Most individuals don’t want to discuss the effect hearing loss has on relationships, even though it’s an issue many people deal with. Both partners can feel aggravated by the misunderstandings that are caused by hearing loss.
With Valentine’s Day right around the corner isn’t it the perfect opportunity to express your love and appreciation for your loved one? Talking about hearing loss together is an ideal way to do this.
Having “the talk”
Studies have revealed that an individual with neglected hearing loss is 2.4 times more likely to develop dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease. A cascade effect that will eventually impact the entire brain will be initiated when the part of your brain responsible for hearing becomes less engaged. This is called brain atrophy by doctors. It’s the “use it or lose it” principle in action.
Depression cases are almost half in people who have healthy hearing compared to those who have hearing loss. Research shows that as a person’s hearing loss progresses, they frequently become anxious and agitated. The individual may begin to separate themselves from friends and family. As they fall deeper into depression, people who have hearing loss are likely to stop taking part in the activities they once enjoyed.
Relationships between family, friends, and others then become tense. It’s important to be patient and work together to determine solutions to communication problems.
Mystery solved
Someone who is developing hearing loss may not be ready to discuss it. They may feel embarrassment and fear. Denial might have set in. Deciding when to have the conversation could take a little detective work.
Since you can’t hear what your partner or parent hears, you’ll need to depend on outward clues, such as:
- Avoiding conversations
- Avoiding busy places
- Failing to hear alarms, doorbells, and other essential sounds
- Watching TV with the volume extremely high
- Repeated misunderstandings
- Complaining about buzzing, humming, static, or other sounds that you can’t hear
- School, work, and hobbies are starting to become difficult
- Agitation or anxiety in social settings that you haven’t previously observed
Look for these prevalent symptoms and plan on having a heart-to-heart chat with your loved one.
What is the best way to discuss hearing loss?
This discussion might not be an easy one to have. A loved one may become defensive and brush it off if they’re in denial. That’s why discussing hearing loss in the right way is so relevant. The steps will be basically the same but perhaps with some small modifications based on your particular relationship situation.
- Step 1: Inform them how much you love them without condition and how much you appreciate your relationship.
- Step 2: You’re worried about their health. You’ve read through the research. You know that a higher risk of depression and dementia comes along with neglected hearing loss. You don’t want your loved one to go through that.
- Step 3: You’re also worried about your own health and safety. An excessively loud television could harm your hearing. In addition, studies show that elevated noise can trigger anxiety, which might affect your relationship. Your loved one may not hear you yelling for help if you’ve fallen or someone’s broken into the house. Emotion is a powerful way to connect with others. If you can paint an emotional picture of the what-ifs, it will have more impact than simply listing facts.
- Step 4: Decide together to make an appointment to get a hearing assessment. After you make the decision schedule an appointment right away. Don’t delay.
- Step 5: Be ready for objections. You could find these oppositions at any point in the process. You know this person. What will their doubts be? Will it be lack of time, or money? Possibly they don’t see that it’s a problem. They may feel that home remedies will be just fine. (You recognize “natural hearing loss cures” don’t really work and could do more harm than good.)
Be ready with your responses. You may even rehearse them in the mirror. These answers need to address your loved one’s Worries but they don’t need to match those listed above word-for-word
Relationship growth
If your partner isn’t willing to discuss their hearing loss, it can be challenging. Openly talking about the effect of hearing loss on your relationship can help to establish a plan to deal with any communication issues and make sure that both partners are heard and understood. By doing this, your relationship will get stronger and your partner will take steps to live a longer, healthier life. And relationships are, after all, about growing together.
References
https://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/statistics/quick-statistics-hearing#
https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/hearing-loss-common-problem-older-adults
