that you have the television on too loudly these days, or are you constantly
asking people to repeat everything they say? Well guess what? You might be experiencing hearing loss. Hearing loss, as with
everything else that comes on gradually, can sneak up on you.
Hearing loss isn’t just associated
with aging, but it becomes more
noticeable and worrisome after you cross the midlife threshold. Hearing loss can a have a big impact on your
life, so don’t shut people out when they express concern. It isn’t unusual for people to deny that they
are having a problem, mostly because they are afraid that a hearing aid might be
the end result, and that might mean that they are old.
Nearly half of people over
50 have some degree of hearing loss but many of these cases are preventable.
According to Jessica Girdwain in an article for Prevention magazine (May 2009),
there are 3 common causes of hearing loss in midlife adults.
- Clogged Ears (12 million people visit their
doctors each year to have ear wax removed). Hearing is immediately restored after
wax removal. - Allergies.
Blocked sinuses can temporarily block hearing. An adult averages 3 colds a year; if you
have more that that it may be a clue that something more than a bad cold
is going on. - High doses of Aspirin or NSAIDS can cause
tinnitus, which generally clears when the medication is discontinued.
Basically there are two
types of hearing loss. One occurs when
something is blocking the transmission of sound and the other is the result of
damage to the inner ear or the nerves.
Your doctor will run a
battery of tests or send you to a specialist to determine what kind of hearing loss you have and what is
causing it. Common causes of conduction
hearing loss (when sound can’t reach the inner ear) are wax build up, ear
infections, or perhaps a perforated ear drum.
Age related
hearing loss may be a little more involved, especially if is sensorineural in
nature (a problem with transmission of sounds from the ear to the brain). The causes may be age related, noise induced,
tumor, genetic, or a middle ear disease.
Healthy Aging for Dummies by
Brent Agin, MD suggests tips for keeping your ears healthy. To prevent conduction loss:
- Do not stick anything smaller than your elbow in
your ear. Self treatment with a
cotton swab is a” no-no”. - Let warm soapy water run in and out of you ears
when you shower - Schedule regular cleanings with your doctor.
Prevent sensorineural
loss: To prevent noise and age related
hearing loss, protect your ears with ear protectors. More than 10 million in the
related hearing loss.
If you have hearing loss,
see your doctor to determine the cause.
Conductive hearing loss may be easy to treat by simply removing wax. If you don’t have wax, further studies may be
necessary and you may have to resign yourself to a hearing aid.
K. Eileen Allen, in her delightful book “I
Like Being Old,” talks about her on going battle with finding the right hearing aids. She finally admitted that she needed to do
her part and take responsibility for learning how to use the expensive,
state-of-the art gadgets that she kept rejecting. It finally dawned on her that her main problem
was that she ignored the clinicians’ advice.
If you are not wearing them because they bother you, or only putting
them in when you are with people, you are sabotaging your own efforts. Your
brain never gets a chance to adapt to the amplification. You need to put them in first thing in the
morning and wear them all day. Do not
deny yourself the satisfaction of hearing
what is going on in the world because you are too proud or too stubborn to take
advantage of the technology available to you today.
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