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Better hearing means better overall wellness

Now is a perfect reminder to take care of your hearing health. A baseline hearing exam is essential in
promoting healthy hearing. It can help detect hearing loss early enough for your provider to treat it
successfully, preventing or reducing the likelihood of physical, mental and social health
complications from affecting your quality of life.     

As part of Better Hearing Month, we’re encouraging you to be more aware of your hearing health. 

Please contact our office to schedule your appointment.

HOW OFTEN SHOULD YOU GO FOR A HEARING TEST?

It’s easy to take your hearing for granted when you can hear well and aren’t having any issues. However, there may come a day when you do start to experience hearing loss and aren’t sure what to do or where to turn.

It’s good practice to get a hearing test and find out the status of how well you can hear. You may be thinking that’s a wise idea, but how often should I go? Continue reading to find out more about what to expect at a hearing test and the guidelines for how frequently you should see an audiologist. Scheduling these appointments will help to ensure you’re aware of any signs of hearing loss and are taking preventative measures against it.

SCREENING VS TESTING

You have two options, either to have a hearing screening or a hearing test. It’s important to know the difference so that you’re receiving the right care. To identify if you have any hearing loss, you’ll want to do a screening. It’s going to detect your ability to hear particular sounds in certain situations. For this exam, you’ll typically either receive a pass or a fail outcome. If you fail the screening, then you’ll want to move forward with further testing to understand better the depth and type of hearing loss you’re experiencing. The recommendation is that you receive a screening regularly to confirm your hearing is in good standing.

As for a hearing test, audiologists will use a variety of types of tests to evaluate your ability to hear sound. They’re non-invasive, so there’s no need to be worried or anxious about a hearing test. These tests will also tell an audiologist if the components of your ears responsible for your hearing are operating optimally. Experts recommend that people ages 18-40 without any noticeable hearing loss should get their hearing tested every three to five years.   

WHO SHOULD GET TESTED MORE OFTEN?

Although the general guidelines say to get tested every three to five years, this doesn’t hold true for everyone. There are certain circumstances you should know about that will require that you get tested more frequently. For example, if you’re over the age of 60, are exposed to loud noises regularly, or already have hearing loss, then it’s advised you get your hearing tested at least once a year. Anyone and everyone should pay attention to their hearing.

If you notice any sudden changes in your ability to hear, then you should contact an audiologist immediately and schedule an appointment for an evaluation. A few warning signs that you should be on the lookout for include muffling of speech, difficulty understanding words, trouble hearing consonants, asking others to continually repeat themselves and having to turn up the volume on the television or radio.

WHAT TO EXPECT

You may be nervous or hesitant about getting a hearing test because you’re unsure of what to expect. Typically, they’ll occur in a quiet and sound-treated room so that other noises don’t become a distraction. Your environment can sway the results, so it’s important different and external sounds or noises aren’t getting in the way. When it’s time to administer the test, your audiologist will have you wear headphones or soft earplugs that will connect to an audiometer. This instrument is what they will use to conduct your hearing test. If you look around the room, you may see specially placed speakers which they use to test infants, small children and people who are wearing hearing aids already and require testing.

The audiologist will communicate to you via your headphones and will have you listen to tones at different pitches and levels, which is called pure tone audiometry. The test can measure the softest sounds you can hear at each frequency. Furthermore, you’ll likely also participate in speech audiometry as part of your hearing test. It’ll consist of using recorded or live speech instead of pure tones. They will ask you to repeat back words to measure how well you can understand what you’re hearing.

Part of living a healthy lifestyle and taking good care of yourself includes testing your hearing. You should now have a better idea of what to expect at your appointment and how often you should see an audiologist. If you notice your hearing isn’t like it was in the past, then it’s best to receive a second opinion. Have you been putting this important task off and are ready to schedule your next hearing exam or test? If so, then act today by contacting the office of Dr. Richard J. Strauch, North Central Hearing Associates at (570) 724-4042.

HOW TO DEAL WITH A FAMILY MEMBER WITH HEARING LOSS?

If a family member has hearing loss, there are lots of ways that you can help them to cope and make the best of their situation. Here are some easy ways to provide support to someone with hearing loss. 

LEARN WHAT IT’S LIKE TO LIVE WITH HEARING LOSS

Hearing loss can put a strain on relationships. It can cause stress, hurt feelings, frustration and thanks to miscommunication and the need to repeat yourself. If you find yourself getting frustrated, it can help to learn more about what living with hearing loss is actually like. If you have can learn to have empathy for them and are able to better relate to what your family member is going through with their hearing loss, you might be better able to hold onto your patience. 

Have a conversation with them and ask lots of questions to help you to better understand what they are experiencing, but there are also options in technology to help you learn more. There are lots of websites online that can simulate hearing loss so you can get a better idea of what it is actually like to lose your hearing.

BE AN ADVOCATE

A great way to be supportive is to become an advocate for your family member who is experiencing hearing loss. It can be difficult for someone who is losing their hearing to manage to hear clearly in group situations like parties, thanks to the background noise. Before events like this, it can help to call ahead to let other family members know some of your tried and tested tips to make conversation and communication go a little easier. Sit next to your family member at dinner and let them know that they can ask you if to repeat things for them if they miss anything. 

You can also be an advocate in general for those with hearing loss. These could be things like checking that hotels you stay in over services and rooms equipped for those with hearing loss. If they don’t, you can suggest some changes to management that they could make. 

DOS AND DON’TS

When somebody has hearing loss, communication, which is a vital part of inclusion in society, is impacted negatively. Remember that effective communication goes well beyond just speaking. Gestures and facial expressions can help to make the meaning of what you’re saying much clearer. 

Whenever it is possible to do so, you should face the person you are talking too. Try to avoid covering your mouth when you’re speaking so the person can lip read if they need to. Make sure you have their attention before you start speaking. Don’t chew gum while you are speaking to someone with hearing loss, as the chewing can distort the shape of your mouth. This makes it harder to lip read, and follow what you are saying. Be aware that your family member may have a harder time than usual hearing you if they are stressed, tired, upset or ill. Be patient if this happens. Try to be flexible and be willing to hold off on a conversation until there is a better time to talk. 

• Do get their attention with a tap or a wave.
• Don’t get their attention with a clap or a shout.
• Do speak to them face to face.
• Don’t speak to them with your head turned away from them. 
• Do speak slowly and clearly to them. 
• Don’t speak too fast or too loudly.
• Do be willing to repeat yourself or rephrase what you said. 
• Don’t repeat the same thing, just louder, if they didn’t hear you. 
• Do be patient and keep trying, with notes if you need to. 
• Don’t get frustrated and give up. Don’t say it’s not important. 

Hearing loss can happen to anyone and can be caused by lots of different things, such as a sudden loud noise, medication or just getting older. Exposure to loud noises over the years, such as going to loud concerts or working in a very loud environment, can gradually cause someone’s hearing to become damaged.

Your family member may lose the ability to hear sounds at certain pitches or may find their hearing is less sensitive in general, especially in environments with a lot of background noise. If you notice their hearing is going, they should seek medical treatment in order to protect the rest of their hearing as best as they can. To learn more about hearing loss and what can be done about it, call the Office of Dr. Richard J. Strauch, North Central Hearing Associates at (570) 724-4042.

Taking charge of your hearing loss by wearing hearing aids has been shown to:

• Reduce social isolation
• Improve relationships with your loved ones
• Reduce negative emotional consequences of hearing loss such as depression, anxiety, frustration, and loneliness
• Increase earning power by maintaining higher productivity at work
• Decrease embarrassing faux pas that occur when hearing is not good
• Improve safety through better hearing of sirens, warning signals, car horns, etc.
• Provide an increased sense of control and independence
• Improve your ability to communicate even in challenging listening environments such as background noise.

Today’s active individual wants to stay more active, more engaged, more youthful, and more connected.  Hearing loss leads to constant communication barriers, increases dependency by relying on family members to interpret conversations, and increases the likelihood that you will miss out on important moments of your life.  Today’s hearing aids are marvels of technology!  If you or a loved one are struggling with hearing loss, take the first step to re-connecting with life by exploring what a difference hearing aids can make in the quality of YOUR life!