- Common Hearing Aid Problems & How to Fix Them - June 14, 2021
- Why People Avoid Treating Hearing Loss — and Why You Should Schedule a Hearing Test! - May 21, 2021
- Common Hearing Aid Problems & How to Fix Them - May 14, 2021
Communication is a two-way exchange. It takes at least two people to understand and respond appropriately. Imagine the struggle that starts to surface when communication is muddled on one side or both. Our relationships are built on a foundation of healthy communication, whether it is with friends, co-workers or your closest intimate relationships.
For those living with undiagnosed hearing loss this is the scenario that they must endure on a daily basis. Despite people’s ability to communicate ideas without spoken language being able to hear clearly is the most common and clearest way. People who have spent their entire life relying on their ears to collect information and ideas from others and the outside world can often feel lost as they start to struggle with hearing loss. This can be incredibly frustrating when miscommunication becomes commonplace and can lead to fatigue and depression.
Sadly, it is the people closest to you that take on the brunt of this stress. When you ignore your hearing loss it’s the relationships with the people you love that suffer the most.
Communicating with Untreated Hearing Loss
When hearing loss is untreated it is your relationships that suffer the most. Lack of communication leads to built up resentment in family. At work not being able to communicate clearly can impact how much co-workers and supervisors rely on you ultimately affecting your earning potential. In your social life hearing loss creates a hurdle, as it is harder to participate in casual conversations. When hearing loss is not treated it becomes hard to single out voices in a crowded or noisy room. The anxiety of not being able to hear in group settings often makes social events you used to look forward to into a source of anxiety and avoidance. When people no longer get joy from social settings they tend to withdraw and socially isolate. This can lead to unneeded extreme cases depression. When people realize that all they have to do is start wearing hearing aids to make social situations more appealing again treatment seems like a great option.
Hearing Loss and Speech Recognition
When an individual suffers from hearing loss speech recognition is often the first to diminish. It can suddenly be hard for someone to hear certain consonants and syllables. Certain tones will often be harder to hear like people with high pitch voices such as children. You can hear that people are speaking but your brain struggles to understand the intent. This puts a strain on your brain to piece together what is being communicated with limited information. Extreme fatigue in people with undiagnosed hearing loss is common as your cognitive energy is working overtime instead of being distributed evenly to all aspects of the brains work. When this is allowed to go on for too long strained relationships may not have the opportunity to heal as untreated hearing loss has been linked to a higher risk of dementia. Don’t let your hearing issues progress to this point. The most common and effective treatment for hearing loss is hearing aids.
Seeking Treatment
When you understand the extreme risk of not treating hearing loss it becomes clearer than ever to seek help for your condition. The problem is that often people don’t realize that they are living with hearing loss at all. Hearing loss often develops slowly over many years of hearing. It is usually the people closest to you that first suggest that you might have a problem. This is an act of care on your loved one’s part if they take the time and energy to let you know you might have a problem and it should not be a source of resentment. The best thing to do if your loved ones suggest you have a hearing loss is to schedule a hearing test right away. The longer hearing loss goes untreated the worse the associated illnesses and strain on your relationships can progress.
Heal Your Relationships
Hearing aids are remarkably effective at restoring hearing ability in many contexts. The benefits of hearing aids in being able to navigate socially at home and out in the world are immense. Your relationships can start to heal and your social life can have a renaissance that connects you to the world again. Seek treatment today. The benefits are too valuable to put off any longer.