When is it time to get a hearing exam? You need a hearing exam if you have any of these four warning signs.
The other day, my kids complained about how loud my TV was. And guess what I said. I said, “What”? It was a joke. I thought it was funny. But, in some ways, it was anything but funny. I have needed to turn the TV up increasingly louder lately. And that got me thinking that maybe it’s time for a hearing test.
It really doesn’t make much sense to neglect getting a hearing test. They aren’t invasive, there’s no radiation, you don’t have to worry about discomfort. You’ve most likely just been putting it on the back-burner.
You should really be more vigilant about keeping track of your hearing because, if left unchecked, it can impact your overall health.
There are a lot of good reasons why hearing assessments are essential. Even mild hearing loss can have an impact on your health and it’s almost impossible to identify early hearing loss without a hearing assessment.
So when should you have a hearing test? Here are some clues that it’s time.
You should have your hearing tested if you notice these signs
It’s time to get a professional hearing test if you’ve been experiencing symptoms of hearing loss recently. Clearly, it’s a strong indication of hearing loss if you’re having a difficult time hearing.
But that’s not the only indicator, and there are some signs of hearing impairment that are much less obvious:
- It seems as if people are mumbling when they talk: Often, it’s clearness not volume you have to worry about. Trouble making out conversations is one of the first signs that something is going bad with your hearing. If you detect this happening more and more, you might want to make an appointment for a hearing exam.
- You always miss alerts for text messages: Your cellphone (or mobile device, as they’re called now) is designed to be loud. So if you keep finding text messages or calls that you missed, it’s most likely because you didn’t hear them. And if you’re unable to hear your mobile device, what else are you missing?
- Chronic ringing in your ears: A typical sign of injured hearing is a ringing in the ears, also called tinnitus. If you’re dealing with some ringing that won’t stop, it might or might not be a sign of hearing loss. But it’s certainly a sign that you should schedule a hearing test.
- It’s difficult to hear in noisy venues: Have you ever had a difficult time following along with conversations because of background noise in a crowded room? That may actually be an indication of hearing loss. As your hearing progresses from healthy to impaired, one of the first signs is the loss of the ability to isolate specific sounds.
Here are some other situations that show you should schedule a hearing screening:
- You can’t easily detect where particular sounds are originating
- You have vertigo
- You take specific medications that can harm your hearing
- Your ears are not removing earwax thoroughly
- You have an ear infection and it won’t go away
This checklist, clearly, isn’t thorough. There are other instances of warning signs (if, for instance, the volume on your TV is maxed out and you still want it to go just a little louder). But any one of these signs is worth looking into.
Routine examinations
But what if, to your knowledge, you haven’t encountered any of these possible symptoms of hearing impairment? Is there a guideline for how frequently you should schedule a hearing exam? There’s a guideline for everything, right, so there’s got to be a guideline for this. There are, actually, some suggestions.
- Sometime after you turn 21, you need to have a hearing assessment. Then your mature hearing will have a standard.
- Every three years or so will be a practical schedule if your hearing appears normal. But make sure you note these appointments in your calendar or medical records because it’s easy to forget over these huge periods of time.
- If you show signs of hearing loss, you will want to have it checked immediately, and then yearly after that.
It will be easier to uncover any hearing loss before any warning signs become apparent with regular screenings. The earlier you obtain treatment, the better you’ll be able to protect your hearing in the long run. So it’s time to give us a call and schedule a hearing assessment.