In the US, one in three people age 65 and older experience some degree of hearing loss. For people age 75 and older, the number rises to 50%. If you’ve been dealing with changes in your hearing on your own for a year or two now, it may feel as though you have things under control. As such, you’ve yet to set foot inside a hearing specialist’s office, since you don’t think you need a hearing aid.
However, you may have had a lot more trouble following conversations, especially if you’re somewhere with a lot of background noise. You didn’t want to admit to your family and friends that you’ve been struggling to hear, but now it’s starting to become obvious in all the jokes that have made others laugh or all the conversational cues you’ve completely missed. Over time, people with untreated hearing loss tend to withdraw socially, to avoid awkward interactions due to challenges with hearing. Wouldn’t you rather get back enjoying a vibrant social life?
Age Related Hearing Loss
Age related hearing loss is one of the most common forms of hearing loss. It is the natural deterioration of our hearing as we age, due to gradual cell damage in the ears and the brain. It can be hard to pinpoint just when this kind of hearing loss started, since it creeps up on you slowly. You also have lots of time to adjust and make accommodations for your slow hearing loss as time goes on, so you may not realize just how bad it’s getting.
If you want an honest opinion about your hearing, ask your loved ones with whom you spend your days. They may tell you that the TV volume is always too high, or remind you of how many times you’ve missed the phone, or how you never hear them from the next room. The problem with making accommodations for your hearing loss is you might not know when to stop – you may not even notice that you’re making these accommodations. Some accommodations, like asking people to talk a little slower, are a great way to keep you hearing clearly, but when you start making accommodations that affect your social life, you’re doing more harm than good.
Hearing Loss and Quality of Life
If you’ve been dealing with hearing loss for a while, you know that it has a big impact or your quality of life. You try to keep up with conversations, but often lag behind, or have to ask people to repeat themselves since you’ve missed too many important words to guess at the meaning of what they’re saying. You don’t enjoy music much anymore since you can’t really hear it, or can only really hear the bass line. You will feel disconnected with your friends and loved ones as communication breaks down, and will experience more stress and anxiety. This also puts you at a much higher risk of depression, rapid cognitive decline, and even dementia.
How does hearing loss affect your social life? You’ve recently chosen to stay home from your granddaughter’s birthday party, and didn’t meet your friends for Saturday afternoon coffee. Maybe you’ve dropped out of your rec league baseball team, since you never quite understand what’s going on anymore, and you’re worried about letting your teammates down.
Avoiding social situations might seem like a good move in the short term, since you can avoid the embarrassment that comes with not hearing what’s been said or accidentally answering inappropriately. The sad fact is that this isolation will worsen, and may lead to more problems including worsening hearing, and damaged relationships.
Test Your Hearing
If you want to stay social, safeguard those relationships you value so much, or enjoy a concert with your kids, our best advice to you is to get your hearing tested. You know you’ve been missing things in conversations, and are considering dropping out of the social activities you love so much. Rather than isolating yourself, why not consider getting a hearing assessment, and exploring all your options? You’ll never regret being able to hear.
On average, most American’s wait 5 to 7 years before getting a hearing test and taking the first step in hearing health! Think of all the relationships you’ll damage or lose in all those years of not being able to hear. Don’t cancel any more plans, or choose to stay home from another ball game.
Visit us at the nearest My Hearing Centers to talk with our trained hearing specialists. We provide comprehensive hearing tests, and if a hearing loss is detected, we will find devices that will fit seamlessly into your life and keep you connected to the people and things that you love.