7 hearing loss related Instagram accounts you should be following

Instagram is a showcase of the knowledge, talent and cultural richness of the hearing loss community.

My favorite accounts focus on things like Deaf history, bilingual literacy, and equal access to music for children with hearing loss. Below are some Instagram accounts that I love to follow:

Melissa Malzkuhn: @mezmalz

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Welcome to CONNECT art exhibition! Proud to be the solo deaf artist representing our beautiful community 🙌 Excited to see you guys tonight!! And for you guys not in DC, your support means so much!! @rawartistswdc @acreativedc @rawartists @tosignishuman #beinyourelement #tosignishuman #deafartist #signlanguage #deafcommunity

A post shared by melissa malzkuhn (@mezmalz) on Jul 26, 2018 at 3:54pm PDT

Melissa is a Deaf artist, Obama Fellow and app developer at Gallaudet University. She’s also mom to an adorable son, who has hearing loss. Melissa develops fun, user-friendly apps aimed at bilingual language acquisition. For adults, there’s the ASL App. For children, she developed VL2 Storybook apps. These apps support parents in learning sign language and sharing reading time with their child.

Equal Access Resources: @EqualAccess

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#ASL101 When signing a directional verb to or from someone there is no need to point or sign the pronoun "YOU, ME, THEY,…" etc. If you were to sign "HELP ME" or "GIVE YOU" for example, the direction of the sign already indicates the giver and recipient. #ASL #learnASL #americansignlanguage #Howtosign #ASLinterpreter #CODA #saveASL

A post shared by Equal Access Resources (@equalaccess) on Aug 16, 2018 at 1:29pm PDT

Equal Access Resources was founded by Brent Tracy, a CODA, child of a Deaf adult. Brent grew up using ASL as his first language. His sign language videos are a lens into the unique grammatical and syntactical worlrrd of a native ASL signer. As a new language learner, he pushes me to advance my skills and learn more about ASL’s beauty and quirks.

Emma Faye Rudkin: @EmmaFayeRudkin

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There are new faces and names on this page recently which means opportunities to make new friends 🙌🏻 I want to introduce myself for those who might be confused at the sign language and all things deaf! It’s something new for a lot of people! I became deaf at 3 years old. Early on I saw life wasn’t fair as a deaf person in a hearing world. I used to be angry and closed off from the world. Then I met Jesus and all those wasted years have been restored to me in the FULLNESS OF JOY. I am living out the best season because I finally said “yes!” to my craziest God dreams at 18 years old. I founded Aid the Silent to provide all sorts of ASL classes, classroom equipment and hearing aids to deaf teens & children. The best is giving out summer camp and starting Deaf Young Life in SA. Camp is where I met Jesus in the first place so I’m obsessed with all things involving camp. I work full-time in deaf ministry, part of my job is meeting deaf people who may be hurt/angry and start conversations involving hope. I became the first Miss San Antonio who was deaf and the 1st one to win 2x since 1923. 2018, I became San Antonio’s Woman of the Year. I view these opportunities as platforms to proclaim the very Good News I have been learning… I am not stuck in old things but I have a new life because of Jesus. I travel the country to speak about these stories and I meet people from all walks of life. From people with disabilities to little children to 80 year old veterans, these past 4 years are covered with beautiful people and their stories. Here are some of my “joys” and please share some of yours too… 1. The morning stillness. I brew coffee, make oatmeal, sit and read for a good 30 mins in the same spot on my couch. Every. Single. Morning. 2. If I have extra hearing aid batteries and another deaf person needs them. I feel like the hearing aid fairy 🧚‍♀️ 3. My pajamas are matching sets. It makes me feel organized in a chaotic life. 4. Aid the Silent and videos of deaf babies reacting to hearing aids being turned on 😭 5. If someone intentionally pursues my friendship and does the little things like making tea and coloring with me. #aidthesilent #showyouraids #deaftalent

A post shared by EmmaFaye Rudkin (@emmafayerudkin) on Jun 7, 2018 at 9:47am PDT

Emma Faye Rudkin is a Deaf woman from Texas, formerly Miss San Antonio. She organizes camps for Deaf youth and the Good Vibrations Music Festival. She shares her experiences with being Deaf, including how she overcame childhood struggles with inclusion and self-acceptance. She is a source of inspiration and a bright, positive role model for the next generation of Deaf kids.

Matt Maxey: @maxeymaxey

Matt Maxey is a hard-of-hearing music lover and creator of Deafinitely Dope, which unites ASL and Hip Hop music. He is best known for interpreting concerts for Chance the rapper and recently was featured signing promos for the MTV Video Music Awards. He shares his journey to embrace his identity as a hard of hearing person through music.

Read more: Follow Friday: 10 Phonak hEARos to follow on Instagram

Eloise Garland: @eloisegarland

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Enjoying a bit of bedtime listening 🎶 Despite being a professional musician it's a rare occurrence for me to sit down and simply listen to music: almost every moment of my waking hours is spent concentrating on communicating with people and quite frankly, it can be exhausting. This means that when I'm not working hard to communicate, I tend to 'switch off' from sound altogether – and that includes music. On the rare occasion that I do take the time to listen to something, I enjoy reading the score, too – as a deafie it gives me so much more information than just listening alone! Good job Richard and I have an ever-growing collection of mini scores at home! #music #musician #orchestra #shostakovich #musicscore #violinist #violin #symphony #bedtime #bedtimelistening #deafmusician #hearingaids #rogerpen #phonak #LifeisOn

A post shared by Eloise Garland (@eloisegarland) on Jun 23, 2018 at 2:54pm PDT

Eloise Garland is a Deaf violinist and teacher working with deaf and hard of hearing kids to promote access and inclusion in music. She shares her passion and perspective as a Deaf musician, including her experiences wearing Phonak hearing aids. Eloise is bilingual, using spoken English and British Sign Language. Her Instagram account shares ways to engage deaf and hard of hearing kids in the study of music.

Stacy Abrams: @whyisign

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A couple of days ago, I visited the University of Northern Colorado’s ASL program. I wanted to learn more about their program and meet some of the faculty (teachers, coordinators, etc) & share some Clerc Center resources as well. It was great seeing some of my friends working there. Sharing some information from their website: www.unco.edu/ASLIS. UNC’s Department of American Sign Language and Interpreting Studies (ASLIS) mission statement is: Quality instruction preparing culturally and linguistically competent interpreters, teachers and users of American Sign Language. Take some classes there if you are nearby! #whyisign #askmewhyisign #uncaslis #asl #signlanguage

A post shared by whyIsign: Stacy Abrams (@whyisign) on Sep 15, 2018 at 8:56pm PDT

The #WhyISign campaign was created by Stacy Abrams, a Deaf woman whose mission is to support and connect hearing families with Deaf communities. Her Instagram account features #WhyISign videos from sign language users around the world. The engaging, heartfelt stories are signed by a diverse collection of signers – new moms, CODAs, Deaf students, medical professionals and even an occasional Deaf celebrity.

Stacey Valle: @deafinitelywanderlust

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“how do you beat your fears? Because I am scared to travel,” someone once asked me. For many Deaf and Hard of Hearing people, it can be quite scary for some of them to travel. It is scary because we were not only naturally need to watch out for a couple of things (such as fire alarm in the hostel), but it is because many are conditioned to be scared of many things by the society, especially by their own family. They have taught them what they can do, and what they cannot do. The society taught that they need held hands with others and don’t let go the hands of Hearing people (referring to those who are not Deaf or Hard of Hearing). I literally met a mother who hovers over her 18 years old Deaf son and has a very poor independent and advocacy skills. He told me that he was scared of traveling because he’s Deaf. Because of this, many Deaf and Hard of hearing adopted a fear of traveling. I’ve been asked how could I overcome my fear of traveling despite being Deaf. There’s no right answer because everyone has their own journey. I once feared how the hell am I going do if I ever needed to approach the police who may not know English if I needed to report sexual assault or other possibilities that could happen. It is scary, no doubt; I’m not going to lie about that. But. I reminded myself that I am so much more than just my hearing. I am so much more than how the society perceives me. I have my instincts, and I’ve learned to trust them. I have eyes, and I have the capability of reading facial expressions and body languages, even better than Hearing people. I could tell what doesn’t feel right with particular people. My instinct would scream, and I listened. I could get by through gestures or find effective communication through Google Translation (although it sucks at times), writing on notes, etc. I can do anything. anything. For Deaf & Hard of Hearing people: Have you ever had fear of traveling? Or anxiety? How do you overcome this? Hearing people: Have you ever thought of how the society instill fears in many Deaf people? Did you ever once think that Deaf people cannot travel unless they have a Hearing companion or tools. #pocdeaftraveler #deafkissfisttravel

A post shared by Stacey | Deaf Traveler 🇲🇽🇺🇸 (@deafinitelywanderlust) on Jul 20, 2018 at 9:32am PDT

Stacey Valle’s Instagram account is a visually stunning collection of photos from her world travels. What sets Stacey’s Instagram apart from the average travel diary is her travel tips tailored for people with hearing loss. She shares how to manage communication challenges in foreign countries. She also connects with local Deaf communities. Her journey to Taiwan included meeting Deaf entrepreneurs and learning some local sign language. Her next stop is Mongolia!

Read more: Travel Tips from Blogger ‘Deafinitely Wanderlust’

Be sure to follow Phonak and Hearing Like Me on Instagram too! 

• Author Details

Author Details

morgansnook

Morgan Snook is a writer from the Pennsylvania Wilds region. She enjoys being outdoors with her husband and two beautiful daughters. Her youngest daughter has mild-to-moderately severe bilateral sensorineural hearing loss, probably genetic. She wears Phonak Sky hearing aids, which she got at three months old.