Best way to tell people you're Deaf?

I'm curious about the different ways people indicate to hearing folks the you're Deaf. I also found myself wondering why, in a nation where a huge number of people understand the phrase "no habla ingles", nobody understands the sign for "deaf". Seems like it would be worthwhile to teach everyone this basic sign in school at some point.

Comments

Anonymous said…
What I do is just start signing away....people get the idea a lot faster that way.
September 8, 2011 at 3:36 PM
Anonymous said…
My suggest is point your finger to your ears. Or if you have notes, write down and say "I am Deaf".
September 8, 2011 at 5:52 PM
mervynjames224 said…
It's a no-brainer, I just say I'm deaf. It's either that or they Say you ARE STUPID.
September 9, 2011 at 11:15 AM
Anonymous said…
I first make eye contact, then tell them, "I am deaf," point to my ear, and make the "so-so" gesture. I also tell them "I read lips" because I can do that most of the time. If I don't understand them, I say, "I'm sorry, I didn't understand. Please write it down." 9 times out of 10, this approach works well and no one gets upset or confused.

My deaf friend that I go out with a lot only points to his ear and makes the writing gesture without any eye contact with the hearing person. My friend has excellent and very understandable speech and lipreading skills, just like me, but never uses it. He never says the word "deaf," which I think he should. I've often wondered if he comes from the older generation where there is still a sense of shame about being deaf. He does not make eye contact with hearing people at all. It's very weird. I think his behavior confuses people so they don't understand clearly what the problem is and how to fix it.

I think it's very important to first communicate to a hearing person, especially a stranger, that you are deaf, and how you want to communicate with them.
September 9, 2011 at 12:24 PM
Anonymous said…
a smile and a pleasant demeanor help a lot too!
September 9, 2011 at 12:25 PM
JoeBob said…
I usually start by seeing if I can lipread the other person first. If they don't maintain eye contact or I can't understand the, I use my hand to attract their attention and usually say "escuse me, I'm deaf". 8 out of 10 times, they immediately say "I'm Sorry!!!".
September 23, 2011 at 4:44 PM
GoingBerdyKat said…
Frankly I think ASL should be one of the mandatory subjects in school, but I could be jumping ahead of what the hearing world is ready for. :P
September 25, 2011 at 7:35 AM
Unknown said…
I am deaf also I tell people straight up some laugh in disbelief some apologize. We are all different I hear with my eyes So thats the way I communicate with people being that I do not know sign language ��
July 28, 2017 at 4:23 AM
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