How Your Body and Your Hearing Communicate
The mind and body connection goes far beyond surface associations. When we dive deeper, we realize that our senses, such as hearing, play a vital role in our overall physical, mental, and emotional health.
October is National Audiology Awareness month and a prime opportunity to learn the ins and outs of how our hearing health and overall well-being relate.
Hearing health affects balance and spatial awareness
Research reveals 1/3 of Americans over 40-years-old can’t pass a balance test. As we age, our bodies weaken, and we risk serious injuries from falls. Spatial awareness also declines.
Our vestibular systems take information gathered from our inner ears and this helps us maintain our center of gravity. When we experience hearing loss, our balance ⚖️ and spatial awareness are affected. This can occur during any stage of life, more commonly as early as our 40s.
Audiologists are the primary healthcare professionals who evaluate, diagnose, treat, and manage hearing loss and balance disorders in adults and children.
Hearing impairment shrinks the brain
Abstaining from social situations and hobbies where sound is a primary factor limits the brain’s chances for auditory stimulation. Not only is your quality of life diminished, but your brain will shrink and rewire itself when auditory stimulation is avoided and hearing loss is ignored.
A lack of auditory stimulation drives the brain into neuroplasticity mode. This is when the brain shrinks or rededicates parts of the auditory cortex to enhance other senses, like vision or touch. Cognition, speech perception, and further auditory decline result from the brain’s rewiring.
Increased cognitive load underscores anxiety
Do you stress over missing necessary information during conversations 🤯? As it turns out, anxiety is a common symptom of hearing loss.
The National Library of Medicine reports those with mild hearing loss are 32% more likely to suffer from anxiety. Moderate or greater hearing loss sufferers see an increased 59% likelihood.
Hearing impairment causes the brain to work harder to understand the world around it, producing strain on the mind’s thinking and memory systems. This is known as cognitive overload. The anxiety and stress generated by cognitive overload worsens as hearing loss goes untreated.
Depression and social isolation become routine with hearing loss
Avoiding social engagement because of hearing loss is an early sign of a larger problem.
Social isolation can stem from struggling to hear those around you. Mental fatigue following the strain from trying to understand conversations you can scarcely hear, or the stigma surrounding treatment for hearing loss, are often the catalysts for withdrawing from a life you once treasured.
Dr. Kelci Jackson can’t impress enough the importance of taking control of hearing loss from the beginning.
“On average, individuals wait seven to 10 years before seeking their first hearing evaluation. Although taking that initial step may feel challenging, early assessment is essential given the well-established long-term effects of hearing loss on both cognitive function and social well-being.”
Dr. Jackson continues, “Early identification and intervention can help support overall quality of life and maintain meaningful social connections.”
Dementia symptoms intensify with hearing loss
Diagnosis and treatment of memory loss and hearing loss often go hand in hand.
When the brain’s resources are split between fighting memory disorders such as Alzheimer’s, or other forms of Dementia, and hearing loss, cognitive impairment is exacerbated. What’s more, sensory deprivation from compromised hearing health will shrink the temporal lobe, which controls hearing, language, and memory.
Addressing hearing loss in patients with memory disorders can help patients in a variety of ways. In fact, cognitive decline and emotional and behavioral symptoms can improve with tools such as music intervention therapy.
Hearing aids 🦻 are an essential instrument for supporting better hearing health and quality of life. Research shows hearing loss intervention with hearing aids not only enhances balance and physical health, but benefits cognition (reversing neural plasticity), anxiety and depression levels, and strengthens all around mental focus.
𝘿𝙤𝙣’𝙩 𝙡𝙚𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙡𝙤𝙨𝙨 𝙜𝙤 𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙙! Basin Hearing Solutions has the knowledge and experience to help patients of all ages questioning hearing loss symptoms.
“We strive to create a welcoming and comfortable environment where you feel safe sharing your listening challenges and concerns. Our goal is to create an open, supportive partnership in which we work together to understand your needs and develop solutions that help improve your hearing and overall quality of life,” says Dr. Jackson.
Call to schedule your appointment and let’s begin your journey to a healthier life:
📞: (𝟳𝟬𝟭) 𝟱𝟳𝟮-𝟭𝟬𝟳𝟳