The Emotional Side Of Hearing Loss

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MENTAL AND EMOTIONAL HEALTH

• Hearing loss is commonly associated with mental
  and emotional health.
• Realising that you are gradually losing your
  hearing and may not be able to listen to your
  favourite music, communicate with your loved ones
  and engage in one-on-one or group conversations
  can leave you in a shock.

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• It often takes a long time, sometimes 4-5 years
  for some people to realise that their hearing is
  impaired.
• From the onset of the condition to finally
  getting it treated, the sufferer undergoes varied
  emotional stages, which manifest their sentiments
  about their condition.

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IGNORANCE

• Hearing loss in many people goes undetected and
  untreated because they keep ignoring the signs.
• While young children are usually unable to
  realise their hearing impairment until they are
  clinically assessed, many adults tend to overlook
  significant signs that indicate towards hearing
  loss.

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• Not getting the right help in the right time can
  cause permanent damage to your ears and affect
  your quality of life.

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DENIAL

• Why are you mumbling? Can you turn down the
  background music so that I can hear you guys
  better? Can you please repeat what you said? The
  audio of the TV must be set too low, I cant hear
  fine what theyre saying properly?

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• Denial is a natural reaction to hearing loss but
  a temporary stage that occurs due to the fear of
  embarrassment.
• It seems convenient for some people to alter
  their environment to compensate their hearing
  loss.

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ANGER

• The phase of denial advances and lead the
  sufferer to a stage where they start blaming
  others out of frustration and anger.
• Family members or near ones may mock or laugh at
  their inability to hear clearly, which annoys the
  person with impaired hearing and they lash out in
  anger to defend their inability.

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WITHDRAWAL

• Eventually when temporary defence (the stage of
  denial and anger) is replaced with partial
  acceptance, the sufferer begins to cut themselves
  out of family gatherings and social events to
  avoid embarrassing situations.
• They start to evade one-on-one interactions and
  group conversation in the fear of having people
  know about their hearing issue.

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DEPRESSION

• All the stages together automatically cause the
  person suffering from hearing loss to isolate
  themselves, ultimately leading to depression.
• Isolation and the loss of social activity and
  interaction create a feeling of low self-esteem,
  which prevent the sufferer from getting help and
  care they need.

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ACCEPTANCE

• After all the ignorance, denial, frustration and
  isolation, there comes a phase when the
  individual with impaired hearing gets tired of
  missing out on things they once use to enjoy.
• The stage leads them to seek professional help
  and find a suitable hearing device to improve
  their hearing and the quality of life.

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THE FIRST STEP IN THE STAGE OF ACCEPTANCE

• A visit to an experienced, reputed audiologist is
  the first step in the stage of acceptance.
• A hearing specialist examines your hearing to
  determine the cause and degree of your hearing
  loss so that they can offer a solution that best
  suits your condition and needs.

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FREE INTRODUCTORY HEARING ASSESSMENT

• Many hearing centres and clinics offer a free
  introductory hearing assessment to their clients
  followed by a full hearing evaluation.
• The results of these hearing assessments help the
  audiologist suggest a suitable treatment for your
  hearing impairment.

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• Furthermore, using a digital hearing device for
  the first time can be a bit challenging
  initially.
• The wearer will hear sounds they havent heard
  for a long time, which may feel unusual and
  strange in the beginning.
• Remember that it will take some time for your
  ears to adapt to the new hearing device.

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HEARING AID BATTERIES

• Remember that success with hearing aids relies
  largely on personal care and motivation. A
  positive attitude and a little effort on the
  users part can go a long way to speed up the
  adaption process and improve the listening
  experience. It is advisable to learn about care
  and maintenance of your hearing device and
  hearing aid batteries to get the most out of your
  device and experience.

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CONTACT US
HEARING AID SPECIALISTS S.A