May Is Hearing Awareness Month Series:Blog Three: Cognitive and Emotional Ability – Hearing is Central to Total Wellness

With normal hearing, the signal that your ears pick up from your environment is clear and concise, resulting in easy processing for the cognitive system in the brain. However, with a hearing loss, the signal that your ears pick up and send to the brain is unnatural and distorted. When this signal is distorted, your brain takes more energy and effort in trying to read it. With your cognitive system working overtime on helping you hear, other things like comprehension and memory that require the cognitive system’s attention may be compromised. You may experience difficulty focusing, distracting thoughts, and feelings of confusion.

A decrease in your brain’s ability to be able to hear can bring on a surge of emotions. The most common emotions reported by people with hearing loss include frustration, depression, loneliness, isolation, embarrassment, and anxiety. There have been many studies done on hearing loss and how it impacts a person’s quality of life. Almost all of them have a common theme: a person’s quality of life improves after rehabilitation with hearing aids. Joore et al. (2002) revealed that new hearing aid wearers experienced less depression and less anxiety after hearing aid usage. The Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Elderly (HHIE), a questionnaire aimed at addressing common problems associated with hearing loss, has also been used to showcase the reduction of emotional consequences associated with hearing loss after hearing aid usage.

For more information or to book an appointment please contact Accurate Hearing at one of our 3 locations.

Lower Sackville: 902-252-3004

Halifax: 902-423-7732

Cole Harbour: 902-406-4327