Age-associated hearing loss can have broad impacts across your whole life. Besides your ability to hear, your professional life, your social life, and even your mental clarity can also be impacted. The way your brain functions, including your memory and mood, can be substantially affected by hearing loss.
Sometimes, the connection between hearing loss and cognition is elusive. For example, one of the earliest symptoms of hearing loss could be forgetfulness, but individuals rarely think that their memory issues are associated with a loss of hearing. Sadly, the truth is that memory loss and hearing loss are closely linked.
What’s the connection between memory and hearing loss? Well, hearing loss puts a unique strain on your brain and that’s, at least in part, the link. Often, when your hearing loss symptoms are successfully managed, your cognitive abilities will improve.
How hearing loss effects memory
Detecting hearing loss can often be challenging. It’s not uncommon for individuals to miss the more subtle and early signs. Hearing loss may only be identified, for individuals in this category, when it becomes more severe. The advancement of hearing loss is often slow over time and that’s in part why it’s initially hard to detect. People often begin increasing the volume on their devices more and more and tend to dismiss their symptoms.
Another factor is how good the brain is at compensating for loss of sound. You may not notice that it’s becoming more difficult to understand what people are saying as a result. This is beneficial in that you will most likely experience fewer interruptions to your daily life. But it takes a considerable amount of brain power to compensate in this way. Requiring your brain to work at this level for long periods can lead to:
- Chronic fatigue
- Unexplained irritability
- Memory loss or forgetfulness
We will be able to help you find out whether these symptoms are a result of hearing loss or not. If it’s determined that you’re dealing with hearing loss, we can help you formulate the best treatment plan.
Can memory issues be the outcome of hearing loss?
Of course, this mental exhaustion isn’t the only way that hearing loss can affect your brain. Forgetfulness is frequently a prominent presentation. This is particularly true of neglected hearing loss. Even though scientists aren’t perfectly clear as to the cause and effect relationship, hearing loss has been well linked to the following issues.:
- Social isolation: It’s not uncommon for individuals to disengage from social contact when they have untreated hearing loss. They will frequently steer clear of conversations and will do things like going to self-checkout instead of talking to a cashier. Your brain will often change the way it processes information as a result.
- Increased risk of dementia: People with neglected hearing loss frequently exhibit an increased risk of dementia and cognitive decline. This risk declines dramatically when the hearing loss is treated and managed.
- Increased risk of depression and anxiety: An increase in anxiety and depression due to untreated hearing loss isn’t unusual according to multiple studies. And once again, when the root hearing loss has been managed, the risk factor drops considerably.
All of these problems are obviously intertwined. Social solitude can exacerbate depression and other cognitive health issues. And your risk of dementia also goes up with social solitude.
Can mental decline be caused by hearing loss?
One of the more extreme impacts of neglected hearing loss is a significant increase in your risk of cognitive decline and dementia. Scientists have some theories about why this may be, but what’s obvious is that management of symptoms helps considerably. In other words, treating your hearing loss has been shown to slow down mental decline and lower your risk of developing dementia down the road.
Dealing with hearing loss induced forgetfulness
If your fatigue and memory loss are caused by untreated hearing loss, the good news is that managing your hearing loss symptoms can absolutely have a positive impact. In cases where hearing loss is identified, we might suggest the following:
- The use of hearing aids: Using a hearing aid can help you hear better. Your social life can be improved and your mental abilities will have less strain by using hearing aids. By preventing and reducing social isolation, your cognition can improve, decreasing your risk of dementia, depression, and other issues.
- Regular screenings: Before any issues begin to happen, regular screenings can identify them. Managing your hearing loss early can prevent mental strain.
- Hearing protection: Some of the mental decline previously mentioned can be avoided and further damage can be decreased by using hearing protection.
You don’t have to remain forgetful!
You can recover strength of memory even if hearing loss is currently causing a little forgetfulness. In many cases, mental functions will come back once your brain doesn’t need to strain so hard. When you hear better, your brain doesn’t have to work so hard, and that rest can do a world of good.
Making an appointment with us can drastically improve your outlook and reduce your risk for other problems. Contact us today!
