Hearing Loss LIVE! Lipreading Concepts Class

Adapting to hearing loss can be overwhelming no matter how you got here--suddenly or progressively. Hearing Loss LIVE! wants to help you take control of your hearing loss. Because we know that when you do, you will live more fully with fewer limits. We can help improve your communication obstacles in your day to day life. 

We at Hearing Loss LIVE! have about 100 years of experience between us in hearing loss. We have been at the very bottom of hearing loss, the very top and everything in between. Our past experience is based on mentoring others through other hearing loss organizations. 

One of those past experiences has been teaching lipreading. We have learned that there is more to lipreading than folks understand. And the misconception causes all sorts of problems. Bottom line if not used right it will not help with communication. Whether its family, friends or your work environment knowledge is key to successful communication. 

In this video we talk about how we will break down our Lipreading classes and what we have learned while teaching and attending them over the years.

Join us for our first class: "Lipreading Concepts" This eight week class will introduce you to the basics of what is involved with lipreading. This will prepare you to better outcomes with lipreading. We have a one time introductory price of $50 - that's ONLY $6.25 per class. 

Register today at: https://hearinglosslive.com/events/

Transcript

information about Hearing Loss LIVE!
lipreading concept class. 

Hello from Hearing Loss LIVE! Happy weekend. So
we wanted to do a short and talk

to you about our lipreading class
that will be coming out -- yesterday,

enrollment opened, we want to talk
a little bit about our experience

and why we are super excited to be
teaching this class. I got to teach

it for a year online. I had been
involved before then as as a

captioner. Before I went to work as
an assistant at a hard of hearing

cent-- the Services for the Deaf and
Hard of Hearing here in Utah.

But I love online because not only
can you bring in all sorts of

different accents, we all talk
differently, right? You have the

ability to really use the lipreading skill, and I found it just

helps so much in learning what
there is behind lipreading.

I think our first class, memory
serves, Lipreading Concept Class.

And I think that's a great idea.
But I'm going to let Chelle and

Michele explain why. Because when
it comes to experience, they're our

leaders in this. And then I'll talk
a little more about the cost and

what to expect.

Chelle, you want to start us off?

Chelle: Oh, sorry. I'm laughing because
it's said jelly instead of Chelle.

But I'll let Michele go first.

Okay, she says no. So in 2007, I
had this big hearing loss drop that

made me like living, it kept me
living in a sea of noise. And I

couldn't hear anything. And I mean,
it seemed like every situation was

a complete struggle, no matter
where I was at. I felt like I

couldn't hear hardly anything. And
I probably wasn't.

So I did take the Sanderson Center
speechreading class, which is 18

lessons with lip shapes and the
concepts together.

I took it first as they as a
consumer. And later I taught it

several times, multiple times. And
I edited the class three times, I

think at least trying to shape it
around what I was learning and how

I saw people learning what worked
best, what didn't work at all in a

few cases. So after, after taking
the class and editing it and teaching

it for so much. I learned a whole
lot. I got comfortable with it.

And now I hear better than ever,
sometimes I compare my hearing loss

it's still the same, nothing's
changed. 2008, 09, 10 I struggled, I

couldn't hear anything. Now I can
handle almost any situation

confidently because I know all the
concepts to lipreading. So I

know how to advocate and anticipate and
all these different things. So it

made a huge difference in my hard of
hearing communication life.

Learning the lips shapes was fun
too. That's helped a lot with a lot

of practice. That's more practice,
okay. But it's helped improve my

lipreading skills immensely.

Michele: Um, of course, if you've listened
to our podcast before, you know

that I lost my hearing as a child
and so lipreading is hardwired for

me.

The doctor who diagnosed me sad,
she's been lipreading for years,

she's lipreading everything I'm
saying. And so I probably had a

hearing loss way back before I was
diagnosed in grade school.

So I get the concept of what lipreading is. I also had a deaf

grandmother who was a lipreader.
And so I knew about lipreading

from her perspective, before I ever
knew I had a hearing loss myself.

But what I didn't really know were
all of the technical and intricacy,

details of lipreading about lip
shapes, and, and all of that and so

when I took the lipreading classes
in the state of Utah, they opened

them up to other states when Chelle
was the hard of hearing specialist,

and I actually signed up for both
classes simultaneously and I did two, 18

week classes because I was really
interested in figuring out how it

worked and knowing more about it.

And

I have gotten by in life with lipreading, I, it's allowed me to cope

very well and not to have to
declare my hearing loss. And so

when I was a teenager and young
adult, I wasn't comfortable telling

people, I was a lipreader, I just
did it.

And then when lipreading failed,
because you can't lipread

everyone, some people, you're just
never going to be able to lip read,

I would panic. And then of course,
any skill that I had just went

right out the window. So that's
part of what the lipreading concept class

is geared towards teaching people
and Chelle and I both know, we've

volunteered for the SayWhatClub for
well over a decade, and we see so

many people who are new to hearing
loss or who are new to finding

support for their hearing loss, who
want to know how to lipread. And

there just aren't a lot of classes
here on the US. There are tons of

them in the UK, but not in the US.
And so it just makes sense to focus

on those concepts that will help
you learn to lipread.

Before you ever start learning
about the lip shapes, and all of

the other technical parts of it.
And before you have to start

practicing, because knowing those
concepts builds confidence. I'll

give you a quick example. I've done
I've consulted on a couple of jobs,

where people are looking to have
film or video lipread. And they

send me the film and the video and
I look at it, and I really, I can

guess, but once they send me all
the information that goes along

with what the scenario is, what's
happening in the video or the

film, what the context is, what
they think that people are saying

or what, what they're trying to
understand about what the people on

the film are saying. Once I know
that

I can see what the people are
saying. Not every word, not

perfectly, but then I can
transcribe part of what they're

saying. And without that context,
without all of that other

information. lipreading is almost
impossible. So it makes sense for

us to teach about the concepts of
all of the other things besides lip

shapes first, when you know that
you're way ahead of the game.

Julia: Thank you, both of you. You know,
you're right, because I think we've

said before everybody to some
extent lipreads, right, a little

bit, whether- they usually find out
how much more they do it than they

knew about. But then they kind of
get stuck on. But I can't see every

word. I didn't see that shape on on
your lips. So taking the concept so

people can get into their into
their mindset. Okay, I might catch

every other word.

And this is why and knowing and
becoming comfortable there will

help them when it comes to practice
and doing a lip shape class. I just

think the idea was like, Oh, wow,
why why didn't we come up with this

earlier? It makes so much sense.
And so I love that Michele and

Chelle have this lipreading
concept class together. That's a

mouthful for me. If you guys don't
already know this, I stumbled on

titles. It's really exciting. We're
happy. We're really excited to roll

it out. We are going to do this
introductory lipreading concept

class for $50. It's eight weeks of
class that's only $6.25 A class. It

will start Thursday, February 17.
And go to our website and pull up

the registration form and join us,
learn more about your lipreading.

Whether you're proficient or you're
new to hearing loss or you don't

even know if you lipread. Or if
you're a hearing partner. Come find

out what what it takes to actually
lipread. But join us February 17th

for our  Lipreading Concept Class. Bye.

Join Hearing Loss LIVE! with their
new Lipreading Concepts Class on

Google meet starts Thursday,

February 17, and runs until
Thursday, April 7, from six to 7pm.

Mountain Time. Only $50 per person.
That's only $6.25 per class.

Registration now open, go to
hearinglosslive.com and in the

upper right corner, click upcoming
events. Hope to see you there