Hearing loss has many forms – it may occur gradually (for example, as the result of aging) or suddenly (as the result of an injury or trauma). The experience of hearing loss may range from mild episodes of not being able to hear conversations correctly to extreme periods of being unable to hear at all, and can be either permanent or temporary. Also, a person might experience a loss of hearing in either one ear or both ears.
The most often reported symptom of hearing loss is gradually struggling to hear and comprehend conversations correctly. People’s voices may seem to be at too low a volume or sound muffled . Or alternatively, you might be able to hear people talking but discover that you’re having difficulty distinguishing individual words; this could become more evident when several people are speaking simultaneously, or when you are in busy locations.
Other common symptoms of hearing loss include having to increase the volume on your television or radio, having more difficulty hearing men’s voices than women’s, and being unable to differentiate sounds such as ‘s’ and ‘th’ from one another. Other forms of hearing problems may be indicated if you experience a constant ringing in the ears, if you feel pain, tenderness or itching in the ears, and if you have instances of dizziness or vertigo.
One of the challenges with hearing loss is that it may arise so gradually that people are themselves not aware of it. Or they might recognize it but display “denial behaviors” to try to hide or conceal their hearing loss from others. For instance, people attempting to hide hearing loss may ask other people to repeat themselves frequently, are likely to avoid conversations and social interaction, fake having heard things they really didn’t, and over time can develop feelings of depression and isolation.
If any of these signs and symptoms sound familiar to you, it is time to make an appointment with one of our hearing specialists. They will give you a hearing test to figure out if you have experienced hearing loss, and if so, can help you find a solution.