Top 5 Benefits to Wearing Hearing AidsMaybe you have noticed that you are missing some of the vital information during conversations with family or friends. Or you notice that you need to turn up the TV or radio a more frequently or louder than others prefer. When you start to display signs of hearing loss, seeking the advice of an audiologist is crucial to getting the treatment you need.
If your audiologist determines you have hearing loss, the most recommended solution is a hearing aid. There’s a plethora of different styles available to meet your hearing loss, lifestyle and budget needs, and your audiologist will help you select the perfect device.
In addition to helping you communicate better, hearing aids offer numerous other benefits, including:
1. Improve your mental health
Depression can often accompany hearing loss when it remains untreated for an extended period of time. However, with the right audiologist, testing and hearing aid, this can be substantially improved. There is a correlation between hearing and mental health. Being unable to follow conversations, missing things during lessons at school, college or other day-to-day functions all have an impact on your emotional wellbeing. Once your hearing aid is fitted, you can hear and understand what people are talking about again. Your social life can be vastly improved with the right hearing aid on your side.
2. Gain independence
If you find that you are missing out on some of the conversation or you don’t feel 100% comfortable and confident in your everyday activities, you may find yourself relying on others to fill you in. However, when you have a hearing aid fitted, you will be immersed in the conversation again – when you want to be. And even simple things like ordering food at a busy restaurant counter will be easier to complete on your own when you can hear clearly. Hearing again, due to having the right hearing aid fitted is a powerful thing.
3. Meaningful relationships
If you find you are asking people ‘what did you say’ or not responding correctly to what you are being asked or told, it can be frustrating to participate in conversations. Even if others don’t necessarily notice you aren’t following the conversation, you may feel withdrawn or less communicative. When this occurs, you may find it difficult, exhausting or even frustrating to try and carry on conversations you can’t fully hear.
This decline in communication can cause your friendships and relationships to suffer. Getting a hearing aid means it will be easier for you to hear all those little nuances you may have been missing. So now, instead of simply focusing on trying to hear the right words or read lips, you will be able to focus on the entire conversation with less effort.
4. Prevent cognitive decline
There have been multiple studies that have linked untreated hearing loss to an increased risk of reduced cognitive function. The decline in cognitive function appears to be greatest for those who don’t wear a hearing aid to correct their hearing loss. A study by the University of Pennsylvania has found that untreated hearing loss can lead to accelerated atrophy of the auditory areas of the brain. This will make understanding speech more difficult. Atrophy basically means the gradual decline of effectiveness due to neglect or underused.
The great news is that when you have a hearing aid fitted, you will decrease the atrophy and increase your ability to hear. This further supports the idea that treating hearing loss with hearing aids may slow the cognitive decline that is associated with hearing loss.
5. Improved quality of life
If you combine the reasons above, with the other great benefits, then you will have an overall better quality of life. When you wear a hearing aid to correct any level of hearing loss, you help to improve all aspects of your life, including your mental and emotional help. The right hearing aid makes it easy for you to complete your daily tasks easily and effectively.
Whether you are looking to simply communicate better with your friends, loved ones and family members, or want to improve your performance at work by being able to follow meetings better, a hearing aid can be beneficial to several areas of your life. The audiologist at Allison Audiology & Hearing Aid Center, P.C. is knowledgeable in hearing aid technology and finding the right solution for your particular needs. Learn more about how you can benefit from hearing aids by calling our office:
