Why Do People Shy Away from Treating Hearing Loss?
Perhaps you have noticed that you cannot hear like you used to. You find yourself having to ask people to repeat themselves more and more often and your loved ones complain that you turn the radio or the television up too loud. These are good indications that it is time to make an appointment with our team at Glendora Hearing for a hearing test. These tests are quick and painless, and if there is a hearing loss detected, the most common treatment is the prescription of hearing aids.
The benefits of using a hearing aids not only increases the ability to listen and communicate, but can enhance the overall quality of life in a person who is hearing impaired. Some on the major improvements hearing aids can introduce back into your life include:
The National Institutes of Health estimated that 36 million American adults suffer from some degree of hearing loss; however, only about 7 million wear hearing aids. Unfortunately, only 20% of those individuals who might benefit from treatment actually seek help. Most tend to delay treatment until they cannot communicate even in the best of listening situations. On average, hearing aid users wait over 10 years after their initial diagnosis to be fit with their first set of hearing aids. If hearing aids can improve one’s life so significantly why would anyone delay getting fitted for hearing aids? Often these fears and misconceptions keep people from having the hearing they deserve.
Despite advances in technology and look, hearing aids still hold a stigma. Often people feel that hearing aids may make them look “too old.” The irony is that not treating hearing loss usually makes people behave in manners that are more associated with the elderly. If your loved one is embarrassed by their hearing aids, encourage them to talk to their friends and family about how their hearing aids help them. Once the people around them understand how their hearing technology helps them enjoy life, they can get on with participating in conversations and listening to life’s wonderful sounds.
One reason people shy away from treating hearing loss is the cost of investing in hearing aids. Medicare doesn’t cover hearing aids, and when people weight the pros and cons of treating their hearing loss, they’ll often choose their bank account over their hearing health. While not treating your hearing might seem to save you money in the moment, untreated hearing loss is actually costing you thousands of dollars. Those who live with untreated hearing loss have more accidents, and are hospitalized more often than their hearing peers. They also visit the doctor far more often, and have higher medical costs. Not only that, but they spend years of their lives missing out on the important sounds around them, damaging the relationships that matter the most, and struggle with social isolation or even depression. When you consider this the investment into hearing aids starts to seem priceless.
Each hearing aid sounds a little different because each uses a little bit different process to make sound and speech easier to hear. The small differences in each company’s technology may make a big change in how well a hearing aid works for you. If you have tried a hearing aid before and it wasn’t quite right for you, don’t give up. Our team at Glendora Hearing is here to help you find the best pair of hearing aids for your specific needs.
If you’ve been living with untreated hearing loss, it’s time to face this head on and not shy away from treatment. Many people wait between 5 and 7 years before treating their hearing loss! Don’t become part of that statistic.Contact us at Glendora Hearing today. After a comprehensive hearing test to determine your unique hearing needs, we’ll work with you to find the perfect hearing devices that will give you back your ability to hear your life again to the fullest.
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Book an appointment with Dr. Kevin Ivory to start hearing better today.
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