Many people are aware that their hearing has deteriorated but are reluctant to seek help. Perhaps they don’t want to acknowledge the problem, are embarrassed by what they see as a weakness, or believe that they can “get by” without using a hearing aid. And, unfortunately, too many wait years, even decades, before getting treatment.
But time and again, research demonstrates the considerable negative social, psychological, cognitive and health effects of untreated hearing loss … with far-reaching implications that go well beyond hearing alone. In fact, those who have difficulty hearing can experience such distorted and incomplete communication that it seriously impacts their professional and personal lives, at times leading to isolation and withdrawal.
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Studies have linked untreated hearing loss to:
- irritability, negativism, and anger
- reduced alertness and increased risk to personal safety
- fatigue, tension, stress, and depression
- impaired memory and ability to learn new tasks
- avoidance or withdrawal from social situations
- reduced job performance and earning power
- social rejection and loneliness
- diminished psychological and overall health
Hearing loss is not just an ailment of old age. It can strike at any time and any age, even childhood. For the young, even a mild or moderate case of hearing loss could bring difficulty learning, developing speech and building the important interpersonal skills necessary to foster self-esteem and succeed in school and life.
The Impact of Treated Hearing Loss on Quality of Life
It would seem that hearing is a second-rate sense when compared to vision in our visually oriented modern society. People with hearing loss delay a decision to get hearing help because they are unaware of the fact that receiving early treatment for hearing loss has the potential to literally transform their lives. Research by the National Council on the Aging on more than 2,000 people with hearing loss, as well as their significant others, demonstrated that hearing aids clearly are associated with impressive improvements in the social, emotional, psychological and physical well-being of people with hearing loss in all hearing loss categories from mild to severe. Specifically, hearing aid usage is positively related to the following quality of life issues.
- Hearing loss treatment was shown to improve:
- Earning power
- Perception of mental functioning
- Physical health
- Group social participation
- Communication in relationships
- Intimacy and warmth in family relationships
- Ease in communication
- Emotional Stability
- Sense of control over life events just as importantly, hearing loss treatment was shown to reduce:
- Discrimination toward the person with the hearing loss
- Hearing loss compensation behaviors (i.e. pretending you hear)
- Anger and frustration in relationships
- Social phobias
- Depression and depressive symptoms
- Self Criticism
- Feelings of Paranoia
- Anxiety – you are one of those people with a mild, moderate or severe hearing loss, who is sitting on the fence, consider all the benefits of hearing aids described above. Hearing aids hold such great potential to positively change so many lives
You Should Hear What You Are Missing!
Sergei Kochkin, Ph.D.
Executive Director, Better Hearing Institute