Do you have a friend losing their hearing? A family member? A parent? Yourself? According to the World Health Organization, over 5% of the world's population has hearing loss. Furthermore, unaddressed hearing loss costs the world $750 billion dollars annually, between the costs of hearing devices and related healthcare, loss of productivity, educational support and related societal costs.

 

In the United States, one in three individuals over 65 has some degree of hearing loss (NIDCD, 2018). That loss of hearing can bring the loss of communication with it. This takes a particular burden on senior citizens with hearing loss. Feelings of frustration, isolation and disconnection from loved ones are extremely common. The National Council on the Aging (NCOA) completed a study on 2,300 senior citizens with hearing impairments, and actually discovered that those participants with an untreated hearing loss were "more likely to report depression, anxiety, and paranoia and were less likely to participate in organized social activities," than those who use hearing aids (AAA, 2019).  

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Why then, do people continue to wait to treat their hearing? 

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• Over half of the non-users in the NOCA study felt like they could continue getting along without hearing instruments. 

• Almost half of the non-users felt they were just too expensive.

• The remaining one-in-five said it was embarrassing to wear one. 

(AAA, 2019).

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Hearing loss occurs slowly and progressively. If you are reading this with a friend or family member in mind, consider the following: if the volume were turned down one notch on your TV every week, how many weeks would it take you to notice the difference? Or would you get used to the difference?

 

Hearing loss is an incredibly difficult thing to accurately self-diagnose. If you are reading for yourself, don't feel the need to go about this alone. Reach out to loved ones and your existing medical team.

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Nova Hearing Center is here to help those who are struggling with hearing loss. Please call us at 833-687-8324 or book a free hearing evaluation online.