Why are we afraid?

Why are we so afraid of hearing aids? As we get older we accept that our bodies aren’t going to do the things that they used to do.  We use glasses to see, walkers or scooters to move about, lift chairs to be able to get up; so why do we feel the need to shun hearing aids as not being needed when we can’t hear?

Currently in Australia hearing loss affects 1 in 6, in the working age range (from 16+).  Of this 65% of those with hearing loss are under, yes UNDER, 65 years old!  We are slowly seeing a shift in the number of younger Australian’s coming in for a hearing assessment and acknowledging they have an issue. Though whilst they acknowledge there is a problem there, we are still hearing the same comments of “I’m not old enough for hearing aids” or, “I’ll wait until I’m older before I get a hearing aid”.  Funnily enough we hear these comments from some clients who are well into their 80’s!

Our hearing is one of our senses that is very important to being able to participate in the community.  Ask someone who has a hearing loss, do they feel they miss out?

When our eyesight changes we immediately go and see an optometrist, have an assessment, if glasses are needed, we get glasses!  Simple!  Our eyesight makes up a small percentage of our senses, yet it is the first one we think about improving when we begin to have any difficulties.  Yes, poor eyesight can affect our learning, being able to read, write, drive the car, walk across the street confidently, purchase any item from the shop and know that you can see the price tag, money, receipt etc.  I don’t want to talk down the impact that poor eyesight can have, it is still a very debilitating condition especially where corrective actions are not available or helpful.

But, hearing can also have a significant impact on our lives, lifestyles, general and mental health, wellbeing and overall enjoyment of our daily activities.  As our hearing changes over time, we learn to compensate for these changes.  We put ourselves into positions where we know we will be able to hear, or not hear the noises that are making conversation difficult to understand.  Hearing loss can be as simple as an ear that is blocked with ear wax, or more complicated requiring further intervention, medical or otherwise.  But we put off having that hearing test.  We may go to the Doctor and ask them to check out our ears, the Doctor may even write a referral for a hearing assessment, but we don’t always go and get it done.

Think about all the sounds you can hear at the moment, birds, music, TV, Radio, conversation in person, conversation on the phone, laughter, crying, wind, rain on the roof, footsteps – our own or someone else’s, doors opening or closing, the clock ticking, the fire crackling.  I know a lot of these sounds make very little difference to our day to day lives…..but, imagine if you can no longer hear them?!  Think about watching someone’s facial expressions changing, you can see their mouth moving and hear the noise, but it’s not clear, you can’t understand what is being said.

We don’t fit hearing aids just because we want to, we fit hearing aids because we want to make a difference to people’s lives. To be able to bring enjoyment, confidence and fun back to those who, in some cases, don’t realise they have lost it in the first place.

So if you find yourself concentrating really hard on the person you’re speaking to, or speech blends in with background noise, or you no longer attend meetings or enjoy social gatherings because it’s “too hard”.  Have a hearing test.  Find out if there is a reason for this, and consider doing something about it.