The human body is a wonderful, beautiful, perplexing, confounding piece of work, isn’t it? Scratches, cuts, and broken bones are typically no problem for the human body to mend (I mean, sure, it takes some time, but your body can literally heal the giant bones in your legs and arms with little more than some time and a splint).
But when it comes to mending the delicate little hairs in your ear, you’re out of luck. For now anyway.
It doesn’t seem quite fair when you can heal from major bone injuries but you have problems repairing tiny hairs in your ear. What’s going on there?
When is Hearing Impairment Permanent?
So let’s have a closer look. You’re sitting in your doctor’s office and you’re taking in the news: you’re losing your hearing. So you ask your doctor if your hearing will ever return. And the answer is… maybe.
Dramatically speaking, it’s a bit anticlimactic.
But it’s also a fact. Hearing loss comes in two general forms:
- Obstruction induced hearing loss: You can exhibit every indicator of hearing loss when your ear has some sort of blockage. This blockage can be caused by a wide variety of things, from the gross (ear wax) to the downright scary (tumors). Your hearing will return to normal, luckily, when the blockage is removed.
- Damage induced hearing loss: But there’s another, more common form of hearing loss. Known scientifically as sensorineural hearing loss, this form of hearing loss is effectively permanent. Here’s what happens: there are tiny hairs in your ear that vibrate when struck by moving air (sound waves). Your brain is good at turning these vibrations into the sounds you hear. But loud noises can cause damage to the hairs and, over time, reduce your hearing to the point where you need treatment.
So the bottom line is this: you can recover from one type of hearing loss and you probably won’t know which one you have without having a hearing exam.
Hearing Loss Treatment
So currently there’s no “cure” for sensorineural hearing loss (though scientists are working on it). But that’s not to say you can’t find treatment for your hearing loss. In fact, getting the correct treatment for your hearing loss may help you:
- Ensure your total quality of life is unaffected or remains high.
- Safeguard and maintain your remaining hearing.
- Successfully manage hearing loss symptoms you may already have.
- Counter mental decline.
- Stay active socially, keeping isolation at bay.
Of the many forms of treatment available, which one is correct for you depends on the severity of your hearing loss. Hearing aids are one of the easiest and most common treatment choices.
Why is Hearing Loss Effectively Managed With Hearing AIds?
You can return to the things and people you enjoy with the help of hearing aids. They can help you hear the conversation, the phone, your television, or even just the sounds of nature. You will no longer be straining 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 safeguard your hearing from loud noises and other things that can harm your hearing (like ototoxic drugs). Hearing well is crucial to your general health and well-being. Regular hearing care, like annual hearing tests, is just another form of self-care.