The human body is a wonderful, breathtaking, confusing, confounding piece of work, isn’t it? Scrapes, cuts, and broken bones are normally no problem for the human body to mend (I mean, sure, it takes a while, but your body can literally mend the huge bones in your arms and legs with little more than some time and a splint).
But when it comes to mending the fragile little hairs in your ear, it’s not going to happen. For now at least.
It’s truly regrettable that your body can accomplish such fantastic feats of healing but can’t restore these tiny hairs. So what’s the deal?
When is Hearing Loss Irreversible?
So, let’s get right down to it. 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 he tells you that it might or it might not.
It’s a little anticlimactic, speaking dramatically.
But he isn’t wrong. Hearing loss comes in two primary forms:
- Hearing loss caused by a blockage: When there’s something obstructing your ear canal, you can present all the signs of hearing loss. This obstruction can be caused by a wide range of things, from the gross (ear wax) to the downright scary (tumors). Fortunately, once the blockage is cleared, your hearing usually goes back to normal.
- Damage induced hearing loss: But hearing loss has another more prevalent form. Known medically as sensorineural hearing loss, this type of hearing loss is effectively irreversible. Here’s what happens: In your ear, there are little hairs that vibrate when moved by sound waves. Your brain is good at changing these vibrations into the sounds you hear. But over time, loud sounds can cause these hairs to be damaged to the point where treatment is required.
So here’s the main point: you can recover from one form of hearing loss and you most likely won’t know which one you’re coping with without getting a hearing test.
Hearing Loss Treatment
So at this time there’s no “cure” for sensorineural hearing loss (though scientists are working on it). But your hearing loss still might be manageable. Here are a few ways that the right treatment may help you:
- Prevent isolation by staying socially involved.
- Ensure your overall quality of life is unaffected or stays high.
- Help ward off mental decline.
- Successfully manage hearing loss symptoms you may already have.
- Maintain and safeguard the hearing you still have.
This treatment can take numerous forms, and it’ll usually depend on how significant your hearing loss is. Hearing aids are one of the simplest and most prevalent treatment choices.
Why is Hearing Loss Successfully Managed With Hearing AIds?
You can return to the things and people you love with the assistance of hearing aids. With the help of hearing aids, you can begin to hear conversations, your television, your phone, and sounds of nature once more. You will no longer be straining to hear so pressure will be removed from your brain.
Prevention is The Best Protection
Loud sounds and other things that would damage your hearing should be avoided and your ears should be protected against them. Your overall health and well being depend on good hearing. Routine hearing care, such as annual hearing tests, is just another kind of self-care.
