What to consider

Many people with hearing loss aren't interested in hearing aids. You might think a hearing aid will make you look older or change how strangers interact with you. Some people might think they get by just fine using visual cues to make up for their loss of hearing.

Be honest with yourself. Wearing a hearing aid is much less noticeable than is constantly asking people to repeat themselves or responding to a question with an unrelated answer.

The truth is that a well-fitted hearing aid can greatly enhance your ability to interact with others. Hearing aids can minimize many problems that go along with hearing loss, such as difficulty understanding conversations or hearing timers and beepers. And they can help combat feelings of social isolation.

If your hearing loss affects your ability to communicate with others or makes you feel self-conscious, it may be time to consider a hearing aid. Though it may be awkward at first, over time you'll adjust to the device and enjoy your enhanced ability to hear and communicate in a variety of situations. By wearing your hearing aid regularly and taking good care of it, you'll likely notice significant improvements in your quality of life.

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Although there are many TYPES of hearing loss, the most common type is SENSORINEURAL (also called " cochlear " or " inner ear " or " nerve loss " ), the second most common type of hearing loss is CONDUCTIVE. Other types of hearing loss include; mixed and central.

When the problem is in the inner ear, a sensorineural hearing loss occurs. Sensorineural hearing loss is the most common type of hearing loss. More than 90 percent of all hearing aid wearers have sensorineural hearing loss. The most common causes of sensorineural hearing loss are; age related changes, noise exposure, inner ear blood circulation, inner ear fluid disturbances and problems with the hearing nerve.

Conductive hearing loss occurs when sound is not conducted efficiently through the ear canal, eardrum or the tiny bones of the middle ear, resulting in a reduction of loudness of sound. Conductive loss may result from earwax blocking the ear canal, fluid in the middle ear, middle ear infection, obstructions in the ear canal, perforations (hole) in the eardrum or disease of any of the three middle ear bones.

People with conductive hearing loss may notice their ears seem to be full or plugged. This person may speak softly because they hear their own voice loudly. Crunchy foods, such as celery or carrots, seem very loud to the person with a conductive hearing loss and this person may have to stop chewing to hear what is being said. All conductive hearing losses should be evaluated by an audiologist and a physician to explore medical and surgical options.

To demonstrate a conductive hearing loss, gently and safely close your ears with your fingers. This will give you the feeling of a conductive hearing loss you'll feel plugged-up, and you'll feel a little hearing impaired. Interestingly, some people may tell you they don't need hearing aids because they ONLY have a 30 decibel hearing loss. However, assuming you have normal hearing, when you plug your ears with your fingers, you'll experience approximately a 25 decibel hearing loss and you'll quickly realize that even a VERY MILD hearing loss is quite irritating and disconcerting!

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