Today I share an excerpt from an article I wrote for Hearing Tracker.
Let’s be honest. It is tempting to ignore your hearing loss. You rationalize the times you don’t hear things, thinking, “If only he would stop mumbling,” or “This restaurant was just too loud.” Those things may be true, but so, too, is your difficulty hearing.
Hearing loss often comes on gradually, making it hard to detect as it is happening. Once treated, people are often amazed at the sounds that they have been missing — birds chirping, water running in the faucet, the refrigerator humming — many of which they have not heard for years.
I ignored my hearing loss for the typical 7-10 years — hiding behind the stigma my father taught me to feel about hearing loss. As a child I watched him pull away from family and friends, and falter at work as he struggled to accept his hearing loss. So when the first audiologist I visited told me my hearing loss was too mild to treat, I used it as an excuse to retreat into denial.
Today, much more is known about the risks associated with hearing loss, including mild hearing loss, making it clear why we can no longer take the chance of ignoring it — even in its early days. Keep reading on Hearing Tracker for five critical reasons why you should not overlook your hearing loss.
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Years ago my late grandfather was deaf and did nothing about it. My late father followed his lead by denying his hearing loss for a long, long time and only got a hearing aid when he had developed a severe loss.
Now years back when I became aware of my own hearing problems I was lucky that at my first hearing test/exam my ent suggested hearing aids and I tried them.
Now my loss is more severe and I can’t hear without my aids and although I don’t have perfect hearing, I would be worse off had I followed my fore father’s examples.
Learned stigma can be a big problem. I am glad that you were able to bypass it. Thanks for sharing your experiences.
I totally agree You cannot ignore this medical problem. But in my experience, I found a way to help people to listen again especially if you are a music lover.
I have written this article on what headphones works for hearing impaired/hearing aids. If you wish to read you can read it here: https://www.ironhorsetrading.net/best-headphones-for-hearing-aids/
I just want to share what I know really. I hope if you can find something valuable about this. Do let me know
Thanks for sharing this information.
Hi Shari Eberts,
Your welcome. So how is it going? Have you read my article? I am thinking of doing some more research about hearing aids.
Good luck to you!