The adage, you don’t know how much you appreciate something until you lose it, is quite true with good hearing. Most of us take our ears and hearing capability for granted, listening to loud music, going to concerts and standing next to the speakers, or cranking up the volume of our headphones, without a second thought.
But everything we do (or don’t do) can affect our hearing ability adversely. That’s why it’s important to gauge if you need to get your ears checked or not. In the guide below, we share 8 signs that will tell you in certain terms if you need to get an ear exam.
1. Cranking Up the Volume on the TV or Radio
Do your children or family members complain that you are cranking up the volume on the TV or radio so high that they can’t hear themselves think? If it’s just an occasional thing, because the TV announcer has a soft voice or the broadcast isn’t tuned properly, then that’s alright.
But if you notice yourself increasing the volume on devices all the time, because you just can’t hear what’s going on in the show, then that’s a bigger problem to be cognizant of.
2. Having Difficulty Following Conversations
This one is an annoying one not only for you but also for the people you are having conversations with. Are you constantly asking them to repeat themselves or are they constantly annoyed with you because you missed a certain crucial detail in their conversation?
It can also be highly embarrassing or frustrating for you, of course. And it can harm or deteriorate your relationship with your loved ones. The connection that you’ve built up with your loved ones, friends, and acquaintances might be harmed due to this.
Also, you might notice that loud background noises (like those at a restaurant or a baseball game) can cause you to miss snippets of the conversation entirely, as you can’t hear beyond them.
3. Conversations Leaving You Drained
As you can imagine, all the problems you have with hearing conversations and having to ask people to repeat stuff can leave you entirely drained. You might even start avoiding gatherings or meeting up with friends or family because you don’t want to deal with the exhausting nature of the conversation.
It’s also emotionally straining to know that you are no longer part of the conversation because you can’t hear what’s going on. You might even start feeling excluded from your family and friends, even though they have no intention of doing that to you.
You might also start lip reading, or straining to hear voices, or trying to get closer to the person, to hear their words. All this can drain you from the inside out and cause you to become more reclusive and solitary.
4. Ringing in the Ears
A common red flag that you might have hearing loss or issues in the future is a ringing in the ear. Do not ignore it! Ear ringing is also called tinnitus and can get worse after long exposure to loud noises. Get your ears checked asap if you notice this ringing in the ears.
5. Twisting Your Neck or Body to Hear
Not only will you start straining to get closer to the person or television to hear it better, but you might also start twisting your entire body, and neck to get closer to the source of the sound.
If you are cupping your ear to reduce background noise, this is a huge sign as well that you might have a hearing loss only in one ear. But doing these things are only temporary stopgap measures and eventually, you will need an ear exam and hearing aids to help fix your hearing loss problem.
There are many different types of hearing aids available to help you hear perfectly yet again!
6. Missing Calls, Doorbells, or Alarms
This is another one that can create havoc in your life. Imagine not hearing the doorbell ring when there is a delivery (and missing deliveries due to that) or missing out on friends coming over to chat.
You could also end up missing important phone calls from financial institutions or friends. Or you can end up missing out on social events because you didn’t hear your alarm and slept through it.
7. Difficulty Talking On the Phone
Cellphones have become a ubiquitous part of modern life and everyone uses their cellphone to communicate with friends, families, and institutions nowadays. Thus, it would be quite a problem if you couldn’t hear conversations on the phone accurately anymore.
Not only will it put a dent in your social life (as you have to reduce the time spent socializing and chatting with your friends on the phone), but it will also result in you missing out on other important phone calls and alerts
8. Difficulty Hearing Everyday Sounds
One of the joys of life is to hear all those everyday and precious sounds, like the sound of children’s laughter, the birds chirping, cicadas singing, and more. It would be a shame if you had to miss out on all these beautiful sounds because you have become hard of hearing.
An ear examination is crucial here because it will be able to tell you if you have trouble hearing. The only way you can find a solution to your hearing loss problem is if you first realize that you have a problem. You can’t fix something if you don’t know there’s something to fix.
If You See Yourself in the Signs Above, Get Your Ears Checked ASAP
It’s easy to get a hearing test done. With so many solutions available for folks that are hard of hearing, why would you avoid this problem and pretend that you don’t have trouble hearing? Check these bluetooth hearing aids.
Get your ears checked today and stop missing out on all those conversations, noises, and sounds around you.
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