One in eight people in the United States (13 percent, or 30 million) aged 12 years or older has hearing loss in both ears, based on standard hearing examinations the National Institute of Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) reports. About 2 percent of adults aged 45 to 54 have disabling hearing loss while the rate increases to 8.5 percent for adults aged 55 to 64. Even for those with a minor loss it still interferes with communication making it difficult to follow along in social situations at home, at work and everywhere you go. It’s safe to say that no matter the degree of a hearing loss these miscommunications can build up and affect your overall mood.
Mood is defined as a temporary state of mind or feeling. It’s not surprising that something as essential as healthy hearing would affect our mood and because there is no reversal to a hearing loss it can cause a bad mood to become chronic. Overtime, hearing loss could contribute to more than just a bad day every now and then, but become an everyday source of stress, anxiety, depression, and self-isolation.
The Impact of Untreated Hearing Loss
Study after study points to hearing loss as more than just a communication disorder—it’s the impact that poor communication has on every part of our lives, from cognitive health, mobility, and safety issues as we navigate the world. In addition, hearing loss is a permanent condition, which most often will become worse overtime, and this can put a strain on our mental health, even when it’s not considered at a critical level of hearing damage as defined by many medical agencies.
Hearing Loss and Mental Health
How we connect to the people in our lives is a big part of how we feel connected to ourselves and our surroundings. For instance, the cornerstone to just about any relationship whether it be personal, or professional is communication. Even when hearing loss is considered minor it impacts our ear’s ability to transfer certain sounds, tones or pitches from the ear to the brain. This leaves gaps in parts of words or words in sentences and increases the cognitive work we must do whenever we converse with anyone. As you may have experienced yourself, or can imagine, this can be an incredibly exhausting experience.
Due to the exhaustion that everyday conversations take on an individual with undiagnosed or untreated hearing loss, it’s common for people to begin to opt out of these interactions when given the chance. You may miss out on the next big family gathering or miss that work party. You may avoid social situations at home and work, truly missing out on instances to connect, grow community and boost self-confidence. As a result, people with untreated hearing loss can feel increasingly disconnected, not only because they can’t physically hear as they used to, but because they feel socially isolated.
Impact on Personality
To truly understand the quantile impact of untreated hearing loss on mood and even personality, researchers at the University of Gothenburg recently conducted a study including 400 participants between 80 and 98 years old. The study, published in the Journal of Personality monitored the physical and mental abilities of the test subjects for six years, with a test biannually. The study found that the test subject with hearing loss became less outgoing over time.
Lead researcher on the study, Anne Ingeborg Berg has a PhD comment. “To our knowledge, this is the first time a link between hearing and personality changes has been established in longitudinal studies.” She continued, “Surprisingly, we did not find that declining overall health and functional capacity make people less outgoing. But hearing loss directly affects the quality of social situations. If the perceived quality of social interaction goes down, it may eventually affect whether and how we relate to others.”
Addressing a Hearing Loss
While hearing loss is permanent in most cases it can be treated effectively using hearing aids. These tiny electronic devices can be custom programmed and fitted to add ease to your life, communication, and mobility. If you are feeling like you can’t connect to people and your life like you used to, it’s time to consider an undiagnosed hearing loss as part of the issue. To find out more it is always a good idea to test for hearing loss. Schedule your next exam with us today!
