Everyone has moments where they want a little time to themselves. But if you start to notice a pattern of consistent social withdrawal, it could indicate an underlying issue like hearing loss.
While that may not seem like a big deal at first, one 2020 literature review found that social isolation and loneliness could have a significant impact on the cognitive, mental and psychosocial health of older adults with hearing loss.
Let’s examine how untreated hearing loss contributes to feelings of isolation and how hearing aids can help you return to enjoying time with family and friends.
How Untreated Hearing Loss Contributes to Social Isolation
Many know that first-day-of-school feeling—where you’re unsure where to sit or how to talk to people. Untreated hearing loss fosters the same worries. There are a couple of areas where you can see the effect of this uncertainty:
- Noisy social gatherings. People with hearing loss struggle to make sense of the overlapping speech at busy gatherings like happy hours at ETX Brewing Company. You might find yourself turning down invitations for fear that you won’t be able to keep up.
- Your close relationships. Miscommunications create tension in relationships. Your partner could get frustrated that you never hear them, or you could get irritated because they’re always mumbling.
- Your safety. When hearing loss dulls sounds like sirens, fire alarms and warning shouts, it can wreak havoc on your sense of safety, causing you to stay inside.
Social withdrawal can also pop up subtly, like ordering groceries instead of going to the store or falling behind at work because the stress of communication is taxing.
How Can Hearing Aids Help?
Hearing aids may be the small spark you need to reignite your social life. There are a few ways they can benefit you:
- Clearer communication. These small but essential devices make communication easy by amplifying speech sounds and minimizing irrelevant background noise. They may even help stop a fight or two with your partner.
- More energy. When you don’t have to strain to understand every word, you’ll have more energy to attend happy hours, pick the specific tomatoes you want from the supermarket and participate in work meetings.
- Greater security. It’s hard to feel like you’re always missing something. It may even make you feel unsafe when you leave the house. Hearing aids give you the security you need to move about the world confidently.
Hearing loss doesn’t have to interrupt your social life. Contact SoundLogic today to discuss your treatment options with one of our specialists.