About 1.5 billion people, or 20% of the world’s population, have hearing loss. In Uganda, about two million people, or 11%of the population, have the condition. Hearing loss can change one’s quality of life, making things that used to be simple and obvious more challenging. You should know the signs of hearing loss so you can receive the help you need and what to do if you have.
What is Hearing Loss?
As its name implies, hearing loss occurs when one cannot hear sounds partially or fully. In some cases, one might have hearing loss that affects their ability to hear specific frequencies. People with hearing loss have difficulty understanding others or participating in and following conversations. They may also have difficulty conversing over the phone, participating in online meetings, or watching their favorite shows on TV.
About a fifth of all people with hearing loss have unilateral hearing loss, a condition where they cannot hear from one ear. Age-related affects about 30% of people over 65 and about 50% of people aged 70 and older.
Additionally, about one in 500 babies are born with hearing loss.
Identifying Signs of Hearing Loss
Let’s look at signs that will let you know if you may have this condition.
High-pitched Sound are Unclear or Muffled
Age-related hearing loss is typically present with damage to the cochlea and other parts of the ear. Inner ear organs, including specialized cells and hair structures, that help you hear high-pitched sounds are the first to be affected. For this reason, people with age-related hearing loss cannot understand high-pitched voices so they may have trouble understanding women and children.
They may also be unable to hear other sounds like the beeps of a reversing car or insects and birds chirping at sunset.
You Have Trouble Following Conversations
Hearing loss generally leads to an inability to follow conversations, with the issue compounded if you are in noisy locations. Even though background noise is usually low-pitched, some sounds like “s” and “f” are high-pitched, so you will have trouble hearing them in a noisy environment.
If you have difficulty hearing these sounds, you are also more likely to hear the background noise better than the people you are talking to. You might also have difficulty ignoring background sounds unless you exert yourself.
You Try to Read Lips Instead of Making Eye Contact
Our bodies are great at adapting to different situations. When one of our senses fails or does not work as expected, the body compensates by helping us use other senses. If you have trouble hearing and following conversations, your body will compensate by making it easier to understand what people are saying by watching their lips.
This also happens to people with perfect hearing, especially when they cannot hear what the other person is saying. In these situations, the brain also becomes better at picturing certain sounds depending on lip and mouth shapes to fill the gaps of what you are not hearing.
You Keep Increasing The Volume
You might find yourself increasing the volume on your TV, radio, or mobile device if you have hearing loss. In many cases, you might not notice you are doing this, but other people will. If other people around you or at home start complaining that you listen to TV shows, movies, and other content at high volumes, get your ears checked immediately.
What To Do If you have Hearing Loss
The best way to know if you have hearing loss is to go for a hearing test. A hearing health expert will conduct the test and let you know the level of hearing loss and if you need other interventions. You can find an audiologist in your area and make an appointment so you can get the test before things get worse.
Here are some of the things you can do if the tests determine you have hearing loss.
Protect Your Hearing to Stop It From Getting Worse
While you cannot do anything to reverse or protect yourself from age-related hearing loss, you can do something about noise-related hearing loss. Since there are no surgical or medical options for treating noise-related hearing loss, you should protect your hearing at all times.
Start by avoiding noisy spaces and protecting your ears whenever you can. Reduce the volume on your earphones or headphones if you use them and use hearing protection at work. One study conducted in Uganda found that manufacturing workers make up a huge percentage of people with hearing loss. If you’re exploring ways to address or prevent hearing loss, you might come across products like Cortexi Drops. It’s crucial to delve into reviews and gather information before trying any product to make well-informed decisions about your health and well-being.
Consider Devices That Help You Hear Better
Hearing devices can help you hear much better if you have hearing loss. They do this by amplifying the sounds around you, and an audiologist can adjust them to ensure they work best for your specific situation.
Over-the-counter hearing aids can help those with moderate hearing loss, but they are only meant for people over 18. They should not be used by people who cannot make sound medical decisions and those with severe hearing loss.
You should also see a doctor immediately if you have any issues such as wax buildup, dizziness, tinnitus, or hypersensitivity to sound when using hearing aids.
And you can also see a doctor so they can prescribe hearing aids that are right for you. You will have to get a hearing test first before doing this, with the test ensuring the hearing aids are the right fit.
Use Assistive Devices
People with hearing loss can choose from numerous types of assistive technologies to help improve their days. Vibrating and flashing alarms are popular, as are telephone amplifiers. Some devices can also connect to hearing aids to help wake you up gently, listen to TV and radio, and follow conversations even in noisy environments.
Hearing loss is quite common and is becoming more prevalent in young people due to noise exposure. You should always protect your hearing and keep an eye out for signs of hearing loss. If you suspect you have the condition, see an audiologist so they can schedule a hearing test. You will then know what to do once you have the results.
