Tiredness can have a wide range of causes, ranging from a simple sleepless night to respiratory problems such as sleep apnea. But many individuals are surprised to learn that persistent fatigue and exhaustion can also be a result of something relatively common: hearing loss.
That’s at least partly because of the fact that hearing loss normally develops gradually over time. You may find yourself continuously exhausted for no apparent reason because you failed to detect the symptoms of early hearing loss. This experience can be quite frustrating. In addition, this exhaustion can frequently lead to irritability and, eventually, social isolation. Luckily, your energy levels will usually increase once you get your hearing loss treated.
Your brain will compensate for slowly progressing hearing loss
For most individuals, hearing loss is a very gradually-progressing condition that grows worse over time. In its early stages, you probably won’t even detect that you’re developing hearing loss. If you’re not specifically watching for them, even conspicuous symptoms, like turning the volume on your audio devices way up, can be easy to overlook.
Fatigue is one of the most noticeable symptoms of hearing loss. You may feel tired no matter how much rest you got the night before. Regrettably, many individuals don’t instinctively link this symptom with hearing loss.
That’s because the cause happens in your brain. Your brain needs to work extra hard to process sound due to the loss of your ability to hear, which can leave you exhausted. Just as sustained periods of intense concentration can leave you worn out, the additional brain power required to hear what people are saying can be exhausting. Your ability to execute daily tasks and your total quality of life can be significantly affected over time as your neglected hearing loss grows worse.
The role of stigma
So why don’t more individuals just go see a hearing specialist when they begin feeling tired? One partial explanation is that individuals just don’t associate tiredness with hearing loss. But there’s another reason that may inevitably be more detrimental: stigma. There’s a feeling that hearing loss is terrible or ruins your life or that there’s nothing you can do about it. Individuals will frequently avoid pursuing treatment because of these mistaken notions.
However, this stigma is starting to disappear as more people become open to their hearing loss. It’s becoming a more prevalent understanding that hearing loss can happen to individuals of all ages and today’s hearing aids are discreet enough that the few people who can’t let go of this stigma won’t even see them.
Regrettably, this perception of social stigma can cause people in the early stages of hearing loss to put off on getting the treatment they need leading to more serious permanent hearing loss.
Treatment options for hearing loss-related fatigue
There are often no noticeable symptoms of early phase hearing loss. That’s why hearing specialists prefer to take a preventative strategy rather than the far more difficult and less effective reactive method. Hearing specialists recommend regular screenings in order to create a baseline of your healthy hearing, that way they will be able to identify changes to your hearing in subsequent screenings. Early treatment will be much more effective once we have determined that baseline.
If your hearing loss is causing fatigue, there are some steps you can take to minimize that exhaustion as much as possible. A few of the simplest and most common steps include the following:
- If you use hearing aids, wear them as often as possible: One of the chief functions of hearing aids is to clarify human speech, making understanding conversations much easier. This means you won’t be as tired because your brain won’t have to work so hard.
- Try to have conversations in quieter spots: When there is a lot of background noise, it can be difficult to sort out voices, even with hearing aids in some cases. Moving conversations to a location with less background noise can make it easier for your brain to focus on the voice you’re attempting to hear, reducing fatigue in the process.
- Schedule an assessment with a hearing specialist: Keeping an eye on the status of your hearing is essential. Consulting a hearing specialist can help you identify hearing loss in its early stages when it’s less of an issue and your brain doesn’t have to work as hard to compensate.
- Take breaks from conversations: In between conversation, take a quiet break somewhere. This can help your brain recuperate from all the work it’s doing and make everyday communication a bit more sustainable.
So if you’re dealing with an unusual amount of fatigue and tiredness, with no apparent cause, it may be time to plan a visit to your hearing specialist. You can reduce your fatigue and boost your energy by treating your hearing loss. Don’t neglect your hearing loss because you’re afraid of the stigma.