Your workplace recently adopted the trend of open-office floor plans, promoting cooperation and teamwork. However, you find yourself struggling in this new setup. It’s because the elevated noise is making it difficult to follow along with conversation and not because you miss the privacy of cubical walls.
Even if mainstream hearing tests indicate perfectly fine hearing, the inability to hear conversations in loud environments is often an early sign of hearing loss. You still may have trouble discerning conversations even with “Normal” hearing.
Speech comprehension is a complex cognitive process that requires substantial brainpower. Differentiating speech from background noise and focusing on specific voices amidst a cacophony of sounds demands optimal hearing abilities.
As hearing starts to go, the brain encounters difficulties in isolating and processing speech signals amidst competing noises. As a result, settings like busy offices or crowded restaurants become mentally fatiguing.
How to identify the early signs of hearing loss
Here are a number of ways that early hearing loss can manifest:
- Difficulty understanding conversations in noisy environments.
- Social isolation.
- The brain has to work overtime to comprehend speech leading to increased mental tiredness.
Testing for hearing loss
Uncovering such challenges can be challenging, particularly when conventional diagnostics indicate normal hearing. Here are a couple of tests being developed by researchers to identify hearing loss in its early phases:
- Monitoring Electrical Signals: In this test, a device tracks the electrical EEG signals transmitted by your ears to your brain. If these signals change in a certain way while you’re in a crowded or noisy setting, that could be a strong indication of some problems with your hearing.
- The Eye Test: A special pair of glasses is utilized in this test. The movement and dilation of your pupils can be tracked with these glasses. If your pupils react in a certain way, it suggests that you’re concentrating a little harder than normal. So if this tends to occur in crowded or noisy areas, it could be a sign that you’re having to strain to hear.
Early intervention will be possible if these tests, coupled with personal observation, are able to identify hearing issues in their very early stages.
The Advantages of early detection
Discovering even slight hearing loss early offers two significant advantages.
- It alleviates frustration by providing clarity about the difficulties of being in places like open office plans.
- Dealing with hearing loss promptly prevents mental decline associated with untreated hearing impairments.
Consider finding help if you’re having difficulty understanding speech even with “normal” hearing.
Early detection ensures timely intervention, enhancing overall auditory health and cognitive function. Schedule a hearing test today and look into solutions right for you.