The human body has some fantastic and surprising abilities. Scrapes, cuts, and broken bones are generally no problem for the human body to heal (with a little time, your body can heal the giant bones in your legs and arms).
But when it comes to restoring the delicate little hairs in your ear, you’re out of luck. For now at least.
It’s really regrettable that your body can accomplish such great feats of healing but can’t restore these little hairs. What’s happening there?
When is Hearing Impairment Permanent?
So let’s take a closer look. You’re at your doctor’s office attempting to digest the news he’s giving you: you have hearing loss. So the first question you ask is whether the hearing will ever return. And he tells you that it might or it might not.
It’s a bit anticlimactic, speaking dramatically.
But he’s not wrong. Hearing loss comes in two primary forms:
- Hearing loss due to damage: But there’s another, more common form of hearing loss. Known medically as sensorineural hearing loss, this form of hearing loss is effectively permanent. This is how it works: In your ear, there are little hairs that vibrate when moved by sound waves. When vibrations are converted into signals, they are transmitted to the brain which makes them into the sounds you perceive. But over time, loud sounds can cause these hairs to be damaged to the point where treatment is needed.
- Blockage induced hearing loss: When there’s something obstructing your ear canal, you can exhibit all the indications of hearing loss. This obstruction can be caused by a wide variety of things, from the gross (ear wax) to the downright scary (tumors). The good news is that once the blockage is removed, your hearing often returns to normal.
So here’s the main point: you can recover from one form of hearing loss and you most likely won’t know which one you’re coping with without getting a hearing test.
Treating Hearing Loss
So presently there’s no “cure” for sensorineural hearing loss (although scientists are working on that). But your hearing loss still may be manageable. Here are a few ways that the correct treatment may help you:
- Avoid isolation by remaining socially involved.
- Maintain and safeguard the hearing you still have.
- Cope successfully with any of the symptoms of hearing loss you might be enduring.
- Counter cognitive decline.
- Maintain a high quality of life.
Of the many types of treatment available, which one is right for you depends on the extent of your hearing loss. Hearing aids are one of the easiest and most prevalent treatment choices.
Why is Hearing Loss Effectively Managed With Hearing AIds?
You can get back to the people and things you love with the help of hearing aids. They can help you hear the conversation, the phone, your television, or even just the birds in the park. You won’t be struggling to hear so pressure will be taken off your brain.
Prevention is The Best Protection
Whether you have hearing loss now or not, you should safeguard your hearing from loud noises and other things that can damage your hearing (like ototoxic drugs). Hearing well is critical to your general health and well-being. Routine hearing care, like annual hearing tests, is just another kind of self-care.
