Fatigue can have a wide variety of causes, ranging from a simple sleepless night to respiratory conditions like sleep apnea. But many people are surprised to learn that chronic fatigue and exhaustion can also be a result of something fairly common: hearing loss.
That’s at least partially because of the fact that hearing loss usually develops slowly 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. Additionally, this exhaustion can often result in irritability and, ultimately, social isolation. The good news is that treating your hearing loss will often boost your energy levels, mitigating fatigue and exhaustion.
Hearing loss progresses slowly (and your brain compensates)
Hearing loss is normally a gradually advancing condition that grows worse over time. In its early phases, you probably won’t even notice that you’re developing hearing loss. Even prevalent symptoms, like cranking the volume up on your TV and smartphone, can be easy to miss if you’re not watching for them.
One of the harder to miss symptoms of hearing loss is often fatigue. In spite of how much rest you get, you could still feel fatigued. This symptom, regrettably, isn’t typically associated with hearing loss.
Because the cause occurs in your brain, the symptoms aren’t usually considered an ear issue. When your ears aren’t getting as much information, your brain works overtime to comprehend it all. This constant extra work is exhausting in the same way that long periods of concentration can take a toll. Your ability to perform daily tasks and your total quality of life can be substantially affected over time as your neglected hearing loss gets worse.
The role of stigma
So why don’t more people just visit a hearing specialist when they begin feeling fatigued? One partial explanation is that people just don’t associate tiredness with hearing loss. But there’s another reason that might inevitably be more damaging: stigma. There’s a feeling that hearing loss is terrible or ruins your life or that there’s nothing that can be done about it. Individuals will often avoid pursuing treatment because of these false notions.
However, as more individuals are open about their hearing loss experience, the stigma has begun to disappear. 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 get over this stigma won’t even notice them.
It’s a shame that this social stigma can make it harder for individuals to find the care they need because this frequently leads to hearing loss that grows worse over time when it may not need to.
Solutions for hearing loss-related fatigue
There are often no apparent symptoms of early phase hearing loss. That’s why hearing specialists prefer to take a preventative strategy rather than the far more challenging and less effective reactive approach. For example, scheduling routine screenings with a hearing specialist before you detect symptoms can help create a baseline of what your healthy hearing looks like. Once this baseline is achieved, early intervention is often far more effective.
You can lessen hearing loss associated exhaustion by taking a few proactive steps. A few of the simplest and most common measures include the following:
- Make sure you use your hearing aids as often as you can: One of the main functions of hearing aids is to clarify human speech, making understanding conversations a lot easier. This means you won’t be as fatigued because your brain won’t need to work so hard.
- Give yourself a break in between conversations: Give yourself some quiet time to rest and refresh in between conversations. Your brain is working overtime to take part in conversation and brief breaks will make that more sustainable.
- Schedule an assessment with a hearing specialist: It’s important to monitor your hearing health. When hearing loss is in its early stages, your brain doesn’t need to work as hard as it does when the condition gets worse, and a hearing specialist can identify hearing loss when it first begins to develop.
- Try to have conversations in quieter areas: When there is a lot of background noise, it can be difficult to sort out voices, even with hearing aids in some cases. It will be easier, and less exhausting, to understand conversations if you move them to a quieter area.
It’s most likely time to schedule an appointment with a hearing specialist if you’re experiencing fatigue with no obvious cause. Treating hearing loss can help you lessen your exhaustion and boost your energy. Don’t let stigma cause your hearing loss to continue to be neglected.