Reprinted from the Office of Hearing
Hearing and quality of life are closely linked. Poor hearing affects both the person with the loss and those they communicate with. A comprehensive study conducted in the USA on the effects of untreated hearing loss on adults as well as their families found that hearing loss impacts on our social, emotional, psychological and physical well being.
People with hearing impairment can experience:
- Embarrassment
- Loss of confidence
- Irritability and anger
- Depression
- Feeling of being ignored
- Dependence on others
- Withdrawal, isolation and loneliness
- Exclusion from family and social activities
- Tiredness
Other people, such as family members and close friends, may find themselves:
- Talking for the other person
- Continually having to explain or interpret
- Sacrificing some activities (eg. theatre, parties)
- Making assumptions about what hard of hearing person thinks or needs
- Frustrated
- Embarrassed in company
- Tired
These effects mean hearing loss can place very real strains on relationships.
Hearing aids can make a big difference
Because impaired hearing results in a distorted or incomplete communication, this can lead to greater isolation and withdrawal and the individual’s social life becomes restricted. The use of hearing aids resulted in improvements in many quality-of-life areas, in particular:
- Improved interpersonal relationships
- Improved health
- Enhanced social activity
- Reduction in discrimination against the person with the hearing loss
- Reduction in anger and frustration
- Greater earning power (especially the more severe hearing losses)
- A lower incidence of depression.