How Your Body Recovers From Injury and Sickness
The human body can usually repair scratches, cuts, and fractured bones, though some injuries take longer than others.
Sadly, there is no remedy for the delicate hair cells in your ears once they become damaged.
Up to this point, at least.
Animals can repair damage to the hair cells in their ears and get their hearing back, but humans don’t possess that ability (although scientists are working on it).
If you damage the hearing nerves or the little hairs, you could experience permanent hearing loss.
At What Point Does Hearing Loss Become Irreversible?
The first thing you think of when you find out you have hearing loss is whether it will return.
It is uncertain if it will happen, as it is dependent on numerous factors.
Two primary types of hearing loss:
- Obstruction-based loss of hearing: When there’s something obstructing your ear canal, you can experience all the symptoms of hearing loss.
Earwax, debris, and irregular growths can possibly obstruct the ear canal.
Your hearing generally returns to normal after the blockage is eliminated, and that’s the good news. - Damage-related hearing loss: A more common form of hearing impairment, responsible for around 90 percent of all cases, is caused by damage instead of other variables.
This specific form of hearing loss, known as sensorineural hearing loss in medical terms, is frequently irreversible.
The hearing process is triggered by the impact of moving air on tiny hairs in the ear which transmit sound waves to the brain.
Your brain converts these vibrations into auditory signals that are perceived by you as sound.
But your hearing can, over time, be permanently harmed by loud noises.
Damage to the inner ear or nerve can also cause sensorineural hearing loss.
In certain cases of extreme hearing loss, a cochlear implant might be able to enhance hearing function.
A hearing assessment will help you determine whether hearing aids will help strengthen your hearing.
Solutions for Improving Your Hearing
Sensorineural hearing loss presently can’t be cured.
But it might be possible to obtain effective treatment.
Advantages of proper treatment for your wellness:
- Maintain a good general standard of living and well-being.
- Successfully manage any symptoms of hearing loss that you may be encountering.
- Take care of your remaining hearing to avoid further damage.
- Preserve connections and community participation to avoid feelings of isolation and disconnection.
- Prevent mental deterioration.
This treatment can take many forms, and it’ll usually depend on how extreme your hearing loss is.
A typically encouraged and fairly straightforward solution is the use of hearing aids.
How is Hearing Loss Managed by Hearing Aids
People who have hearing loss can use hearing aids to help them perceive sounds, allowing them to work as efficiently as possible.
Fatigue is the consequence when the brain struggles to hear.
Researchers have come to recognize that prolonged mental inactivity presents a significant risk to cognitive health, as new findings shed light on the value of continuous mental stimulation.
Your cognitive function can begin to be recovered by utilizing hearing aids because they let your ears hear again.
Studies have shown that wearing hearing aids can dramatically slow cognitive impairment, with some studies indicating a reduction of up to 75%.
Contemporary hearing aids will also allow you to focus on what you want to hear while tuning out background sounds.
The Best Defense is Prevention
Maintaining your hearing is essential as once it’s gone, it’s usually irretrievable. If an object becomes wedged in your ear canal, it can likely be safely cleared out.
However, this doesn’t lessen the risk posed by loud noises, which can be damaging even if they don’t seem overly loud to you.
That’s why making the effort to protect your ears is a good idea.
If you are ever diagnosed with hearing loss later in life, you will have more treatment possibilities if you take measures to safeguard your hearing today.
Treatment can help you live a wonderful, full life even if a cure isn’t possible.
Speak with our professional audiologist to discover the most practical solution for your unique hearing needs.