There are lots of possible causes of fatigue, everything from being unable to sleep at night to respiratory problems like sleep apnea. But there is something more common that can also cause tiredness and that’s hearing loss.
That’s at least partly due to the fact that hearing loss normally progresses slowly over time. You may find yourself constantly fatigued for no apparent reason because you failed to detect the symptoms of early hearing loss. This experience can be really frustrating. This exhaustion can often turn into irritability which could cause you to socially isolate yourself. The good news is that treating your hearing loss will often boost your energy levels, mitigating fatigue and exhaustion.
Hearing loss moves slowly (and your brain compensates)
Hearing loss is typically a gradually progressing condition that grows worse over time. In its early phases, you likely won’t even detect that you’re developing hearing loss. If you’re not specifically watching for them, even conspicuous symptoms, like cranking the volume on your audio devices way up, can be easy to overlook.
Fatigue is one of the most obvious symptoms of hearing loss. You may feel depleted no matter how much sleep you got the night before. This symptom, unfortunately, isn’t usually associated with hearing loss.
That’s because the cause occurs in your brain. When your ears aren’t receiving as much information, your brain works overtime to make sense of it all. This constant extra work is taxing in the same way that extended periods of concentration can take a toll. Your ability to perform daily tasks and your total quality of life can be substantially impacted over time as your untreated hearing loss gets worse.
The role of stigma
So why don’t more people just visit a hearing specialist when they start feeling fatigued? One partial explanation is that people just don’t associate tiredness with hearing loss. But there’s another reason that might ultimately be more damaging: stigma. There’s an impression that hearing loss is terrible or ruins your life or that there’s nothing that can be done about it. Individuals will often avoid seeking treatment because of these false ideas.
However, this stigma is starting to disappear as more individuals become open to their hearing loss. Many individuals understand that hearing loss isn’t some type of social failing, and the very small construction of modern hearing aids makes them easy to hide around people who unfortunately will not get over this stigma.
Regrettably, this perception of social stigma can cause individuals in the early stages of hearing loss to avoid getting the treatment they need leading to more severe permanent hearing loss.
Solutions for hearing loss-related fatigue
There are frequently no obvious symptoms of early phase hearing loss. That makes it difficult to effectively take a reactive strategy, and it’s why many hearing specialists prefer preventative approaches. For instance, scheduling routine screenings with a hearing specialist before you notice symptoms can help create a baseline of what your healthy hearing looks like. Once this baseline is achieved, early intervention is often much more effective.
If your hearing loss is causing fatigue, there are a few steps you can take to minimize that exhaustion as much as possible. Here are a few of the most common and easiest steps:
- Schedule a consultation with a hearing specialist: It’s important to monitor your hearing health. Visiting a hearing specialist can help you detect hearing loss in its early stages when it’s less of a problem and your brain doesn’t need to work as hard to compensate.
- Try to locate more quiet, isolated areas for conversations: Sorting out voices from background noise can be challenging when you have hearing loss (often whether you’re using hearing aids or not). It will be easier, and less exhausting, to understand conversations if you move them to a quieter location.
- Make sure you wear your hearing aids as frequently as you can: One of the primary functions of hearing aids is to clarify human speech, making understanding conversations much easier. This means your brain won’t need to work as hard and you won’t experience the same amount of fatigue.
- Take breaks from conversations: In between conversation, take a quiet break somewhere. This can help your brain recover from all the work it’s doing and make everyday communication a bit more sustainable.
So if you’re experiencing an abnormal amount of fatigue and tiredness, with no apparent cause, it might be time to schedule a visit to your hearing specialist. Treating hearing loss can help you lessen your exhaustion and boost your energy. Don’t neglect your hearing loss because you’re concerned about the stigma.