Hearing loss can be caused by many things and is usually extremely frustrating. There are some situations where hearing loss is caused by a more severe underlying health problem and isn’t simply the result of an injury or aging.
Look out for these hearing loss red flags
Hearing loss will often throw up a number of red flags indicating it’s time for a hearing exam. Pay attention if any of these red flags show up.
Having difficulty hearing phone calls
You might be having a difficult time hearing phone calls even with the volume setting. If you are continually cranking the volume up louder and louder on your cell phone or landline, you should schedule an appointment as soon as possible for a hearing exam.
Trouble making out conversations
Although getting lost during a conversation isn’t always a sign of hearing loss, it may be a sign of hearing loss if you frequently have trouble processing the conversation when two or more people are talking simultaneously.
Family & neighbors are complaining about a loud TV
Following along with television shows, particularly when there’s music and dialog, can be a challenge. It’s worthwhile to know that cranking the television up louder doesn’t always make the sound clearer. But it’s time to have your hearing assessed if your neighbors can hear your TV or if you continuously need the volume on a really loud setting.
Difficulty hearing in loud settings
If you are in a public location and the background sound makes it difficult to hear the other people with you, it typically means you struggle to mask background noise and focus on speech. Individuals who are going through hearing loss most frequently have this complaint.
You keep asking people what they said
Just because you aren’t able to hear someone mumbling several feet from you doesn’t mean you have hearing loss. However, it might be a red flag that you aren’t receiving and processing speech properly if the word “what” is the most used word in your vocabulary.
Failing to understand what people are saying
It can be a sign of high frequency hearing loss, often an embarrassing one, if you regularly misunderstand what people are saying. This means you are unable to discern the sounds of speech.
If you are experiencing any of the above red flags, you should schedule a hearing exam as soon as possible. Luckily, the stigma that was once related to hearing loss has nearly vanished, the testing is simple, and with the modern advances in hearing aid technologies, there’s no reason for you to keep suffering with hearing loss.