You’re not quite sure why, but you’ve been feeling cranky lately. Well, it was irritating earlier this morning when you felt left out of the meeting at the office. Your daughter got up and abruptly left the house after becoming irritated when you kept asking her to turn the volume on the TV up. Why would she do that?
Did you ever stop to think that perhaps you could be suffering from hearing loss?
Hearing loss is an issue for around 40 million individuals in the US and can sneak up on you with age. And, the problem doesn’t end at your ears, either. Research indicates that even minor hearing loss puts you at risk for memory problems, cognitive decline, and even depression. You could have a manageable medical condition causing your hearing loss but you think it’s merely a sign of aging. Perhaps, your co-workers didn’t leave you out of the conversation after all, perhaps you missed critical conversational queues because you couldn’t hear them. The fact is, if you can’t hear very well during your day-to-day life, it can become extremely frustrating.
Get the facts about hearing loss
A good place to begin is finding out more about what you’re coping with. For many individuals, hearing loss is a natural side effect of getting older. But for other people, it may be due to years of noise overexposure. Noise-related hearing loss can be caused by many noise sources, including mowing the lawn and leaf blowing, listening to loud music, and driving in heavy traffic with the window down. The fragile mechanisms in your ear can be damaged by lots of noises in the world.
Another potential source of hearing loss is chronic disease that becomes more prevalent with age. When you have conditions that cause problems with your blood pressure, your inner ear can become damaged.
Recognize the signs
People typically don’t detect when their hearing begins to go because hearing is frequently taken for granted:
- You frequently say “what” and often need people to repeat what they said
- When there is background sound, like an AC or fan running, you struggle to hear words
- You always feel like you are being excluded from the discussions
If you recognize any of these hearing loss indicators, it’s no wonder you’re cranky! Feeling separated from your world can trigger depression and even social isolation.
Treating hearing loss
One of the initial things you can do is ask family and friends if they have seen you having a hard time hearing. It’s an important discussion even if it’s a challenging one. If if they answer ‘yes’ then scheduling a hearing exam should be your next move and will clarify things for you. Try to get a family member to go along with you to your exam. It can be helpful to have a calm and supportive person with you.
Your hearing examination will not only help to verify your hearing loss but it will also gauge the degree of it. Depending on the results of your test, we will be able to specify your best plan going forward. Normally, hearing aids will be a major part of the treatment plan. Don’t worry, there are so many options and features that you’re sure to find hearing aids that are perfect for your lifestyle!
How to select quality hearing aids
We’ll have recommendations that will be best suited for your individual type of hearing loss. You will most likely need to evaluate a few brands and models before you discover the best fit for your specific taste and hearing needs. Today’s hearing aids do a lot more than just amplify sound. They can pinpoint the direction that sound is coming from, block out background sound, and even link to smartphones and computers. Different brands and types of hearing aids include different features, so do some research to determine what features you require to improve your life.
And, remember to consider styles. They come in lots of fashionable colors or with no color at all, so they are practically invisible.
If you think you’re experiencing hearing loss, schedule an appointment with our qualified hearing specialists right away. Don’t you think it’s time to take action and end your grumpy state of mind?
References
https://www.ncoa.org/adviser/hearing-aids/hearing-loss-america/