Even if you are certain that your hearing is in excellent condition, it is still crucial to safeguard this critical sense.
After all, hearing loss affects much than just your ability to follow conversations and listen to your favorite music. Your mental health and general wellbeing may also be significantly impacted by it.
Table of Contents
Signs of Hearing Loss
Do you frequently ignore the sound of a ringing bell or phone? You may be less able to hear high-pitched noises if you have hearing loss. Other times, it may be difficult to tell between certain sounds, such “s” and “f,” while someone is speaking. Some persons who have hearing loss also have hypersensitivity to certain sounds, which can be painful.
Do you frequently increase the volume of the speakers even when other people believe it is appropriate? Even in movie theaters, your hearing could be compromised. If you’re watching media alongside others, you could feel constrained by this.
Do you find it difficult to comprehend your friends, family, or coworkers in casual conversations? You could find yourself asking them to repeat themselves frequently or having a lot of communication breakdowns. It may feel as though people are speaking softly when you are on the phone or attempting to converse with them at the dinner table.
What Causes Hearing Loss?
Understanding the many variables that might cause hearing loss is the first step in safeguarding your hearing. Age-related impairments and noise-induced impairments are the two main categories of hearing loss.
Age-related Hearing Loss
Your inner ear, middle ear, and nerve pathways alter as you age, gradually reducing your hearing. In fewer instances, hearing loss may also result from problems in the outer ear. The problem is accelerated by other variables such high blood pressure, drugs that destroy sensory receptors, and years of loud exposure.
For instance, one in three seniors in the United States between the ages of 65 and 74 has some degree of hearing loss. And nearly half of seniors over 75 have hearing issues.
Noise-induced Hearing Loss
Sensory hair cells in your ears, used to hear sounds, can be harmed by loud noises, like the abrupt crack of fireworks and the prolonged roar of construction machinery. Once harmed, cells cannot repair themselves.
Anyone, regardless of age, can suffer NIHL. Depending on the degree, the damage may affect one or both ears, and you may experience progressive or abrupt hearing loss.
Nearly 24 percent of American people may have NIHL, and males are more likely to have it than women. Additionally, as a result of noise damage, about 17% of teenagers may also battle with hearing loss.
Hearing Loss & Emotional Difficulties
Having hearing loss can lead to a number of emotional difficulties. Perhaps having to ask family members to repeat themselves drives you crazy. Or maybe you feel like you’re losing out on private phone calls with far away buddies. You can even feel the impulse to avoid social settings because you feel embarrassed about your poor hearing.
It’s critical to not undervalue these feelings. Hearing loss and the loneliness and helplessness that frequently accompany it can aggravate mental health issues like:
Anxiety
According to research, those who have hearing loss frequently feel more anxious. You might be concerned about the rate at which your hearing loss will deteriorate or whether the available treatments can save your hearing. You might be concerned about miscommunication or judgment in social settings.
Dementia and Cognitive Decline
In older adults, hearing loss can hasten cognitive decline and increase the risk of illnesses like Alzheimer’s disease. The relationship between hearing loss and cognitive decline may be explained by:
- The capacity of the brain to accomplish other activities is compromised since it must work harder to perceive the world without noises.
- Being socially awkward due to hearing loss. The subsequent seclusion hastens cognitive aging.
- As your brain receives and processes fewer impulses, certain areas may start to shrink.
Psychosis
Psychosis, a disorder that can cause symptoms including hallucinations and delusions, can be risked by hearing loss. People with hearing loss may have auditory hallucinations more frequently than others, such as hearing voices and hearing music. This could be brought on by loneliness or problems with memory and perception in the brain.
Issues With Sleep
Your sleep hygiene may suffer if your hearing is impaired. You then run the risk of developing other diseases, such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and depression. Tinnitus has been linked to disturbed sleep, according to one research.
Depression
People who have hearing loss are more likely to suffer from despair and have suicide thoughts. You could lament the absence of specific noises or struggle with emotions of loneliness.
Perhaps you believe that having hearing loss also limits your capacity for independence, which may diminish your perception of your own value.