Many of you hearing people who have d/Deaf partners and/or family members know the “joys” of the d/Deaf alarm.
- The “beautiful” LOUD noise it makes when it goes off at 6:15am!! You start work at 10am.
- The “comforting” head-shaking vibrations when it slides its way under the bedsheets in the night to underneath your pillow.
- The “musical” beats that play when it falls down the back of the bed, wedges itself between the bed leg and the wall and you wake up in a sweat panic thinking the house is falling down until you realise what the noise is.
- Your partner/family member have left the house and finally you can enjoy a blissful and uninterrupted snooze before work. NOPE! Guess who forgot to turn their alarm off?
There have been many times when the alarm has incorporated itself into my dreams… I am sailing along the silky blue ocean, a soft breeze blowing through my hair and I’m looking up into the clear blue sky when I hear a tiny *bong*. I look around and noticed the ship’s foghorn signalling we have arrived at land.
I think to myself that the foghorn is rather quiet when it sounds again but louder. *BONG*. The foghorn noise begins to morph into another noise; *BOOOOOONNNGGGBBBBRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR………* I call this the d/Deaf foghorn alarm.
On other occasions, I wake up and Scott has gone to work. I like those times.
When Scott and his brother (also deaf) were younger. His Mum (both parents hearing) came up with a brilliant solution to stop their alarms constantly falling behind the beds and rattling against the wall.
She sewed a link to a ribbon, wrapped around the lead of the alarm and sewed it to the pillow. Problem solved! I might try that with Scott’s.
Verity works as a Support Worker for people with a single/dual sensory loss (d/Deaf, blind, d/Deafblind) and her family are all hearing. Scott is hard of hearing, works as a Furniture Maker and has mixed d/Deaf and hearing family. They have been together for 4 years, engaged for 1 year and their wedding is next year. They say: “We have written a blog about the funny side of our d/Deaf and hearing relationship and we hope you enjoy reading it!” Read it here.
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Sam
August 6, 2015
I remember I once left my alarm clock inside a metal tin full of pencils…and forgot to turn it off. I think that it made rather a racket!!! Oops
James
August 6, 2015
Once, my alarm somehow found its way to my armpit – the absolute terror I felt when it went off was only matched by the sheer relief I had when I realised it wasn’t a life-threatening medical emergency.