Hearing loss is a common condition that can be mitigated easily by using hearing aids and assistive listening devices. However, hearing loss often goes undiagnosed and unaddressed. This can result in greater depression rates and feelings of isolation in those who have hearing loss.
It can also cause a breakdown in personal and work relationships, which itself will foster more feelings of depression and solitude. The key to putting a stop to that downward spiral is getting treatment for your hearing loss.
Hearing loss and depression
It’s true that untreated hearing loss is connected to developing depressive symptoms – and this isn’t a new phenomenon. Adults older than 50 with untreated hearing loss often describe feelings of depression and anxiety, according to one study. They were also more likely to avoid social activities. A lot of them had the feeling that people were getting angry at them and they didn’t know why. But when those individuals got hearing aids, they reported improvements in their social condition, and others in their life also noted the difference.
Another study found that individuals between ages 18 and 70, reported a greater sense of depression if they had hearing loss of more than 25 dB. Increased depression wasn’t reported by individuals over 70 who had self-reported hearing loss. But that still means that a large part of the population isn’t getting the help they need to better their lives.
Mental health can be impacted by refusal to use hearing aids or to lack of awareness
It seems like it would be obvious that you should treat your hearing loss when you read reports like this. Maybe you simply don’t think your hearing is that bad. You think that people are mumbling.
Another issue could be that you think treating your hearing loss is too expensive or time consuming.
It’s imperative that anybody who has dealt with symptoms of anxiety and depression, or the sense that they are being left out of interactions because people appear to be talking too quietly or mumbling too much, get their hearing assessed. We can discuss your options if we do find hearing loss. It could help you feel much better.