Knowing when you need some medical advice is typically rather easy. 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. At least, not for that long (particularly if you want your bones to mend themselves properly).
It’s not always that clear cut with regard to hearing aids, though. Hearing loss is typically a progressive condition. That means it’s not always easy to know when you may need to start using hearing aids or to delay finding treatment you know could be helpful.
So keeping an eye out for indications that your hearing may be going is a good plan. If you detect any, it may be time to talk to us about your first set of hearing aids.
Hearing aids and hearing loss
Hearing aids are the primary form of treatment for hearing loss. But everybody who has some level of hearing loss won’t automatically need hearing aids. In situations where patients have very mild hearing loss, hearing aids won’t always be helpful. Consequently, we might want you to wait before starting to use them. It’s also possible that we could advise you to only wear your hearing aids when you’re in certain situations.
This means that just because you are diagnosed with hearing loss doesn’t mean you will necessarily need hearing aids.
However, hearing aids will be the best answer in many instances. Many individuals won’t get their hearing loss diagnosed until it becomes more severe because hearing loss advances gradually and frequently goes unnoticed for a while. But if you come in to see us regularly, you may be able to catch your hearing loss early, and, as a result, you might not need hearing aids right away.
So how will you know if you have hearing loss?
Indications you need a hearing aid
Hearing loss is one of those conditions that can create instant communication issues. But a lot of times you don’t even recognize that hearing loss is the cause of those communication issues. So, when is it time for a hearing aid?
Here are a few of the common signs you should look out for:
- You can’t 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 more challenging to understand conversations. Again, certain frequencies are cut out and the outcome is that it’s very difficult to understand those voices.
- When people talk, you can’t always understand what they said: Many individuals don’t think they have hearing loss or need hearing aids because the total volume they perceive seems fine. But the thing about hearing loss is that particular frequencies of sound often go before others. Due to this, things like vowel sounds in the higher pitches can sound distorted. This could cause you to have a hard time making out what people are saying.
- The volume on your devices is getting really loud: Hearing loss could be the culprit if you constantly need to crank the volume of your devices up. If you find individuals around you complaining about the high volume of your devices, this is especially relevant.
- You have a tough time hearing conversations in noisy places: This is probably one of the most prevalent symptoms of hearing loss. If you have trouble hearing conversations in loud places, that’s usually a sure sign that you have hearing loss. This happens because your ears are not getting as much information as they used to, and your brain isn’t really capable of filling in the gaps as easily. Because of this, there’s a lot of muddled conversations.
So what can you do?
When you break a bone, it’s obvious what to do: you go see the doctor! But what about when you detect these signs that you might need a hearing aid? How bad does hearing loss need to be to require a hearing aid? Well, that’s difficult to answer, but when you begin detecting these signs, it’s a good plan 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 most effective hearing aids for your needs if you do indeed need hearing aids. Then you will be able to get back to taking pleasure in good conversations with your friends and loved ones and doing the things you love.
Call us for a hearing test so we can help you improve your quality of life.
