Dating can be tricky at the best of times.
It’s often hard to find people with shared life experience, interests, and compatibility. Throw a linguistic barrier in there as well and it becomes a minefield. There are plenty of online dating websites and apps for smartphones out there at the moment which can be wonderful to help people start dating. These give you the chance to message people before agreeing to meet up for an in-person date. This could be good news for Deaf people who are happy to date hearing people, as not all hearing people use a form of Sign Language. However, there are also websites targeted towards Deaf singles, including LGBT+ Deaf singles. Here is a list of just a few I have found online:
In a 2018 episode of First Dates Ireland, a Deaf gay man was set up with a hearing gay man, both used Sign Language. In this clip from the show they discuss their different experiences dating other men from a Deaf or hearing perspective.
RTÉ2 (2018) First Dates Ireland’s First Signed Date \ First Dates Ireland \ RTÉ2. [Online video] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nyoGD8wNkF0 [Accessed: 13/05/2020]