YES! Take that survey! Ask yourself a few questions about your hearing abilities.
- How are you hearing in noisy places like restaurants? Can you understand conversations? Hearing loss can make it difficult to understand individual words.. background noise may sound unrealistically loud.
- Do you often ask people to repeat themselves? If you think people are speaking softly or the noise is over powering them… it may be that your hearing is not quite as sharp as it used to be.
- Why aren’t you going out with your friends? Are you dreading going out to noisy places because it is causing you difficulty to carry on a conversation or is it stressing you? Hearing loss can be exhausting and cause loneliness. If for any reason you are finding yourself coming up with reasons to not enjoy the company of others… it should be investigated. Staying actively social is imperative for great brain health.
Other than the obvious social and noise environments that can be challenging…there are also other key indicators that you should consider when determining your hearing health.
- Tinnitus. Do you have ringing in your ears or any type of head noises? This often is accompanied by a hearing loss.
- Can you hear high pitched sounds ok? For example; can you hear the microwave beep? Have you had to change the ring tone on your cell phone so that it actually scares you and everyone else when it goes off? L.O.L. That may be a sign you need a hearing health care professional to check you out!
- Are you turning up the tv? Is your spouse complaining about the volume? One of my favorite signs of possible hearing loss from my patients: “People mumble. My wife mumbles. My grand kids talk to fast and mumble”. Now, I do know there is a little bit of southern drawl in the south… but.. heads up… If you think people are mumbling or you are missing the first words of a sentence… it is absolutely time to make that call and get a hearing evaluation and consultation.
If we can help, just give us a call: (863) 385-3497. To Hear Better Is To Live Better!
By: Roseann B. Kiefer, B.A., BC-HIS