It may come as a surprise to know that 1 in 5 Americans suffer from a hearing loss, and over a third of them don’t seek treatment. Sometimes this is because it can be hard to spot hearing loss in the early stages, which is why I’ve created this blog to highlight the most common signs to look out for and help identify whether or not you need a hearing test. Advanced hearing aid technology and treatment have helped millions of people, so there’s no excuse to let hearing loss stop you from living the life you once did.
Turning the volume up
Have you noticed you constantly have your TV volume up high? Maybe your family has complained that it’s too loud for them? Consider this when you’re next watching TV; if you have to raise your voice to speak over the TV, then it’s probably too loud.
Telephone calls are difficult
Understanding conversations on the phone depends solely on listening to the person’s voice. Without the presence of visual cues, this can prove quite difficult for someone with some level of hearing loss.
Higher tones are harder to hear
When hearing loss occurs, higher tones are typically the first to go. So, if you’re finding that women and children are particularly hard to understand, then this could indicate you have a hearing loss.
Socializing is hard work
Noisy environments with multiple conversations going on concurrently can definitely create a challenge in understanding speech. People who have difficulty in these situations often avoid social events altogether, which can become lonely and isolating if the hearing loss is left untreated.
Ringing in your ears?
If you’ve been experiencing ringing in your ears, this could well be a sign of tinnitus. Although having tinnitus doesn’t necessarily mean you have a hearing loss, it can be a side effect of it. If you’re worried about your tinnitus symptoms, don’t hesitate to get checked by an audiology specialist.
Fatigue and headaches
Believe it or not, the symptoms of hearing loss can make you feel unwell. When in a noisy environment for a long period of time, you have to strain yourself to hear people speaking. Your brain becomes heavily strained from over-compensating for the hearing loss. This can leave you with a heavy head at the end of the day, which is far from ideal. By not ignoring your hearing loss and getting treatment sooner rather than later, you can avoid hearing loss getting to this stage.
Time to get checked
If one or more of these symptoms are all too familiar to you or a loved one, then now would be a great time to come and visit me to see how I can help. All you need to do is click here to schedule a hearing appointment and you can be on your way to better hearing health.
Dr. Hadassah Kupfer is a highly qualified and community-focused Audiologist, serving the Mill Basin community. Her extremely friendly and relationship-focused approach combines the expertise and resources of a high-end city practice with the comfort and warmth of a community physician. Both of Hadassah’s parents are doctors, along with many other relatives who also practice a range of medical professions.