Top tips for enjoying social events with a hearing loss

As hearing loss worsens, it can make life difficult at social events. Family get-togethers, theatre trips and drinks with friends can all seem a daunting thing for a hearing loss sufferer. But… they don’t have to be!

Don’t forget your hearing aids!

Being involved in a group conversation (and sometimes even just one-on-one!) can prove difficult when you have a hearing loss. Depending on the severity of your hearing loss, you could you miss full parts of conversation or perhaps just the subtle cues that we would usually give no thought to. For example, when someone is going to begin speaking they will often take a breath before beginning and it is things like this that are so easily missed.

If this conversation is taking place in a noisy place like a bar, the conversation can become even more difficult. With fast changing conversation topics and passionate individuals getting louder every passing minute, the listening situation becomes ever more difficult.

The only way to really improve your listening situation if you have a hearing loss is by using a hearing aid. The hearing aid will be programmed by your hearing care professional to your exact hearing loss. They can also create different listening programs for you to use in different situations. Programs can be created to assist with reducing background noise and increasing speech clarity. These different programs can be easily accessed by using an app on your phone.

Do we just need to increase the volume?

We’ve discussed how hearing aids are the key to staying sociable with a hearing loss. But is it just a case of turning the volume to high and hoping for the best? No, it’s not. This is where your listening programs will really excel and increase your chances of hearing things accurately. There are so many subtle changes that can be applied for you to each program to really best improve the listening situation for your specific hearing loss. Ask your audiologist to demonstrate how this works for you.

Connect to a hearing loop system

Another way to improve your listening situation when wearing hearing aids out and about is to connect to a venue’s hearing loop system. You will only be able to do this if your hearing aid is equipped with a telecoil. A lot of churches, theatres and cinemas have hearing loops. You can connect to them so that the sound is streamed directly into your ears through your hearing aids. Usually a telecoil is an additional extra to your hearing aids so be sure to discuss this with your hearing care professional before placing an order for new hearing aids.

Staying sociable with a hearing loss is not easy. However, if you receive the correct treatment, you can continue to enjoy as many social events as you did before your hearing loss. If you are ready to book yourself in for a hearing consultation, please give us a call.