The Early Signs of Hearing Loss
It can be difficult to tell if you are having hearing problems – often changes in hearing are gradual, and you may not even realize there is a difference in your hearing until someone brings it up. Read on for more information about the early signs of hearing loss and signs that it may be time to get help.
How do you know if you are losing your hearing?
Getting help for hearing loss isn’t just important for your quality of life – not hearing properly can also be harmful for your mental and physical health. You may be developing a hearing problem if
• You often notice a ringing in your ears (tinnitus). This can be caused by either noise-induced or age-related hearing loss.
• It is becoming more and more difficult to understand conversations in crowded places.
• You are exhausted at the end of the day from straining to listen all day. This is known as “listening fatigue,” and it is caused by your brain working harder than usual as it tries to process all the sounds around you.
• It always sounds like other people are mumbling.
• You can’t hear consonants (for example, you are having a hard time distinguishing between words such as “show” and “throw”).
• You are having trouble hearing higher pitched sounds, such as children speaking and birds chirping.
• Your friends and loved ones mention that you often ask them to repeat themselves.
If you think you are losing your hearing
There are many different hearing tests your audiologist can use to see what type of hearing loss you have and what would be the best option for treatment. Hearing loss can strike people of any age, so it is important to be tested no matter how old you are if you think you might have a problem.
Once you get help for a hearing problem you may be surprised just how bad your hearing had gotten! Hearing properly is an important part of staying healthy and enjoying all that life has to offer. Call Lakeside Allergy ENT in Rockwall and Forney for a hearing test today, at (972) 771-5443!