How Treating Hearing Loss Helps Your Mental Health

You may lose more than just the sounds around you if you have hearing loss. It is certainly important that you hear your loved ones, friends, your favorite music or be able to enjoy your favorite TV shows. But an emerging body of research shows that by treating your hearing loss, you can also reduce the risk of a wide variety of mental health problems.

How does hearing loss affect your mental health?

Hearing loss tends to make individuals less willing to join friends, family and co-workers in group social events. Those with hearing loss might say no to all kinds of invitations like weddings, birthday parties, café dates, staff parties, and many other occasions. This leads to the individual becoming more socially isolated. It also lowers the chances they have of developing and maintaining meaningful relationships, which can lead to loneliness.

The popular website Psychology today followed the psychologist John Cacioppo of the University of Chicago as he tracked the effects of loneliness. Here are some of the most important findings they reported from his studies:

• People who live alone, whether young or old, are at a higher risk of suicide.
• Lonely people are more stressed than those who don’t see themselves as lonely, even when both groups are exposed to the same stressful conditions.
• People who are lonely find their sleep quality is reduced, which makes it less restorative both physically and psychologically.

All of these conclusions point that loneliness (by way of hearing loss) can have seriously detrimental effects on mental health.

But those with hearing loss aren’t condemned to this loneliness. There is a way to treat your hearing loss. The most common way to do this by going to an audiologist and getting some professionally fitted hearing aids. Let’s explore some ways in which treating your hearing loss can improve various aspects of your mental health.

How does treating your hearing loss improve your mental health?

It improves your quality of life

People aged 60 with hearing loss were found to have better quality of life if they wore hearing aids, compared to those who did not use hearing aids, according to a recent study at the Hospital Universitario San Ignacio in Colombia.

Why does it improve productivity and quality of life? Hearing aids help you understand others in a variety of situations, making it easier to do everyday tasks like from running errands at the bank or going to the store to pick up a few things. It also makes it easier to meet up with friends and family.

It reduces the risk of depression

In 65 and older individuals, depression is one of the most prevalent chronic diseases.

More than 4,000 individuals, both with and without hearing aids, were surveyed by the National Council of Ageing. Researchers found that individuals who have chosen to wear hearing aids show reduced levels of clinical depression, as well as fewer indicators of depression.

They have also discovered that people who wore hearing aids displayed an increased emotional strength and their families reported being less upset or frustrated. In general, those with hearing aids felt a greater command over their lives and had a more optimistic outlook on life.

It reduces the risk of Dementia

To mark World Hearing Day last year, results from an important new study into the link between hearing loss and the risk of dementia in older adults was released.

The study was conducted by Professor Helene Amieva, neuropsychologist and epidemiologist working at Inserm, a public research organization in France.

She tracked the health developments of 3,777 respondents over the age of 65 for up to 25 years. 1,289 of these participants revealed issues with their hearing and 2,290 did not report issues. She examined the effect of hearing loss on depression, physical and mental disabilities, and life expectancy.

She discovered an enhanced risk of disability and dementia in those with hearing loss, and particularly an enhanced risk of depression in males who reported hearing problems. Crucially, those who wore hearing aids did not suffer from the same risks. The research also showed that hearing loss individuals using hearing aids have independence levels on par with those who have regular hearing.

Fit Hearing Audiology Network

The potential for hearing aids to help protect your mental health is huge. If you have a hearing loss that is still untreated, why not find an audiologist in your area and get your hearing tested? Knowing the scale of the issue is crucial to tackling it, and you stand a better chance of preventing any mental health issues the earlier you address your hearing loss. If you need a hearing device, be sure to shop our discount hearing aids to find a device with features to meet your individual needs.