The human body has some amazing and remarkable abilities. Scratches, cuts, and broken bones are normally no problem for the human body to heal (with a bit of time, your body can repair the huge bones in your arms and legs).
But when it comes to restoring the delicate little hairs in your ear, it’s not going to happen. At least, so far.
It’s truly unfortunate that your body can pull off such amazing feats of healing but can’t regenerate these tiny hairs. What’s going on there?
When is Hearing Loss Permanent?
So, let’s get right to it. You’re at your doctor’s office attempting to process the news he’s giving you: you’re losing your hearing. So you ask your doctor if your hearing will ever come back. And the answer is… maybe.
Dramatically speaking, it’s a bit anticlimactic.
But it’s also the truth. There are two primary types of hearing loss:
- Hearing loss caused by a blockage: You can show every indicator of hearing loss when your ear has some type of obstruction. This blockage can be caused by a number of things, from the gross (ear wax) to the downright frightening (tumors). Fortunately, once the obstruction is removed, your hearing usually goes back to normal.
- Hearing loss caused by damage: But there’s another, more common type of hearing loss. This form of hearing loss, known as sensorineural hearing loss, is irreversible. This is how it works: there are little hairs in your ear that vibrate when hit with moving air (sound waves). When vibrations are converted into signals, they are sent to the brain which makes them into the sounds you perceive. But loud noises can cause harm to the hairs and, over time, diminish your hearing to the point where you require treatment.
So here’s the main point: you can recover from one form of hearing loss and you probably won’t know which one you’re coping with without getting a hearing exam.
Treating Hearing Loss
So currently there’s no “cure” for sensorineural hearing loss (though scientists are working on that). But your hearing loss still might be manageable. In fact, getting the proper treatment for your hearing loss may help you:
- Help ward off cognitive decline.
- Preserve a high quality of life.
- Cope successfully with any of the symptoms of hearing loss you might be going through.
- Stay active socially, keeping isolation at bay.
- Maintain and protect the hearing you have left.
Of the many types of treatment available, which one is right for you depends on the seriousness of your hearing loss. Hearing aids are one of the easiest and most prevalent treatment choices.
Why Are Hearing Aids a Good Treatment For Hearing Loss?
Hearing aids can help you get back to the people and things you enjoy. They can help you hear the conversation, the phone, your television, or even just the birds in the park. Hearing aids can also remove some of the pressure from your brain because you will no longer be straining to hear.
The Best Protection is Prevention
Whether you have hearing loss now or not, you need to protect your hearing from loud noises and other things that can harm your hearing (like ototoxic drugs). Your overall health and well being depend on good hearing. Having regular hearing exams is the best way to be certain that you are protecting your hearing.
