Denial is a common first response. Surely, my loved one’s hearing loss isn’t as bad as it seems. She’s too young to require a hearing aid.
Maybe, the both of you have started to joke around with each other about it. Your loved one always asks you to speak up. It’s only a game. You joke about it. But it’s starting to become less and less funny. You question whether she’s just ignoring you or if she might actually be having some legit hearing trouble.
You want your loved one to have a balanced, energetic, and happy life for years to come so it’s likely time to be encouraging and help them seek out the appropriate help.
If someone you know needs hearing aids they will most likely be showing these 4 prevalent signs.
1. She appears to be exhausted, especially in public
Perhaps you believe that it just ordinarily occurs when you get older. Your loved one used to have much more energy. You try to relate when she says that she’s not going out tonight.
Then she starts missing meetings with a hobby group, organization, or club that she’s always enjoyed, even when they meet virtually, and you begin to recognize something may be wrong. Your loved one’s energy seems to be exhausted by loud environments. If there is a lot of background noise, or if more than one conversation is happening at the same time, this is particularly true.
Additional energy is needed to hear and understand what people are saying when someone is dealing with hearing issues. Consequently, energy is transferred from other essential brain functions like physical movement, memory, and talking.
This use of extra energy is actually exhausting the brain not strengthening it. Your loved one will often seem to shut down with fatigue in social settings.
If you aren’t personally experiencing the same thing, don’t assume you can relate to what she’s dealing with. Her feelings might be the result of numerous factors. But ask questions. Get to the base cause and suggest that she get a hearing test.
2. She always cranks the TV up too loud
Frequently, you will notice this symptom first. Whenever they listen to music or watch TV, they crank it up really loud.
Your living room sounds like a movie theater. You instantly get the impulse to make some popcorn, except you find that she’s just watching a reality show or documentary at a volume that almost blows your ears out. Your neighbors can even hear it.
She may turn it down when you tell her it’s too loud. Then you realize that she just turned on the captions.
She might not want to admit that she actually can’t hear the TV. It’s likely time for you to suggest a hearing test if this is a regular thing.
3. She says, “What?”… a lot
It might not be an issue if you are in a really loud environment or she’s really focused on something. But you should pay closer attention if this is occurring frequently.
Furthermore, if she’s straining to hear phone calls you should take note.
Is she always frustrated because she thinks people are talking too quietly or mumbling? Does she regularly need people to repeat what they said? It’s time for a compassionate chat about the benefits of hearing aids.
4. Your relationship is feeling tense
Couples argue twice as much when one of them has hearing loss, according to research. These quarrels may center around TV volume, misconceptions, or what one claims the other person may or may not have said.
Overall, there’s just more tension in a household when somebody can’t hear. Their hearing loss is stressful. And their refusal to get help is frustrating to others. This brings about lots of hurt feelings and decisions to spend more time apart and alone.
This can lead to irreversible harm to the relationship and the couple often doesn’t even recognize that hearing loss is the cause. It’s important to get the proper help because even moderate hearing loss can strain relationships.
Whether it’s a friend, sibling, or partner, you can get new perspective on your relationships by getting a simple hearing test. Speak with your loved one about getting a hearing test.
If somebody has hearing loss, hearing aids can improve their lives and most will say they would never go back. In fact, they regret they didn’t get them sooner. They feel happier, healthier, and more active.
It can be a difficult talk to have. But the challenge of this discussion is worth it when your loved one finally gets the assistance they need.
Need more helpful ideas about how to address your loved one’s hearing loss? Call us right away!