There are 2 senses which are very easily treated if they begin to fail; sight (with glasses) and hearing (with hearing aids). They are probably our 2 most important senses, although taste does get a lot of good press! Unfortunately, these 2 do fail for some people as we age.
It is not difficult to see how many people rely on glasses to go about their daily lives. We are betting that you know a lot of people who use glasses, contact lenses or have even had laser eye surgery to correct their vision. However, for some reason, there still appears to be age-related stigma when it comes to wearing hearing aids and treating hearing loss. It may surprise you to know that if we took hearing loss as seriously as vision impairment, nearly 1 in 6 adults would be wearing hearing aids.
What’s the difference?
Driving, reading, watching TV and working at a computer all require you to have good vision. This is perhaps what motivates people to treat vision impairment more seriously than a hearing loss. The difference is that most people can cope, or work around, their hearing loss for a short while at least.
Hearing aid perception
Hearing aids from years ago were obviously not up to the standard that are available today and unfortunately people always seem to remember the big beige hearing aids that made funny squealing noises. Today’s hearing aids are NOT comparable in any way to these any more and technological advancements mean that there are even virtually invisible hearing aids.
“Hearing aids are only for old people”
Unfortunately, hearing aid stigma is a real thing. However it is getting better as time moves forward. People now use earbuds rather than headphones meaning people don’t really look twice if you have something in your ear! As we discussed above, if you are truly worried about people’s perception of you, hearing aids are now so small and discreet that they are barely noticeable.
Unfortunately, adults who can hear confidently and engage easily appear a lot less “old” than people who disengage from social situations. We need to finally understand that “old” is a perception and the status of your hearing does not define who you are.
“There is no cure for hearing loss”
Another common thing that puts people off going for help with their hearing is that there is indeed no cure for a hearing loss. However, hearing loss can absolutely be helped and managed with hearing aids; this is even the case for people suffering with severe hearing loss.
“Hearing aids are tricky to use and upkeep”
It is true that advancements in technology mean that today’s hearing aids are super complex. However, these complexities are contained with the hearing aids’ mini computers and are not passed on to the user. In fact, hearing aids have actually become significantly easier to use. Just one example of this is that they can now be rechargeable meaning no more fiddly change of batteries!
“Hearing aids aren’t worth the money”
We have just explained above how advanced hearing aids are now and we do appreciate that this does not come cheap! However, there are endless studies which show the physical, mental and quality of life issues that are caused when a hearing loss is left untreated. You can speak to any hearing aid user and they will tell how much their life has improved or that they wish they would have invested sooner. Call us bias, but we absolutely believe that treating a hearing loss is more than worth it.
We can offer hearing consultations in the comfort of your own home, simply give us a call to start your hearing aid journey today.
