Sometimes, it’s easy to know when you require medical help. When you break your leg, for example, you know you should go to the doctor (or the emergency room, depending on the scenario). You could need a splint or a cast or supportive device, but the thing is that you’re unlikely to try “toughing it out”. If you want your bones to heal properly, you need to get them treated as soon as possible.
It isn’t always that clear cut with regard to hearing aids, however. Hearing loss normally progresses really slowly over time. This means recognizing when to get treatment for hearing loss can be difficult.
That’s why it’s a good plan to watch out for some distinct signposts that you may be losing your ability to communicate. It’s likely time to call us for a consultation if you do notice any.
Hearing aids and hearing loss
Hearing loss is mainly treated with hearing aids. But everybody who has some level of hearing loss won’t automatically need hearing aids. Hearing aids won’t always be helpful in cases of mild hearing loss. Because of this, we might want you to wait before starting to use them. It’s also possible that we could instruct you to only use your hearing aids when you’re in specific situations.
This means that just because you are diagnosed with hearing loss doesn’t mean you will automatically need hearing aids.
However, hearing aids will be the ideal answer in many cases. Because hearing loss can be a sneaky and gradual condition, many people don’t receive a diagnosis until there’s been substantial damage. Getting your hearing assessed regularly is the key to catching hearing loss early and possibly mitigating the need for hearing aids.
So how will you know if you have hearing loss?
You need hearing aids if you detect these indicators
Immediate communication problems can be the consequence of hearing loss. But a lot of times you don’t even comprehend that hearing loss is the reason for those communication issues. So, when is it time for a hearing aid?
Here are a few of the typical signs you should look out for:
- Phone conversations sound muddled: Even the best phone speakers tend to flatten a voice. If you have hearing loss, this can make it even harder to understand conversations. Once again, specific frequencies are missing and the outcome is that it’s really hard to understand those voices.
- The volume on your devices is becoming really loud: If you’re always turning up the volume on your television or radio or smartphone, it might be the result of hearing loss. This is especially true if you keep turning that volume knob higher (and even more especially true if the people around you complain about how loud your media is).
- You have trouble understanding what people are saying: Many people feel like the overall volume of life is fine so they never consider that they might have hearing loss. But the thing about hearing loss is that certain frequencies of sound usually go before others. Due to this, things like vowel sounds in the higher register can sound distorted. As a result, you might have a hard time making out what people are saying to you.
- When you’re in very loud settings, you have a difficult time following conversations: When people ask, “What are the signs of hearing loss?”, this one almost always comes up. One of the surest indications of hearing loss is that you have difficulty following conversations in noisy locations, like bars or restaurants. This occurs because your ears aren’t getting as much information as they used to, and your brain isn’t really capable of filling in the gaps very easily. As a result, there’s a lot of muddled conversations.
So how should you deal with it?
When you break your leg, it’s obvious what to do: you go see the doctor! But what about when you notice these signs that you might need a hearing aid? What degree of hearing loss requires hearing aids? That isn’t a very easy answer but you should make an appointment with us for a hearing exam if you begin to experience any hearing loss symptoms. We will be able to inform you about how severe your hearing loss is.
A hearing evaluation will also help you get the best possible hearing aids for your requirements if you do indeed need hearing aids. Then you will be able to get back to enjoying good conversations with your friends and loved ones and doing the things you love.
Call us for a hearing exam so we can help you improve your quality of life.