The ability to hear the world around us serves many purposes. Firstly, we gather information about what is going on and use this to enhance our understanding of our other senses. Sounds warn us of dangers that we may not have seen. |
But sounds can also bring us pleasure. We may enjoy hearing our favorite music or the voices of a loved one for example.
It is important that we don’t take this vital sense for granted, or it could have a dramatic impact on our lives if it goes.
So, what can be done to take care of our hearing?
Here are four ways that you can look after this important sense.
Reduce Your Stress Levels
One of the ways that your hearing can be affected is through stress. If you have prolonged, high levels of stress in your life, then this can affect your ability to hear. This is due to decreased circulation brought about by stress rerouting your blood to different areas of your body.
Manage your stress through meditation and lowering your exposure to the stressors in your life. Try and eat a balanced diet, get plenty of exercise, and aim to get a full night’s sleep every night.
Get Your Hearing Tested
Do you find that you are mistaking or completely missing things that people are saying to you? If you struggle to hear properly during conversations, then this might be a sign of hearing loss.
Whatever the cause of your hearing loss, you should make an appointment to have hearing testing carried out by an audiologist.
A hearing test may involve various different sounds being played to and you’ll need to identify which you can hear. This will give an identification of the range of hearing that you have.
Following your hearing test, if your hearing loss warrants it, your audiologist may recommend that you wear a hearing aid.
Don’t Listen To Music Too Loud
If you need to have your music turned up to a loud volume, it might show that you have hearing loss. In addition to this, listening too loud may be detrimental to your hearing.
When listening to headphones, many modern digital listening devices will have warnings that let you know when you listening above the safe volume. Pay attention to these warnings and don’t listen to your music too loud.
You may want to look at getting noise-canceling headphones to help block out outside sounds. That way, you can at least focus on the music coming through the headphones.
Wear Protective Earwear
Do you work in a noisy environment? If so, you should be cautious about the damage that it might do to your hearing health.
If your employer provides protective ear wear such as earmuffs or earplugs, then you should wear these whenever required.
If your employer does not supply these, talk to them and ask that they do.
Similarly, if you go to loud concerts or nightclubs, you should wear earplugs that will help turn the volume down on the sounds around you.