Early hearing loss can be a scary experience, like finding a dividing wall between you and your family, with cherished voices replaced by muffled sounds. However, there is no reason to fear a hearing loss diagnosis.
World Hearing Day on March 3rd serves as a powerful reminder to us all that hearing challenges can be overcome. We’ve put together this article to help guide you through some of the causes and symptoms of hearing loss in your senior years and what you can do about it.
Senior Hearing: Why It Matters
Hearing is crucial to our independence and quality of life. Poor hearing can have a wide-ranging impact on seniors’ safety and how they communicate, which is why hearing health matters. If hearing problems aren’t addressed, issues for seniors can worsen, including risks such as:
- Social isolation
- Cognitive decline
- The risk of falls
- Risks from not hearing warning sounds like alarms
- Risks from not hearing critical information like medical instructions
Regular hearing screenings can help seniors maintain their hearing health and get early care for issues. This is vital in ensuring seniors lead a happy, independent, and healthy life.
Senior Hearing Loss: Common Causes
Hearing loss is a relatively common challenge for seniors, and there are some age-related and non-age-related causes. Here are the most likely causes of hearing loss:
Age-Related Hearing Loss
Age does impact our hearing, and the technical term for age-related hearing loss is Presbycusis. Ears find it more challenging to pick up high-pitched sounds, and sufferers might find it hard to pick up conversations in noisy rooms. It typically impacts both ears.
Long-Term Loud Noise Exposure
If you worked in a noisy environment for most of your life and didn’t wear ear protection, you may risk hearing loss in old age. Exposure to loud noises can damage the inner ear.
Buildup of Earwax
It’s possible to have excessive earwax, which builds up in the ear canal and reduces sound. Excessive earwax is a treatable condition and a temporary, rather than permanent and progressive, cause of hearing loss.
Medications
While it’s rare for medications to cause hearing loss, some medicines have side effects that can impair hearing. It’s essential to spot the signs of hearing loss when taking medication and consult a healthcare professional.
Chronic Conditions
Some healthcare conditions can affect hearing. Senior ear health might be impacted by circulation issues, infections, and conditions like diabetes.
Signs of Hearing Loss
Like with any condition in your senior years, it’s crucial to spot the early signs of a condition, as early intervention is vital for hearing loss prevention.
Here are some of the first signs of a hearing loss problem in seniors. If you notice any of these signs for you or a loved one, you should book an appointment with your healthcare professional.
Finding Conversations Difficult
If you dislike group conversations or one-to-one conversations in noisy environments, this could indicate that your ears struggle to pick up all the sounds. This is a common symptom of early hearing loss.
You may also find yourself repeatedly asking others to repeat themselves after speaking, which means you aren’t processing all speech sounds as well as you may have in the past.
Loud Phones and Televisions
If your friends and family often comment on your TV or phone volume, this could be a hearing loss sign. You may have repeatedly increased the volume to better hear it without realizing it’s louder than the average person needs.
Muffled Sounds
Sometimes, with early hearing loss, sounds can become muffled or distorted. This might happen with sounds you’re familiar with, like speaking to a family member on the phone. Avoiding phone calls or repeatedly upping the volume on the phone is a symptom of an underlying hearing problem.
Tinnitus
Tinnitus is a condition that causes persistent ringing in the ears. It can sometimes be a buzzing or hissing sound, too. This can impact daily life and must be checked by a professional as it could be related to a hearing problem.
Social Withdrawal
Sometimes, it may not be evident that hearing loss is happening, and a person could find themselves feeling uncomfortable in social situations if they can’t hear conversations. This might lead some people to avoid certain situations, like loud parties, risking greater social isolation as hearing loss progresses.
Seeking Help and Breaking the Stigma
Hearing loss can cause worry for seniors, and for some, there is a stigma attached to hearing problems, perhaps over a fear of wearing hearing aids.
Nevertheless, seeking help as soon as possible is vital. Untreated hearing loss comes with more prolonged and pronounced problems like social isolation.
The first step is to have an open conversation with family and friends. Book a healthcare appointment to check your hearing. If you live in senior housing in Salisbury, MD, you could also talk to one of the professional care teams on site.
If you feel apprehensive about a potential diagnosis, bring someone to support you during that consultation.
Assisted Living in Salisbury, MD: Supporting Hearing Loss
If you or a loved one are in a senior living community, talk to the team about your hearing loss, as there are steps they can take to make life easier for you.
Assisted living in Salisbury can help you arrange hearing screenings. They will also inform staff members of any hearing loss diagnosis, meaning you get the professional support you need.
Senior living communities also offer access to social and group programs that are inclusive to those with hearing loss.
World Hearing Day: Raising Awareness of Hearing Loss
If you worry about your hearing, you aren’t alone. World Hearing Day is a timely reminder that while hearing loss can happen in your senior years, it can be supported with the right professional help. Always speak to your healthcare provider.
One of the many advantages of senior living in Salisbury, MD, is that you can get tailored support for hearing loss and other age-related challenges.
Lakeside at Mallard Landing is a caring, vibrant community for assisted living and memory care in Salisbury. We have a host of exciting amenities on-site, such as our beauty salon and dining room with tableside service, so contact us to learn more about our senior living arrangements in Salisbury, MD.
