Deaf twins start lifestyle blog ‘Being Her’

Not only do deaf twins Hermon and Heroda always look stylish and confident, but they also stand as examples of embracing their hearing loss and living out their dreams through their lifestyle blog ‘Being Her’.

Born and raised in Eritrea, Africa, the Hermon and Heroda became deaf at age seven due to unknown causes. Although they have moderate hearing loss, they communicate using speech, British Sign Language and their Phonak hearing aids.

Being Her

Their blog ‘Being Her’, a play on words with their names, is about being identical twins, with one lifestyle but two different personalities! They feature topics such as travel, fashion, culture, and lifestyles.

Hermon is an actress and describes herself as laid back, bubbly and loud. Heroda, who quit her job to become a full-time blogger says she is sweet, innocent and fun.

Despite their differences, they also have twin-tuition, meaning that they have an extremely close connection.

“Our bond is unbreakable. We do many things together, finish each other’s sentences, and feel each other’s pain and mirror each other’s gestures,” they both said.

Inspired by their passion for fashion, they noticed that people were hungry for real inspiration. They set up their blog to share their journey, travels and fashion styles, in the hope to show a realistic view on life, while expressing their different personalities through their blog readers can relate to.

“We don’t strive to look or be perfect. It’s all about self-expression and individuality. We want to tell the world that you should embrace your disability or flaws and not hide from them,” they said.

“We want to tell the world that you should embrace your disability or flaws and not hide from them.”

Tackling obstacles in the working world

Navigating the world of work is a daunting task, but with a hearing loss, it can sometimes feel like you’re faced with barrier upon barrier. The twins studied at a fashion college and university, but unfortunately, they say their peers and tutors didn’t believe in their ambitious careers because of their hearing loss.

Despite the nay-sayers, they kept their heads held high and didn’t let anyone stop them from achieving their goals.

A need for deaf awareness in the workplace

Hermon applied for jobs within the fashion industry but was continuously rejected.

“It wasn’t easy but was challenging and opportunities were quite limited,” she says.

Heroda decided to give herself a challenge. She noticed her rejection by a well-known designer came only after they found out she is deaf, even though she can speak fluently. So she grabbed another opportunity with a different designer. This time she didn’t tell them that she was deaf, and funnily enough, they offered her a job.

Read more: Working with Hearing Loss: 7 Tips for Perfecting your Resumé

Another barrier that Heroda faced was that in a styling role. She says a person in the industry told her, “I don’t believe in you to do styling because I can’t trust you with the clients.”

She says examples like these show there is still a lack of deaf awareness in the workplace. The twins are hoping that through their blog, they can use these experiences to raise awareness.

Gaining strength and chasing after dreams

Hermon and Heroda have never let go of their dreams, despite the challenges and ignorance they have faced.  

“If you truly want to follow your dreams, go for it and catch every opportunity as it comes. We have learnt that if we get knocked down, we get back up and go again. We should not give up, not now, not ever, and nor should you,” the twins said. 

• Author Details

Author Details

Ellie Parfitt

Ellie was born profoundly deaf, uses verbal communication, lipreads and wears Phonak Sky Q hearing aids. She is currently learning British Sign Language. Ellie hasn’t let her disability stand in the way and embraces every new challenge. Her deafness didn’t prevent her from achieving major accomplishments in her life, such as excelling in her education, previously working as a Marketing Executive and now as an Events Coordinator for a deaf organization, as well as blogging for Hearing Like Me. She is passionate about deaf awareness, campaigning for equality and helping others through her personal blog as Deafie Blogger.