Top Reasons to Wear Your Hearing Aids at Home
Our ears pick up all sounds around us and this information is sent to the brain. The information sent to the brain is then processed and prioritized into either action or inaction, enjoyment or displeasure and the list goes on. The brain receives information from all your senses, however, if one of your senses is not functioning normally, the brain has to double the efforts of your other senses to compensate. This increases the cognitive load on the brain resulting in additional strain on the individual. This is why it’s essential to expose the brain to stimuli on a regular basis.
Typically, when someone with hearing loss regularly uses their hearing aids, it results in the most efficient outcomes. From increased regular and more enjoyable conversations, improved balance, decreased sensations of tinnitus, and research has even shown a decrease in injuries related to falls, and diagnosis of dementia.
Let’s check some details together.
Is It Necessary for Me to Wear Hearing Aids Consistently at Home?
Yes, you certainly should! Even when there is nobody to talk to, spending more time wearing your hearing aids means your brain has more opportunity to listen fully. Hearing the normal sounds at home — your favorite TV show, songbirds singing outside, water boiling or the sound of your furnace turning on — while not all of these are of utmost importance, it does retrain your brain to know what ‘normal’ sounds feel like again. Don’t forget, you haven’t been hearing soft sounds for a while, and it might feel unusual to hear these sounds again. Hearing these sounds again starting in a familiar environment makes it easier to function in noisier and unfamiliar environments later. Think of wearing hearing aids regularly like someone training to run a marathon. No runner simply puts on a new pair of running shoes and enters the race. There are months if not years of training that goes into preparing to run the race. And if you ask any marathon runner, they will tell you running the race is as much mental preparation as it is physical.
Hearing the sounds you enjoy the most, like your grandkids joyful voices, the sound of rain or thunderstorm, your favourite music, TV shows, or films, all significantly help you connect to your surroundings and can assist you in enjoying life’s pleasures and beauty. In short, wearing your hearing aids on a regular basis allows you to be more independent and confident.
Why to Wear Hearing Aids at Home: Additional Reasons
Reduce Tiredness – The effort necessary to listen attentively to a discussion causes cognitive fatigue. To completely grasp a discussion, hearing-impaired people require not just sounds, but also lip motion, face expression, emotions, and situational and linguistic context. Recognizing, interpreting, and comprehending each of these signs requires special attention and can be mentally draining. Frustration, shame, and grief can all be triggered by fatigue caused by hearing issues. Social disengagement and isolation can result from a mix of cognitive, physical, and emotional exhaustion.
Increase Acclimatization Time – Whether you’re getting your first set of hearing aids or your fifth, increases in amplification might seem unusual and even unpleasant at first. It takes some time to acclimatize to the new adjustments, just as when you put on a new pair of prescription glasses. The mechanisms of our ears are exceedingly fragile and delicate. Hearing aids, even with the tiniest amount of amplification, can make a significant difference in how you hear. As a result, thorough adjustment can take up to two weeks.
Improved Sound Localization – Many people preferred to keep themselves busy and diverted by spending time outdoors working on crafts and pastimes during social isolation. Especially during these times, hearing aids are essential to use when you’re at home or working outside. They aid in determining the source, direction and distance of sounds.
What Are the Changes I Will Notice?
Hearing better is only the start of the advantages of hearing aids. Hearing aids increase your life quality by allowing you to engage with people and activities you enjoy, specifically if you are socially isolated. You could be working from home and having more regular video conference sessions, or you could be having virtual gaming evenings with your family or friends. While gardening, you may even have extra time to listen to new podcasts. You won’t miss a beat from any of these activities if you wear your hearing aids every day.
It’s possible that the significance of hearing health and the general benefits of hearing aids aren’t immediately apparent. You might, for example, have the following experiences:
- Positive, fulfilling relationships
- Longer lasting conversations
- More confidence
- Better memory recall
- Increased earning potential
- Dementia risk is reduced.
- Improved cognitive performance with less fatigue
What if I Prefer to Use My Hearing Aids Only When I’m Socialising?
When you wear hearing aids just when they’re absolutely necessary, you may be hindering your long-term hearing health and cognitive brain activity, but moreso, you may be missing intimate moments because you never know when someone might just say something that just might never again be repeated. Life happens quickly and spontaneously. Picking and choosing when and where you might want to hear better means you will most certainly miss out on things.
Hearing loss that is only treated part of the time might lead to a condition known as auditory deprivation. Word recognition can deteriorate more quickly if the brain does not obtain sensory input or stimulation than if signals are provided through a hearing aid. Simply said, now is a great time to put your hearing aids on and wear them regularly.
It’s true that becoming used to hearing aids takes patience, but the payback and long-term advantages are well worth the early hearing aid aggravation. In the long run, using hearing aids is critical for your brain and capacity to communicate. Remember that our professionals are there to guide you through the entire process of getting your hearing aids and helping you hear all things ‘normally’ again.