Hearing loss can occur for many reasons. You could be aging, experiencing earwax buildup, or you have been exposed to loud sounds that have affected your hearing ability. If you are experiencing a hearing loss in one ear, you will find it difficult to follow conversations. You will find that people are mumbling or talking too fast, especially in the ear that is experiencing deafness.
You can hear well in one ear but not on the other side. If you notice this, make sure to seek medical attention immediately. In most cases, you may not be able to reverse your hearing loss. You can visit a specialist to help improve your hearing abilities through hearing aid devices and other treatments.
Hearing loss can dramatically impact your life and even change your social interactions. It can come in all degrees from mild to severe. Therefore, you must diagnose the hearing loss as early as possible to see if there is a cure. Here are the ten danger signs of hearing loss:
1. Muffling speech
You will notice that people talking around and closer to one of your ears, are muffling or mumbling. Hearing loss means that your outer, middle or inner ear and even auditory nerves can be damaged. You may be able to hear parts of the speech with the stronger ear when you turn in the direction of the speech.
In addition, you will find it challenging to follow conversations when people are talking at the same time.
2. Difficulty understanding words
One ear can help you hear the conversation clearly, while the other experiencing hearing loss will make it difficult to understand words. You can hear but cannot understand the word. This encounter is common when you are trying to listen to the words in a competing noise environment.
3. Asking people to speak louder
When experiencing signs of hearing loss in one ear, you will find yourself asking the other person to speak louder and to avoid speaking softly. The other person will tend to speak louder than normal and in the direction of your stronger ear.
4. Avoiding conversation because of a hear inability
Because you have to keep straining to hear using one ear, you find yourself feeling tired and wanting to avoid conversations. Following a conversation can be mentally tiring as well.
You could be experiencing a hearing loss if you find that during a typical day of communicating at work or with family, you are fatigued. You end up with a headache and this occurrence is frequent.
5. Asking people to repeat conversations
When you start asking people to repeat what they just said, about two to three times, you could be experiencing signs of hearing loss in one ear. If you find that you are using the word “what?” frequently, then you can be sure that there is a problem with your hearing ability. You will probably even misunderstand conversations at this point.
6. Ringing in the ears
If you experience ringing or a buzzing sound in one ear, you may have some degree of hearing loss in that ear. You should immediately seek medical advice as this can result in other diseases. Common ringing sounds that hearing loss patients have experienced include buzzing, hissing, humming, chirping and roaring.
7. Trouble hearing the telephone or doorbell
You will notice a difference with both ears when the phone or doorbell rings. One ear seems clearer than the other. When you communicate over the phone using the ear experiencing hearing loss, you will not hear the speaker. However, when you switch to the stronger ear, you can easily understand the speaker.
8. Have to turn up the volume for your TV or radio
Your family or neighbor might complain that you always have the TV or radio too loud. Some shows have music in the background that can obscure the dialogue. You then turn the volume up to understand the dialogue, especially with the ear that is struggling to hear. If this is becoming a common occurrence and your neighbors keep complaining, then it is time to get a hearing assessment.
9. Buildup of earwax
The use of cotton swabs and earbuds push earwax into the ear leading to a major blockage. Although earwax is meant to protect the ear canal from irritation, dust and other particles, if not regularly cleaned, it can result in a buildup. This is a common reason for experiencing hearing loss in one ear. Always visit a doctor to treat earwax buildup.
10. Avoiding listening situations
When you struggle to hear with one ear, your listening ability diminishes. You tend to avoid conversations and any situations that will involve you to listen tentatively. It gets worse when you are in a noisy environment and have to listen to a conversation at the same time.
You will not be able to hear with one ear and might find it difficult to mask out the background noise to listen to the conversation. A restaurant full of people is a good example of a noisy environment.
