The human body is an awesome, breathtaking, confusing, confounding piece of work, isn’t it? The human body typically has no issue healing cuts, scrapes, or broken bones (I mean, sure, it takes a while, but your body can actually heal the giant bones in your arms and legs with little more than a splint and some time).
But you won’t be so lucky if the fragile hairs in your ears are damaged. For now at least.
It doesn’t seem quite fair when you can heal from considerable bone injuries but you have problems repairing tiny hairs in your ear. So what’s the deal?
When is Hearing Loss Irreversible?
So, let’s get right down to it. You’re waiting in your doctor’s office and you’re absorbing the news: you’re losing your hearing. So the first question you have is whether the hearing will ever return. And he informs you that it may or may not.
It’s a little anticlimactic, speaking dramatically.
But he’s not wrong. Hearing loss comes in two primary forms:
- Damage related hearing loss: But there’s another, more prevalent form of hearing loss. This kind of hearing loss, known as sensorineural hearing loss, is permanent. This is how it works: there are delicate hairs in your ear that vibrate when struck by moving air (sound waves). When vibrations are transformed into signals, they are sent to the brain which makes them into the sounds you perceive. But loud noises can cause damage to the hairs and, over time, reduce your hearing to the point where you require treatment.
- Hearing impairment caused by a blockage: When there’s something blocking your ear canal, you can present all the indications of hearing loss. 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 obstruction is removed.
So here’s the main point: there’s one form of hearing loss you can recover from, and you might need to get tested to see which one you have.
Treating Hearing Loss
Scientists haven’t found a “cure” for sensorineural hearing loss but they’re working on it. But that’s not to say you can’t get treatment for your hearing loss. As a matter of fact, getting the right treatment for your hearing loss might help you:
- Prevent isolation by remaining socially active.
- Preserve and protect the hearing you have left.
- Help fend off mental decline.
- Make sure your total quality of life is untouched or remains high.
- Successfully cope with any of the symptoms of hearing loss you may be going through.
This treatment can take various forms, and it’ll usually depend on how severe your hearing loss is. Hearing aids are one of the easiest and most prevalent treatment options.
Why is Hearing Loss Effectively Treated 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 tv, or even just the birds in the park. You won’t 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 need to safeguard your hearing from loud noises and other things that can harm your hearing (like ototoxic drugs). Your overall health and well being depend on strong hearing. Having routine hearing exams is the best way to be sure that you are protecting your hearing.
