How to Deal With a Boyfriend Who Talks Loudly

Sure, it's annoying and sometimes embarrassing when your boyfriend's voice is the loudest in the room. There are some simple steps to helping him work on his vocal volume control and a few things you can do that might surprise you a bit.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

1. Hurting someone's feelings never solves a problem. You might get ignored or avoided, which may seem like a solution but the truth is you've only managed to create bad feelings and the real problem is still there. So your first step is to remember that unless you're ready to make his loud voice a deal breaker, take a step back and try to imagine how you would want someone to approach you in a similar situation.
2. Once you've gotten rid of the instinct to embarrass his bad habit out of him, figure out when and under what circumstances his voice seems to get most out of control. If it is a constant thing, then you should take steps to make sure he does not have any type of hearing impairment. If he seems louder in casual social settings, try having a catch phrase or gesture that is agreed upon by both of you. When his voice gets over the top, use your phrase or gesture in a kind way to bring it to his attention. After all, barring any physical reason this is mostly about breaking a habit.
3. Positive affirmation works on people of all ages. When we do something well, we love to see that it has a nice affect on others. When your boyfriend controls his voice with or without your catch phrase, never forget to tell him how much you appreciate his effort and how pleasant his conversation is when it doesn't overpower you. It's not a race to see if you can "fix" him. You'll need patience and a good sense of humor never hurts when dealing with delicate situations!

Tips & Warnings

• The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association offers an online self test to help determine if you might have hearing loss