Susan began her full time career with Welsch Hearing Aid Company in December, 1984 as the Office Manager. On March 5, 1985, she became a State Licensed Hearing Instrument Specialist. In 1994, she passed her National Board for Certification Examination.
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Hearing loss is a serious issue that affects more than 13% of Americans over the age of 18. It can have a significant impact on an individual’s quality of life and ability to function in everyday activities. The effects of hearing loss can range from mild to severe and can be caused by a variety of factors such as age, genetics, illness, or exposure to loud noises.
Fortunately, there are now solutions available that can help those with hearing loss stay connected with their loved ones and the world around them.
Hearing loss disproportionately affects the elderly when compared with any other age group. In fact, less than three out of every 1,000 babies born in the U.S. has some kind of congenital hearing loss, but more than half of people aged 75 and above are deaf or hard of hearing.
Among people aged 65 and older, more than 50% of those over 75 live with some form of hearing loss. This can have a significant impact on their quality of life, as they are unable to enjoy the same conversations and activities that they used to. With the right support and technology, however, it is possible for them to still lead an active and fulfilling life. We will examine how hearing loss affects seniors, the available treatments and technologies that can help them manage their condition, and ways in which family members or caregivers can assist.
There is a higher likelihood that someone with hearing loss will downplay or even deny that it is happening to them. Only a small fraction of people who are deaf or hard of hearing seek proper treatment. Furthermore, it typically takes them seven years to finally decide on getting the necessary help.
The Risks of Untreated Hearing Loss
Hearing health is a cornerstone of overall health, same as a healthy diet, exercise, and proper sleep. Given how common hearing loss is, wearing hearing aids should carry no more cultural stigma than wearing glasses. Wearing hearing aids allows one to live a life basically unchanged by their hearing loss. But the consequences of living with hearing loss without maintaining the proper treatment often compound quickly, impacting every aspect of your overall health. The damages become professional, personal, emotional, and even psychological.
Why Might People Make Excuses Instead of Take Action
In most cases hearing loss comes on so gradually that it is nearly impossible for the person experiencing it to even recognize that it’s happening. Many people read lips without consciously knowing that they are doing so. And everyone unconsciously uses context clues to fill in the blanks of words that they don’t quite catch. As someone slowly loses their hearing, they depend on these subconscious operations more and more without realizing that they are doing so. And at the same time, they are investing more and more energy into simply keeping up with conversations. Socializing becomes fatiguing.
But without some decisive instant of recognizable change, there is no decisive call to action to address it. People adapt instead of admitting that they are facing a new challenge. The subtlety with which all of this happens is exactly why it is so common for someone to notice hearing loss in a loved one before the loved one even admits it to themselves. It is why it is so important to speak up when you witness hearing loss coming on. Without such intervention, given that there was no decisive instant of recognizable change, taking action becomes a matter of personal responsibility, instead of an urgent call.
The Excuses
- Some affected individuals may fundamentally deny the existence of the problem and insist, “I can hear just fine.”
- Some people might admit that the problem is real, but downplay how severe it actually is. “it’s not that bad,” they say. “I don’t need help yet.”
- Other people may scoff and say that they’re too young or old to start wearing hearing aids, which is just another form of denial.
Make an Appointment Today
Hearing loss can be a difficult condition to live with, but getting a hearing test and custom hearing aids can help make life easier. Custom hearing aids are designed to fit your individual needs and provide optimal sound quality for your lifestyle. By getting a hearing test, you can determine the best type of hearing aid for your specific needs. Benefits of getting custom hearing aids include improved communication, better sound quality, and increased safety in noisy environments. Additionally, custom-made hearing aids provide comfort and convenience that other types of hearing aids cannot match. With the right treatment plan in place, you can enjoy better communication with family and friends as well as improved sound quality in everyday life. Make an appointment today to receive and analyze the objective data you need to make an informed choice about what option is just right for you.