The human body is a wonderful, beautiful, confusing, confounding construction, isn’t it? Scrapes, cuts, and broken bones are typically no problem for the human body to heal (with a little time, your body can restore the giant bones in your arms and legs).
But when it comes to mending the tiny little hairs in your ear, it’s not going to happen. At least, so far.
It’s really regrettable that your body can accomplish such great feats of healing but can’t restore these tiny hairs. What’s going on there?
When is Hearing Loss Irreversible?
So, let’s get right to it. You’re waiting in your doctor’s office and you’re digesting the news: you’re losing your hearing. So you ask your doctor if your hearing will ever return. And he informs you that it may or may not.
It’s a bit anticlimactic, speaking dramatically.
But he’s not wrong. There are two primary kinds of hearing loss:
- Obstruction induced hearing loss: When there’s something blocking your ear canal, you can exhibit all the symptoms of hearing loss. This obstruction can be caused by a number of things, from the gross (ear wax) to the downright scary (tumors). Your hearing will go back to normal, luckily, when the blockage is cleared away.
- Hearing loss caused by damage: But hearing loss has another more prevalent form. This form of hearing loss, known as sensorineural hearing loss, is irreversible. This is how it works: inside of your ear, there are little hairs that vibrate when moved by sound waves. When vibrations are transformed into signals, they are sent to the brain which renders them into the sounds you perceive. But over time, loud noises can cause these hairs to be damaged to the point where treatment is required.
So the bottom line is this: there’s one type of hearing loss you can recover from, and you may need to get examined to see which one you’re dealing with.
Hearing Loss Treatment
So at this time there’s no “cure” for sensorineural hearing loss (although scientists are working on that). But that doesn’t mean you can’t get treatment for your hearing loss. Here are a few ways that the right treatment might help you:
- Help stave off cognitive decline.
- Successfully manage hearing loss symptoms you may already have.
- Stay active socially, keeping isolation away.
- Make sure your general quality of life is unaffected or remains high.
- Safeguard and maintain your remaining hearing.
This treatment can take many forms, and it’ll normally depend on how significant your hearing loss is. One of the most prevalent treatments is rather simple: hearing aids.
Why is Hearing Loss Effectively Treated With Hearing AIds?
You can get back to the people and things you love with the help of hearing aids. They can help you hear the discussions, the phone, your television, or even just the sounds of nature. You will no longer be straining to hear so pressure will be removed from your brain.
Prevention is The Best Protection
Loud sounds and other things that would harm your hearing should be avoided and your ears should be safeguarded against them. Your overall health and well being depend on strong hearing. Routine hearing care, such as annual hearing tests, is just another kind of self-care.