Learning from couples living with sensory loss

Peer support offers powerful benefits that promote the well-being of both patients and caregivers. From sharing personal experiences to exchanging advice, encouragement, and reassurance, peer support has been shown to reduce stress by alleviating social isolation, creating a space for mutual self-disclosure, and fostering a sense of togetherness among individuals facing a similar health condition (Marinelli. Springer, 1999). In the context of sensory loss, peer support is a common online and/or in-person feature of intervention services (Group Dyn. 2002;6(1):78; J Vis Impair Blind. 1994;88(2):152). Despite the widespread recognition of its value, studies on peer support in sensory loss are dominated by voices of researchers and rehabilitation specialists, drowning those of people actually dealing with sensory loss. As such, we shifted the focus to individuals with hearing, vision, or dual sensory loss and their spouses or partners to examine their recommendations for coping and peer support in the relational context—a topic not often covered in research or in peer support forums.