating with a person with a hearing loss https://policyonline.nhslothian.scot/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Communication-strategies-for-those-communicating-with-a-person-with-a-hearing-loss.pdf

4 Australian Government https://www.health.gov.au/sites/default/files/2023-05/tips-for-communicating-when-you-have-hearing-loss.pdf

5 National Council on Aging. Managing Hearing Loss in Social Settings: Tips for Seniors with Hearing Aids https://www.ncoa.org/adviser/hearing-aids/managing-hearing-loss-in-social-settings/

6 Mayo Clinic Connect. How to communicate with someone who has hearing loss https://connect.mayoclinic.org/blog/take-charge-healthy-aging/newsfeed-post/communicating-with-someone-who-has-hearing-loss/

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