Guest Blog: Air Traveling with Joyce

Today we start a brand new guest blog series regarding air traveling with a disability.  Our guest blogger today, Joyce has traveled the U.S., lived in Europe and currently resides in Lancaster County, PA with her husband and seven year old son. She became deaf late in life, and now has the delightful privilege of teaching Sign Language to young hearing children at a private school in the Harrisburg area as a Signing Time Instructor with Signing Time Academy.

Joyce, today's Guest Blogger

Today Joyce writes for fly HIA blog about her experiences traveling as a deaf woman and shares some fantastic tips that have made flying less stressful for her.

Traveling by air used to be simple when I was a child. I was only about eight years old when I first flew from Eugene, Oregon to Sacramento, California to visit my grandmother. I didn't have to worry about listening for announcements or hearing when it was time to board my flight. An airline employee came and  and escorted me onto the plane.  As an adult, I have become deaf, and traveling can be a bit daunting when flying alone, but there are are things I've learned to do to help make it less stressful and more enjoyable. 

I make it a point to tell the security people that I'm wearing hearing aids before the alert goes off when I walk through security. When I get to the boarding gate and waiting area, I make sure the gate agent knows that I can't hear, and I need to see them when they make announcements. This ensures that if I am reading or looking in another direction, they either come let me know, or they wait and catch my eye so I get the important information. I also pay attention to the flight boards so I can be aware how much time I have to get something to eat, drink, or just walk and stretch a bit.

Once on board the aircraft, I make it a point to tell the flight attendants I am deaf and they make sure I see the demonstrations what to do in case of an emergency. Some flights now also offer Closed Captioning for the in-flight films and live TV. Do be sure to let the flight attendants know you would like this feature turned on, if it is available on your flight.  Read more about it this in-flight option.

If the film showing on the flight isn't available with Captions, there is an app for that called "Subtitles", which is also great for foreign films as well. Check it out and download it before you watch the next movie.

When I started to lose greater degrees of my hearing, traveling became a stressful process for me. When I had my first overseas flight as a hearing impaired adult, I struggled trying to find my way through airports and announcements not understanding what was going on. I still remember the flight from Seattle to Copenhagen and the kind lady that was sitting next to me. She figured out early on that I was having difficulty understanding her, but she thought it was because she had a Swedish accent. She didn't know that it was because I couldn't hear her well. She was very patient. When our plane bounced onto the landing strip in Copenhagen with such a loud boom that reverberated and shook the plane, she gently patted my hand and told me it was only the ice on the runway, the plane hadn't broke in half or crashed into anything. That was about twenty one years ago, but I still remember her and her willingness to communicate despite the "language" barrier between us. Today, I let my seat mates know right away that I'm deaf.

Don't be afraid to speak up and say, "I'm deaf" or "I'm hearing impaired" and ask them to clue you in if there are announcements you need to be aware of. If someone doesn't appear to understand what the terms "hearing impaired" or" hard of hearing" mean,  simply rephrase and say, "I don't hear well and miss a lot if I don't see what is being said." This also eliminates the possibility they may think you're being rude if you don't respond when they are talking to you. People tend to think you are ignoring them if they don't know you simply can't hear them. It also helps if you let them know that you need to see their lips if you are a speech reader, or if you prefer to use pen and paper, have that handy for them. Write that you are deaf, your name, and ask them what their name is as well. If you have a smart phone, there is an app called DragonDiction that turns speech into text. Simply have the person you're trying to communicate with speak into the phone and up comes the conversation in text.

If you let people along the way know you are either deaf or you don't hear well, it can ease a lot of the stress of air travel. Speak up and let them know.  Don't be afraid to ask for information or help with knowing what is being announced. You can meet some interesting people while flying, perhaps even make a new friend. 

If you have recently lost your hearing and would like more tips about living with hearing loss, pick up a copy of "A Survival Guide for new Deafies" by Amy Sargent. You can find out more about this wonderful book at by visit her website.

Thank you, Harrisburg International Airport, for inviting me to come on board as a guest writer for fly HIA blog. Sharing what helps us when traveling with various physical issues helps others especially first time fliers. I'm looking forward to reading the posts from your other upcoming disabled guest writers in the series.

Thank you, Joyce, for sharing your experiences with us and our readers!  Are you a deaf traveler - what tips might you have to share that compliment those offered by our guest blogger today?