4 Common Signs of Hearing Loss

In some cases, hearing loss can be instant and immediately recognizable. However, in most cases, it’s more of a gradual process and one that can be easy to miss for some time. If you’re concerned about whether or not you’re experiencing hearing loss and need to see a hearing health professional, here are four of the most common signs you should watch out for.

Voices are muffled or unclear

Hearing loss typically affects our ability to perceive voices accurately first and foremost. As such, voices can start to sound more indistinct. Any person can have trouble hearing amongst loud crowds, but if you are experiencing hearing loss, you might find that even light background noise can start to disrupt your ability to focus on and hear conversations.

You have trouble with women’s voices and children’s voices

Hearing loss typically, but not always, affects our ability to hear higher pitches. The cells in the ears that detect high-pitched noises are usually the first to take a toll. As such, if you have particular trouble hearing or understanding women or children this may be a strong indicator you have some degree of hearing loss. 

This also applies to other high-pitched sounds, if you don’t hear a microwave beeping, birds chirping or other sources of high-pitched sound, then you may have hearing loss that you need to address with the help of a hearing health professional.

You find social situations exhausting

It’s one of the more subtle signs of hearing loss, but people who have trouble following social events with their ears alone have to expend more energy to keep up. This might mean that you have to spend more time watching people’s lips moving in order to complete the message or that you have to stand closer than usual, listening very closely. 

All of this can feel like quite an effort, so you may end up feeling quite tired after social events. Hearing aids from a hearing health professional can make it much less taxing, allowing you to better enjoy all manner of social situations.

You have to turn the TV or speakers up very high

This is one that you might not notice, yourself, but you may be turning the TV, radio or speakers up to a volume that most people without hearing loss would consider excessive. If someone comments on how loud you have the volume and you are surprised by this, it may be the case that you are already unconsciously taking steps to address your difficulty with hearing it at a more commonly used volume.

If you have any reason to suspect that your hearing might have changed, even if you don’t experience any of the signs above, you should get in touch with your hearing health professional. Having a complete hearing test can help offer peace of mind and an answer to your question and, if necessary, they can help you select the best hearing devices to combat hearing loss.