One
of the questions I get asked the most about having hearing loss is,
“How can you drive?” I got my license late, for a variety of
reasons, none of which had anything to do with my hearing loss. But
people still ask. For a long time, this question made me angry,
because it seems like a stupid question to me. But I realized that
it's not a stupid question for hearing people. So rather than get
frustrated, I'm going to pipe down and actually answer the question.
The
simple answer is, I drive just like anyone else. I did not get my
license until after I became hard of hearing, so I don't know any
different. I cannot hear sirens until they are right behind me, but
I realized I developed the habit of frequently glancing in my
rearview mirror, so I usually see them coming ahead of time. I stay
in the right lane as much as possible so I can pull over quickly if I
don't see it in advance, but that doesn't usually happen.
I
listen to music just like anyone else. I can barely hear classical
when I'm in my car, so I tend to gravitate toward other genres.
I
keep a notepad in my car so I can have police officers write things
down if I don't understand them. I also carry a hearing loss alert
card in my wallet. I have yet to be pulled over, but if that ever
happens, I will hand it to the police officer along with my license
and registration. If you have hearing loss and get in an accident or
get pulled over, it's very important for the cops to know that you
are deaf or hard of hearing. They need to know that if you don't
respond, it's because you can't hear them, not because you are
intoxicated or injured. If you have recently developed hearing loss,
I highly recommend getting a hearing loss alert card. Your local DMV
or Department of Human Services should be able to tell you where to
get one. If you have a cochlear implant, you should wear a medical
alert bracelet or necklace stating that you cannot have an MRI,
unless you know for a fact that your CI model is recent enough to be
MRI-compatible.
So
yeah, that's my two cents on hearing loss and driving!
