Try: Use a cotton swab taking care not to bend the contacts dirty battery contacts can cause the hearing aid not to work properly remove earwax from hearing aid to prevent temporary malfunction or permanent damage clean hearing aid using the small brush or the soft cloth that came with it never insert tools into the sound outlet doing so could damage the receiver if cr can’t clean the hearing aid completely ask a hearing professional for help change filters often so they don’t collect wax or dirt earwax build up may prevent sounds from traveling from the hearing aid into the middle ear make sure cr’s ear canals are cleaned regularly

Materials: Cotton swabs small brush or the soft cloth that came with hearing aid hearing aid filters

Categories: Sage, Topic, Communication, Medical Physical, Hearing, So-So Hearing, Poor Hearing

Information: n/a

References: care & maintenance by starkey laboratories inc 2007 available at

Keywords: Hearing hearing aid ears earwax

*This information is listed as a Tip and is not explicitly medically licensed

Try: Write down the basic instructions for making and receiving calls voice mail and using the contact list put the instructions on the refrigerator in the living room and in other places where the cr spends alot of time also put the instructions in the glove compartment of the cr cr’s car enter cr’s contact list and add additional numbers as needed if possible reset the calling and answering modes of the phone to an easy-to-remember option consider getting the cr a cell phone with the following features very easy to use a basic phone with only the the needed functions a phone with alot of extra bells and whistles may be very confusing to the cr and difficult to use large key pad that is easy to manipulate with the fingers easy to read screen with very large letters easy to read key pad for example white letters on black keys earpiece with a loud volume and clarity

Materials: Pen and paper

Categories: Communication, Maintenance, Some Supervision, Maximum Supervision, Fully Aware, Somewhat Aware

Information: n/a

References: n/a

Keywords: Cell phone telephone communication

*This information is listed as a Tip and is not explicitly medically licensed

Try: Singing phrases can help the cr learn to regulate his breathing since stutterers normally don’t stutter while singing as the cr speaks he should exhale his breath cr should not put extreme pressure on him one of the things that causes stuttering is anxiety the real method to stop stuttering is to learn how to regulate breathing while speaking

Materials: n/a

Categories: Sage, Topic, Communication, Emotional Psychological, Medical Physical

Information: n/a

References: tips on how to stop stuttering by ari kreitberg available at

Keywords: Stutters speech communication

*This information is listed as a Tip and is not explicitly medically licensed

Try: Suggest that the cr think about the words he wants to vocalize before he tries to speak them the cr should try to be exactly sure of the word or words he is about to say when the cr begins to speak he should speak slowly suggest that the cr inhale deeply before he begins to speak cr might also want to learn some relaxation techniques so he can relax before speaking it may also be helpful if the cr practices forming a rhythm to his voice that he can hear in his head

Materials: n/a

Categories: Sage, Topic, Communication, Emotional Psychological, Medical Physical

Information: n/a

References: tips on how to stop stuttering by ari kreitberg available at

Keywords: Stutters speech communication anxiety stress

*This information is listed as a Tip and is not explicitly medically licensed

Try: Set communication goals try to get the cr to talk a little bit when in different environments try to help the cr become more comfortable as he works through his anxiety over social situations visit the cr at the day center or other places where the cr spends time out of the house where only the care giver cg and family members are present visit with the cr when there there’s no one else around never pressure the cr to speak no matter how embarrassed others may feel

Materials: n/a

Categories: Sage, Topic, Communication, Emotional Psychological

Information: n/a

References: how to deal with a child’s selective mutism available at

Keywords: Won’t talk silence refuses to speak mute anxiety shy

*This information is listed as a Tip and is not explicitly medically licensed

Try: Role-play situations that are difficult for the cr make them realistic but non-threatening build up to conflicts and explain to the cr how he or she can get through them without something bad happening encourage the cr to tell stories that he or she created or from real life experiences the excitement of telling a story may help the cr forget his or her shyness about speaking suggest the cr start with people that he or she is comfortable with and gradually expand the audience

Materials: n/a

Categories: Communication, Emotional Psychological, Social, Fully Aware, Somewhat Aware

Information: n/a

References: Adapted from the intenet website www ehow com how to deal with a child child’s selective mutism by staff writer no date

Keywords: Won’t talk silence refuses to speak mute anxiety shy

*This information is listed as a Tip and is not explicitly medically licensed

Try: Try to understand that the cr isn’t trying to insult anyone he isn’t behaving in an odd way the cr may be scared to talk create a nurturing environment at home make the cr feel safe to talk about anything he wants without being ridiculed take everything he says seriously

Materials: n/a

Categories: Sage, Topic, Communication, Emotional Psychological

Information: n/a

References: how to deal with a child’s selective mutism available at

Keywords: Won’t talk silence refuses to speak mute anxiety shy

*This information is listed as a Tip and is not explicitly medically licensed

Try: First make sure that the care recipient’s cr rude behavior is truly inappropriate and not biased by your personal feelings towards the individual try to understand the reasons for cr’s rudeness ask why they are feeling upset or why they are in an unpleasant mood offer assistance with simple tasks that could be frustrating the cr this may alleviate some of the cr’s rude behavior focus on the positive characteristics of the cr by thinking of the cr’s good qualities it may make it easier to work with the rude behavior ultimately the cr could just have an unpleasant attitude that is not caused by anything unnatural

Materials: n/a

Categories: Communication, Emotional Psychological, Medical Physical, Social

Information: n/a

References: n/a

Keywords: Behavior temperment

*This information is listed as a Tip and is not explicitly medically licensed

Try: Make a note of what actions or conversations are annoying to the cr avoid those conversations or actions in the future if those actions or conversations are unavoidable prepare the cr in advance and let him or her know what to expect for example if the cr is always annoyed when you help him or her walk to the dinner table let the cr know the time it will occur and how many minutes he or she has before this happens

Materials: Pen pencil notebook

Categories: Communication, Emotional Psychological, Social

Information: n/a

References: n/a

Keywords: Annoy annoying agitate irritate distress disturb trouble worry

*This information is listed as a Tip and is not explicitly medically licensed

Try: If the cr can write help him or her write thoughts or needs on paper if the cr can’t communicate read or write accurately create pictures of everyday situations by drawing or cutting them from magazines and attaching to cardstock when the time comes to take a nap watch tv or eat dinner find a corresponding picture of the activity and show it to the cr wait for the cr to recognize and respond to the picture if possible before proceeding with the activity encourage the cr to use the pictures to communicate his or her needs to you and to others

Materials: Pen pencil notebook colored pictures magazines scissors cardstock

Categories: Communication, Social, So-So Verbal Comm, Poor Verbal Comm, Fully Aware, Somewhat Aware

Information: The loss of ability to speak coherently is sometimes referred to as aphasia

References: n/a

Keywords: Aphasia communicate communication converse writing reading understanding speech

*This information is listed as a Tip and is not explicitly medically licensed