You’re supposed to wear your hearing aids every day. But before you recycle your milk containers, you’re supposed to rinse them out too. Sometimes, we don’t do the things we’re supposed to. The same goes for hearing aids. Occasionally we forget to take them with us. Perhaps you even go a day, or a week, or possibly a few weeks (a month?) without using your hearing aids.
That isn’t a very smart idea. Because when you don’t use your hearing aids several things happen and some things already happening get worse. And, honestly, the majority of them are kind of bad.
Consequences of Forgetting to Use Your Hearing Aids
There will be repercussions of varying degrees of intensity and severity, both to your health and social life, if you fail to use your hearing aid. Here are some of those effects and consequences.
Your Hearing Will Keep Diminishing
The technology of hearing aids is rather impressive. Not only do they let you hear sounds that you normally wouldn’t have, but they also keep your auditory complex working efficiently (that’s the part of your brain responsible for the interpretation of sounds).
If you “forget” to use your hearing aids and, instead, turn your TV up to an even louder volume, you may be doing additional damage to your hearing. Even if you’re keeping the volumes in check, issues with your brain can result from missing sensory input. (It actually shrinks.) So if you don’t wear your hearing aids, your hearing will most likely continue to get worse (which means you’ll need even more powerful hearing aids before long).
It Will Become More Challenging to Interact Socially
You know those short interactions you have with the cashier as you’re checking out at the supermarket? Those conversations are pleasant. A nice little touch of humanity in a technological world.
These day-to-day social interactions suddenly become really hard when you don’t wear your hearing aids. You need to ask the cashier to repeat what they said. Again and again. And that’s when the conversation becomes really uncomfortable. That may not sound serious but each time a situation like this takes place, you will tend to disengage socially more and more. And the result can be even more significant.
Hearing Aids And Cognitive Decline
Your brain doesn’t get close to as much exercise when you seclude yourself. Think about how invigorated (or exhausted) you can feel after a good chat or an enjoyable evening dinner with your family. Without that exercise, particular cognitive processes can start to decline (or decline faster). This could mean:
- Memory issues
- Balance troubles
- Depression
- Declines in productivity or energy
But that’s not the entire picture. Because hearing sound is vitally essential to certain parts of your nervous system and brain. Your auditory complex begins to atrophy when certain nerves begin to deteriorate from lack of stimulation. This can result in an even more rapid cognitive decline (or, even in the best-case scenario, make adapting to your hearing aids even harder).
Hearing aids keep your brain active, stimulated, and happy (for the most part).
Loss of Independence
It’s not unusual, as you age, to need a bit more help. Maybe you get a neighbor to mow your lawn or ask your son to swing by with supplies more often. If you aren’t wearing your hearing aid, you could be expediting the loss of independence that often comes with aging.
When you don’t wear your hearing aids, it can quickly become more difficult to answer the phone or have a conversation with your neighbor. It’s possible that you will miss important alerts. Maybe you don’t hear your cat meowing for food at night or your dog barking at someone knocking on your door.
Is There Any Solution?
No matter how technologically sophisticated hearing aids get, they won’t solve all of life’s problems. But they will solve a lot of the problems connected with not wearing your hearing aids.
You should come see us for assistance if you’re having issues with your hearing aids or if they are not comfortable.
It’s worth taking a little time to consider what the repercussions will be if you avoid using your hearing aids and also what the advantages of wearing them may be.
References
https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/otolaryngology/specialty_areas/hearing/faq.html
https://www.webmd.com/brain/news/20140128/hearing-loss-tied-to-faster-brain-shrinkage-with-age
https://www.apa.org/monitor/2019/05/ce-corner-isolation
