The human body is an awesome, beautiful, confusing, confounding piece of work, isn’t it? Scrapes, cuts, and broken bones are generally no problem for the human body to heal (I mean, sure, it takes a while, but your body can actually heal the giant bones in your legs and arms with little more than some time and a splint).
But when it comes to restoring the tiny little hairs in your ear, it’s not going to happen. For now at least.
It doesn’t seem quite fair when you can recover from considerable bone injuries but you have problems repairing tiny hairs in your ear. So what’s the deal?
When is Hearing Impairment Permanent?
So let’s have a closer look. You’re waiting in your doctor’s office and you’re digesting the news: you’re losing your hearing. So the first question you ask is whether the hearing will ever come back. And the answer is… maybe.
Dramatically speaking, it’s a bit anticlimactic.
But he’s not wrong. Hearing loss comes in two primary forms:
- Hearing loss caused by an obstruction: You can exhibit every indicator of hearing loss when your ear has some type of obstruction. A wide variety of things, from something gross (earwax) to something frightening (a tumor), can be the cause of this obstruction. The good news is that once the obstruction is removed, your hearing often returns to normal.
- Hearing loss caused by damage: But there’s another, more common type of hearing loss. This form of hearing loss, called sensorineural hearing loss, is irreversible. This is how it works: there are tiny hairs in your ear that vibrate when struck by moving air (sound waves). Your brain is good at changing these vibrations into the sounds you hear. But loud noises can cause damage to the hairs and, over time, diminish your hearing to the point where you require treatment.
So here’s the main point: there’s one form of hearing loss you can recover from, and you might need to get tested to see which one you have.
Hearing Loss Treatment
Scientists haven’t found a “cure” for sensorineural hearing loss but they’re working on it. But your hearing loss still might be manageable. Here are some ways that the right treatment might help you:
- Preserve and safeguard the hearing you still have.
- Avoid isolation by staying socially involved.
- Help ward off cognitive decline.
- Successfully manage hearing loss symptoms you may already have.
- Maintain a high quality of life.
Of the many types of treatment available, which one is the right choice for you depends on the seriousness of your hearing loss. Hearing aids are one of the simplest and most common treatment options.
Why is Hearing Loss Successfully Managed With Hearing AIds?
Hearing aids can help you return to the people and things you love. They can help you hear the conversation, your phone, your television, or even just the birds in the park. You will no longer be straining to hear so pressure will be taken off your brain.
The Best Protection is Prevention
Loud sounds and other things that would damage your hearing should be avoided and your ears should be safeguarded against them. Your general health and well being depend on good hearing. Regular hearing care, such as annual hearing exams, is just another form of self-care.