Your last family get-together was disheartening. It wasn’t because of family crisis (this time). No, the problem was that you couldn’t hear a thing over the loud noise of the room. So you didn’t get the details about Nancy’s promotion, and you didn’t have the ability to ask about Todd’s new dog. It was frustrating. For the most part, you blame the acoustics. But you can’t entirely dismiss the idea that perhaps your hearing is beginning to fail.
It can be extremely difficult to self-diagnose hearing loss (that’s why, generally, it’s not suggested). But there are some early warning signs you should watch for. When enough of these red flags spring up, it’s worth scheduling an appointment to get a hearing test.
Early signs of hearing loss
The majority of the symptoms of hearing loss are subtle. But if you happen to see your own experiences reflected in any of the items on this list, you just may be experiencing some degree of hearing loss.
Here are some of the most common early signs of hearing loss:
- A friend points out that your media devices are getting increasingly louder. Perhaps the volume on your mobile phone keeps getting louder and louder. Or perhaps, you have your TV volume turned up to max. Typically, it’s a family member or a friend that points out the loud volumes.
- Your ears are ringing: Ringing in your ears is known as tinnitus (and, technically, tinnitus can be other noises as well: humming, buzzing, screeching, thumping, and so on). If you experience ringing or other chronic sounds in your ears, a hearing test is your best bet because tinnitus, though it’s frequently an early warning of hearing loss, can also indicate other health problems.
- You keep asking people to repeat themselves. If you find yourself asking numerous people to talk slower, speak louder, or repeat what they said, this is particularly true. You may not even know you’re making such frequent requests, but it can definitely be an early sign of diminishing hearing.
- High-pitched sounds are getting lost. Maybe you just realized your teapot was whistling after five minutes. Or perhaps the doorbell rings, and you never notice it. Hearing loss generally affects specific frequencies usually higher pitched frequencies.
- You have a hard time hearing conversations in a busy or noisy setting. This is frequently an early indication of hearing loss.
- Certain words are hard to understand. This red flag usually pops up because consonants are beginning to sound alike, or at least, becoming harder to differentiate. Usually, it’s the sh- and th- sounds that are muffled. But another typical example is when the “s” and “f” sounds get mixed up.
- You’re suddenly finding it difficult to hear when you’re talking on the phone: Texting is popular these days, so you may not talk on the phone as much as you once did. But if you’re having trouble understanding the phone calls you do get (even with the volume turned all the way up), you might be confronting another red flag for your hearing.
- You find that some sounds become oppressively loud. It’s one of the more uncommon early warning signs related to hearing loss, but hyperacusis is common enough that you might find yourself experiencing its symptoms. If you are experiencing this problem, especially if it persists, it’s time for a hearing exam.
Get a hearing assessment
You may have one or more of these early warnings but the only real way to determine the health of your hearing is to get a hearing exam.
Generally speaking, any single one of these early red flags could be evidence that you’re developing some type of hearing loss. A hearing assessment will be able to tell what level of impairment, if any, exists. Once we identify the degree of hearing loss, we can figure out the best course of treatment.
This will help you have a much more enjoyable time at that next family gathering.
