Hearing Loss
Educational resources about hearing loss and health in Gainesville, VA.
What is Hearing Loss?
- Genetics
- Exposure to loud noise
- Head or ear trauma
- Earwax blockage
- Ear infection
- Deterioration of the hair cells in the inner ear
- Age
Hearing and Your Health
Hearing loss is not always the result of aging, sometimes it can be caused by another serious underlying health condition. Studies have proven that hearing loss can be connected to heart disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure. Each of these conditions affects the blood vessels in your body, often causing them to swell. Because the blood vessels in your ear are so sensitive, the swelling of them due to one of these conditions can cause hearing loss.
It’s important to schedule regular hearing check-ups and appointments with your physician to catch any of these conditions early. Early intervention can prevent any further complications and will benefit your overall well-being.
Signs of Hearing Loss
- Sounds seem muffled
- It’s harder to hear when there is background noise
- You often ask people to repeat themselves
- You listen to the TV at a volume louder than everyone else
- You can hear sounds but you can’t hear what people are saying
- You hear a ringing in your ears (tinnitus)
Hearing Wellness
Hearing and Your Brain
Hearing is directly connected to the brain. In fact, we don’t hear with our ears, we hear when sound travels through the ear and up to the auditory cortex of the brain. When sound reaches the brain, it is transformed into information and stored into our memories. Healthy hearing is a crucial part of having an active and healthy brain. When you can’t hear well due to hearing loss, your brain doesn’t receive the proper stimulation it needs. Hearing loss makes it difficult for the brain to hear certain sound signals depending on the tone and frequency. As a result, your brain will work harder to pick up the sounds that it is missing, this can lead to mental strain, fatigue, and even memory problems.
Studies have proven there is a connection between hearing loss and cognitive decline. Hearing loss makes it harder to hear, which can often result in feelings of embarrassment. Those who have hearing loss may socially isolate themselves from other people because they are ashamed of their hearing loss and they don’t want anyone to notice. Without conversations and social interactions, you can develop feelings of loneliness, depression, and experience a decline in your cognitive abilities. Your brain needs your hearing to remain active and healthy.
The most effective way to prevent dementia and cognitive decline is to manage your hearing loss with hearing aids. Hearing aids provide your brain with the proper stimulation it needs to process sounds and remain healthy. Hearing aids will also provide you with the confidence to rejoin the conversation and interact with your friends and family again
Tinnitus
Tinnitus is commonly described as a ringing, buzzing, whooshing, or hissing sound you hear in your ears or head but isn’t caused by an external noise. Tinnitus is incredibly common, affecting more than 50 million Americans. Although tinnitus can be connected to hearing loss, many people who don’t have hearing loss experience a ringing in their ears.
Tinnitus itself is not a disease, but rather a symptom of another problem. Some common causes include:
- Exposure to loud noise
- Medication
- Hearing loss
- Ear infection
- Trauma to the ear
- Earwax buildup
- Meniere’s disease
Tinnitus can be disruptive to your daily life. Our audiologists can test your hearing and discover the underlying cause of your tinnitus. If you have hearing loss in addition to tinnitus, we carry hearing aids with a special tinnitus masking feature. These hearing aids will play soothing sounds in your ears, helping to distract your brain from the ringing in your ears. If tinnitus is bothering you, contact our office today. We can help you experience relief from annoying tinnitus.
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