3 Reasons You Should Look After Your Hearing Health

We have lots of aspects of our health that can often get neglected, and your hearing health is one of them. Be honest with me, when was the last time you ever got your ears checked out? Have you ever had a hearing examination in your life? Most of us won’t even step foot in an audiologist’s office until we’re in our sixties! By that point, the damage could already be done, and you suffer from hearing loss. 

It’s easy to think that we shouldn’t worry about our hearing health when we’re younger. However, there are many reasons to be concerned. Losing your hearing can affect your life in so many different ways. I’ve not written this post to scare you; it’s more to give you a little wake-up call and make you realize that your hearing health matters. 

With that in mind, here’s why you should care about the health of your hearing: 

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Hearing loss is largely irreversible

For the most part, hearing loss is permanent. The only time it can be reversed is if it’s temporarily caused by something. For example, you attend a concern and rupture your eardrum because the music is so loud. You’ll experience temporary hearing loss, but it should return as your ear heals. 

Most of the time, when your hearing starts to deteriorate, it can’t be reclaimed. Yes, there are ways to try and improve your ability to perceive speech and understand what people are saying. Hearing aids help, as do things like aural rehabilitation. But, your actual hearing will never return to what it used to be. In most cases, it just gets worse and worse. 

So, if you like having the ability to hear, then you should take care of your hearing health. Stop listening to music at full volume, wear ear protection if you’re around loud noises, and get somewhat regular checkups. If you’re not conscious of this, then you won’t be able to do anything until it’s too late. 

 

People with hearing loss often suffer from depression

You think that suffering from hearing health issues means the only problem is your inability to hear properly. Well, you’re wrong. Hearing loss can affect you in lots of ways, and a lot of them are mental. 

People that suffer from hearing loss will often fall into depression. This is because they’ve lost the use of one of their main senses. You don’t appreciate how good it is to hear until you lose the ability to do so. It’s a horrible feeling trying to get people to speak louder and repeat themselves all the time. In the end, many people decide to shut themselves off from the world because they feel embarrassed or left out in social situations. 

Even if you have hearing aids, these mental issues can still manifest. You become dependent on your hearing aids, which isn’t healthy. Of course, this isn’t guaranteed to happen, but there’s a high chance it might. 

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It costs a lot to treat the problem

If the previous two points weren’t enough to convince you to look after your hearing health, then this one will. Did you know that it’s outrageously expensive to get the help you need for hearing problems? 

As we’ve mentioned already, hearing aids are the main way of treating hearing loss. They do work, and they’re best when used in the early stages. This way, you can prevent hearing loss from deteriorating. Unfortunately, the cost of hearing aids can be anywhere between $1,000 – $6,000. What’s more, most health insurance companies don’t cover them. So, you’d either have to pay for them out of your own pocket or buy separate insurance that does cover them. Either way, you’re paying a lot. 

That’s just for one pair, by the way. You will most likely need to buy replacements at some point, not to mention paying for servicing or repairs. All in all, it’s a lot of money for something that can be avoided if you pay more attention to your hearing health when you’re younger. 

 

Final thoughts

I want to end by saying that I understand hearing loss can be unavoidable. Your hearing naturally gets worse with age. But, there’s a difference between your hearing getting a bit worse and actually suffering from severe hearing loss. Some people are nearly deaf because their ears are in such poor shape. Obviously, if you do things that harm your hearing health when you’re young, then you’re not doing yourself any favors. You don’t even need to visit an audiologist every year for a checkup. Just be more conscious of what you’re doing to your ears, and maybe have a hearing test every couple of years.