The human body is a wonderful, breathtaking, confusing, confounding piece of work, isn’t it? Scrapes, cuts, and broken bones are generally no problem for the human body to heal (I mean, sure, it takes some time, but your body can actually heal the huge bones in your legs and arms with little more than some time and a splint).
But you won’t be so fortunate if the tiny hairs in your ears are compromised. For now at least.
It doesn’t seem exactly fair when you can heal from major bone injuries but you have problems repairing tiny hairs in your ear. So what’s the deal?
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 impairment. So you ask your doctor if your hearing will ever return. And the answer is… maybe.
Dramatically speaking, it’s a little anticlimactic.
But he’s not wrong. There are two basic types of hearing loss:
- Obstruction induced hearing loss: When there’s something obstructing your ear canal, you can present all the indications of hearing loss. This obstruction can be caused by a number of things, from the gross (ear wax) to the downright scary (tumors). Your hearing will return to normal, luckily, when the obstruction is removed.
- Hearing loss caused by damage: But hearing loss has another more prevalent form. This form of hearing loss, called sensorineural hearing loss, is irreversible. This is how it works: there are little hairs in your ear that vibrate when hit with moving air (sound waves). Your brain is good at changing these vibrations into the sounds you hear. But over time, loud noises can cause these hairs to be damaged to the point where treatment is necessary.
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 have without getting a hearing exam.
Hearing Loss Treatment
So presently there’s no “cure” for sensorineural hearing loss (though scientists are working on it). But that doesn’t mean you can’t get treatment for your hearing loss. As a matter of fact, getting the right treatment for your hearing loss may help you:
- Maintain and protect the hearing you have left.
- Preserve a high quality of life.
- Successfully manage hearing loss symptoms you might already have.
- Remain engaged socially, keeping isolation at bay.
- Help fend off mental decline.
This treatment can take many forms, and it’ll usually depend on how severe your hearing loss is. Hearing aids are one of the easiest and most prevalent treatment choices.
Why Are Hearing Aids a Practical Treatment For Hearing Impairment?
You can return to the things and people you enjoy with the assistance of hearing aids. They can help you hear the conversation, your phone, your tv, or even just the sounds of nature. You will no longer be struggling to hear so pressure will be removed from your brain.
Prevention is The Best Protection
Whether you have hearing loss now or not, you should protect your hearing from loud noises and other things that can damage your hearing (like ototoxic drugs). Hearing well is essential to your overall health and well-being. Regular hearing care, like annual hearing tests, is just another type of self-care.