Hearing is such an engrained part of life, we often miss it entirely. It’s just there. 24/7. And so, many of us simply take our ability to hear for granted. We’ve never experienced life without it.
Talk to people who have experienced hearing loss – even mild hearing loss – and you quickly discover what hearing does for us on a daily basis. These people overcome hurdles everyday about which most of us know nothing about. Let’s take a closer look at hearing and its importance in life’s quality.
Connecting with Others
We learn to speak by imitating the sounds we hear. Even the most eloquent speaker starts small – with “Mama” and “Dada” and other simple words. Mothers and fathers teach their children to speak by speaking to them. The children hear the sounds and imitate them.
Soon, we develop a larger vocabulary, learning new words every day. As more time passes, we learn to “hear” between the lines. We recognize, not only words, but tone. Is the speaker being sarcastic or are the sentiments expressed genuine? “Nice job, Fred” can mean “you’ve done a good job, Fred,” or it can mean just the opposite – depending on the tone used by the speaker.
There’s a direct link between your ability to hear and your ability to feel emotions. Without hearing, you’re often left out:
Emotional happiness
Isolation due to a lack of ability to hear often leads to depression, anxiety and disconnect from the rest of the world.
Studies haves shown untreated hearing loss had a direct impact on overall quality of life, everything from emotional happiness to relationship success with friends and loved ones. Treating hearing loss allows to reconnect with those around us how bring us emotional connections and happiness each and every day.
Spatial placement
The ability to hear contributes to our understanding of where we are in space. With a diminished ability to hear, we lose this ability to place ourselves in our environment.
This loss can result in losing the ability to tell where sounds are coming from – localization. Loss of localization affects our ability to understand speech in noise as well as protect ourselves in matters of danger (i.e. hearing a car coming at us).
Safety
Your ability to hear a warning bell or alarm protects you from danger. The ability to hear cars coming toward you provides enough time to get out of the way. A shout from a friend or co-worker of potential danger goes unheard and, suddenly, we’re confronted with an unexpected danger. In fact, we often hear danger before we see it.
Cognition
Cognition is the ability to think, to reason and to figure out the world around us. Cognition is an important part of communication. The ability to think, to solve problems and meet challenges are diminished by hearing loss since the brain is no longer stimulated like it once was.
Studies have shown by treating hearing loss cognitive abilities stay sharp and are especially crucial for persons with condition such as Alzheimer’s and dementia.
Quality of Life
Imagine life without music. Imagine life without the beautiful sounds of nature – the twittering birds, the babbling brook, the rumble of thunder in the distance. Hearing well is living life to the fullest.
Listen to the world around you. Protect your hearing health today and in the future. Treat your hearing loss to ensure you don’t miss out on sounds of life.
To learn more about hearing loss and how it affects your overall life, visit: Hearing Brings Your World to Life.
