In some cases, it’s easy to identify when you need medical advice. When you break a bone, for example, you know you should go to the doctor (or the emergency room, depending on the situation). With scenarios like this, simply “toughing it out” isn’t a possibility. If you want your bones to heal properly, you need to get them taken care of as soon as possible.
But with regard to hearing aids, it isn’t always so easy to know when it’s time to get some help. Hearing loss is usually a developing condition. This means it’s not always simple to know when you may need to start using hearing aids or to delay seeking treatment you know could be helpful.
That’s why it’s a good plan to keep an eye out for some particular signposts that you might be losing your ability to communicate. It’s probably time to call us for a consultation if you do detect any.
Hearing aids and hearing loss
Hearing loss is primarily treated with hearing aids. But everyone who has some degree of hearing loss won’t necessarily need hearing aids. Hearing aids won’t always be helpful in cases of minor hearing loss. Consequently, we might want you to wait before beginning to use them. In addition, you may be directed to wear hearing aids only in specific situations.
This means that just because you are diagnosed with hearing loss doesn’t mean you will automatically need hearing aids.
But in many situations hearing aids will be the best answer. Many people won’t have their hearing loss diagnosed until it becomes more serious because hearing loss develops slowly and often goes unnoticed for a while. But if you come in for a hearing exam regularly, you may be able to catch your hearing loss early, and, because of this, you might not require hearing aids immediately.
And if that’s the situation, you’re probably thinking: how can I tell if I require hearing aids?
Signs you need a hearing aid
Hearing loss is one of those conditions that can produce immediate communication obstacles. The interesting thing, though, is that you don’t always comprehend that those communication difficulties are caused by hearing loss. So, when is it time for a hearing aid?
Here are some of the common signs you should watch out for:
- When people speak, you can’t always understand what they said: Many individuals feel like the overall volume of life is fine so they never imagine that they may have hearing loss. But hearing loss is curious, it tends to affect specific frequencies before others. Due to this, things like vowel sounds in the higher register can sound distorted. Consequently, you may have a hard time understanding what people are saying to you.
- You listen to the radio or TV at high volumes: If you’re always turning up the volume on your television or radio or smartphone, it might be due to hearing loss. If you find individuals around you complaining about the loud volume of your devices, this is particularly true.
- You’re unable to understand people on the phone: Even the best phone speakers tend to flatten a voice. If you have hearing loss, this can make it even harder to understand conversations. Again, specific frequencies are missing and the result is that it’s very hard to understand those voices.
- When you’re in noisy locations, you have a difficult time following conversations: This is probably one of the most prevailing symptoms of hearing loss. One of the surest indications of hearing loss is that you have trouble following conversations in noisy locations, like bars or restaurants. This happens because your ears are not receiving as much information as they used to, and your brain isn’t really able to fill in the gaps as easily. A lot of conversations get muddled as a result.
So how should you deal with it?
Obviously, you know exactly what you have to do when you break a bone! But what about when you experience these indications that you may need a hearing aid? How bad does hearing loss need to be to call for a hearing aid? Well, that’s difficult to answer, but when you begin experiencing these signs, it’s a good idea to schedule an appointment with us. We’ll be able to evaluate the health of your hearing and ascertain just how serious your hearing loss may or may not be.
A hearing screening will also help you get the optimal hearing aids for your requirements if you do indeed need hearing aids. This means you’ll be able to get back to spending quality time with your friends and loved ones, you’ll hear your grandkids when they give you a call, your co-workers at your morning meeting, and your friends at happy hour.
Give us a call to schedule your hearing test, we can help you understand if you’re suffering from hearing loss.