Fill in the Gaps > Too many older people who are deafblind ... - Sense

1 > Deafblindness and older peopleDon’t miss anopportunityIf we take the view thatloss of sight and hearingare a normal, acceptablepart of ageing, we missthe opportunity to helppeople make best useof their remaining visionand hearing.Talking about sensory lossMany older people with a hearing and vision loss don’t think ofthemselves as deafblind. They may think that sensory loss is just one moreeffect of old age along with mobility problems, memory loss, illness ordepression – and it often is.But that doesn’t mean we can’t do anything about it. Their hearing andvision loss may have crept up on them slowly so they only gradually realisethat something is wrong. They may see some things, but not others. Theymay hear in some situations, but not others. They may use phrases suchas: “I don’t hear too well” or “I’m having problems with my eyes”. Andyet the everyday difficulties they describe are not just to do with ageingbut are the typical effects of deafblindness.Professionals are likely to use terms such as deafblind or dual sensory loss.The Deafblind Guidance uses these interchangeably to acknowledge thatthe combined loss of hearing and vision is significant for anyone, even ifhe or she still has some useful hearing and vision.Even if a person doesn’tuse the term deafblindabout themselves, we needto recognise the effects ofdeafblindness and offersupport and services to meetthose needs. Be aware ofthe language a person usesabout themselves and adaptyour own to reflect whatthey are comfortable with.4