Demi | Kijk

Demi's Story

Demi (31) currently works full time as a project manager and research coordinator in the field of public health, which is also her study background. Her biggest passion is travelling (60+ countries and counting). In addition, she dedicates quite some time to sports, with running being her favourite activity. She is planning to run a full marathon next year and really hopes to get a medal for the Rotterdam marathon. Besides travelling and running, she loves food!

Demi has a hearing impairment. She has been wearing hearing aids in both ears since she was 5 years old. Although the impairment is not immediately visible, there are small daily struggles and moments when she is reminded of her hearing impairment.

Nowadays she mainly has difficulties in social environments when it is noisy and there are lot of overlapping sounds. Or in physical meetings at work with larger groups of people, it can be difficult and exhausting to follow conversations. Growing up, her disability made it really hard to fit in. As she could not hear well and thus could not take part in conversations, people thought she was boring, shy and uninterested, which gave her the reputation of "the quiet girl" who does not speak, even though she really wanted to be included.

The hearing aids do not automatically fix the hearing. It does not mean that once you wear them you can hear like a normal person. It takes real effort to piece together the exact message that is being conveyed as well as to fill the gaps and it can take time for her to be able to properly respond.

Demi also wishes people to understand that even though she is open about her hearing loss it does not always feel comfortable asking people to repeat themselves because she worries about interrupting them, slowing things down and or draw attention to herself. It’s a part of living with hearing loss that stays invisible to most people.

What could be improved? More accessible communication would make a huge difference. Clear subtitles or general captioning of what is being said on displays, think of for example announcements in trains or stations. And in schools, workplaces, or larger rooms, using microphones should be standard. It’s much more effective than someone asking, “Can everyone hear me?” and assuming the answer is yes.

People should know that although hearing loss shapes some parts of her life, it does not define who she is, there is so much more. She is a person with interests, ambitions and strengths like anyone else.

For Demi, true inclusion means being able to take part in conversations and activities without barriers and without having to prove herself. It is when others are aware of different needs, communicate clearly reduce background noise when possible and remain open to adapting when needed. Inclusion is not complicated. It begins with empathy and the willingness to listen.