Are you surprised to learn that hearing loss is more than just your ears? Ears are the means of hearing, so the harm done to them because of aging, trauma or disease is why someone can not hear, but did you know there is more to it than that The loss of one’s hearing bleeds into many other facets of their life. It’s a dramatic change for somebody who has always had the ability to hear. Take some ways that hearing loss has a extensive effect on more than just the ears.
Earning Potential
A 2006 report published by the Australian firm Access Economics states there is a connection between earning potential and hearing. They discovered that an individual with hearing loss will possibly make about 25 percent less than the ones that do listen, but why?
There are a lot of things that could impact earnings. Somebody who works without any hearing assistance device such as a hearing aid might miss out on weighty material. They might appear for a business meeting at 4 if it was actually at 2 pm, for example. Employers tend to appreciate those with astute attention to detail, which is a challenge when you can’t hear the details.
Work environments can be noisy and crazy, too. A person with hearing loss can quickly become confused with all that sound around them. They’ll struggle to talk on the telephone, to listen to clients and to understand what coworkers are saying because in a noisy environment the desktop sounds like clicking keyboards or an air conditioner engine become conspicuous.
Relationships
Some of the same problems at work become an issue at home. Hearing loss has the potential to cause conflict, particularly when the individual with the problem continues to deny it. Little things like saying “what” a lot during discussions and turning the TV up too loud irritate friends, relatives, and spouses.
They may try to intervene and encourage this individual to recognize their hearing loss, and that leads to friction, also. It’s extremely common for people with hearing loss to detach themselves and refuse to go out and spend some time with others. They struggle to keep up with conversations, so that they so what the can to prevent them.
Mental Health Concerns
The issues at work and home take a toll on mental health over time. A 2014 study conducted by the U.S. National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders discovered a cause and effect relationship between hearing loss and depression. Their research indicates an increased risk of depression, particularly among women and individuals under the age of 70. Their risk of depression goes from 5 percent to about 11 percent with hearing loss.
A second study by the Senior Research Group indicates that the risk of mental health issues including depression, anxiety and paranoia goes up when a person with hearing loss doesn’t use hearing aids. The study participants who did not wear hearing aids reported everything from feelings of despair to sudden fits of anger more frequently than those that did wear them.
Safety Issues
Security is always a concern for the hearing impaired. Most security systems, whether it is a smoke or carbon monoxide detector or a perimeter alert, work based on sound. They emit a high-frequency noise when there’s a danger. Even people with slight hearing loss can have trouble hearing high pitched tones.
Personal security becomes a problem when a person with hearing loss spans the street or drives a car, too. Sound serves to signal problems like a car coming down the road or a horn honking.
Cognitive Functioning
Medical science has made a connection between cognitive decline and hearing loss. It’s not clear why people with hearing loss have a higher risk of dementia. The current theory is that the brain struggles to listen and to compensate, it robs other vital functions like memory.
A 2011 study conducted by Johns Hopkins Medicine discovered that someone with minor hearing loss is twice as likely to develop dementia. Moderate hearing loss increases the risk by three times and a person with severe hearing impairment is five times more likely to have Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia. Hearing health is just one factor in memory loss conditions, but it is an important one.
When a person has hearing loss, it’s true there’s probably something wrong with their ears, but that’s just where it begins. The fantastic news is that getting help in the kind of hearing aids and other treatment choices lowers the chance of mental health issues, dementia and the various issues related to hearing decline.
