Putting off on essential appointments, like your hearing aid fitting, is all too easy amidst the hustle and bustle of day-to-day events. You might even find yourself hesitating to order hearing aids altogether. But hearing loss affects more than just your ears and delaying treatment can have detrimental effects on your whole life.
The link to cognitive decline
Scientists have proven a clear link between untreated hearing loss and mental decline. This underscores the critical importance of not delaying treatment, as it can have adverse effects on your mental function too.
The impact on hearing
Obviously, it’s evident that delaying treatment for hearing loss isn’t helpful for maintaining your auditory health. By avoiding appointments with a hearing specialist or delaying the purchase of hearing aids, you inadvertently subject your ears to further damage.
The advancement of your hearing loss will be quickened if you continuously need to crank up the volume on your devices. Wearing a hearing aid can help alleviate this by selectively amplifying particular frequencies, thereby slowing down the progression of hearing loss.
The link to cognitive function
There’s a direct connection between your sense of hearing and your brain. Research indicates that neglected hearing loss can have considerable consequences on mental function. Over time, cognitive decline can be worsened by depression and anxiety brought on by social separation.
Furthermore, long-term untreated hearing loss causes the brain to adapt by reallocating resources from processing sound to other functions, such as visual processing, potentially complicating the restoration of normal hearing function later on.
Navigating neuroplasticity
The brain’s remarkable ability to adapt, known as neuroplasticity, is both a friend and a foe in this situation. The brain will have a hard time reverting back to its previous state after it rewires itself to accommodate for prolonged neglected hearing loss.
However, it isn’t impossible to undo these effects. Despite previous delays in seeking treatment, using hearing aids as prescribed by a specialist can still yield significant benefits in both the short and long term.
Call us for an appointment
You should obviously find treatment as soon as possible, but even if you’ve put off for a while, it’s not too late to seek help. Making an appointment with us as soon as you can is essential, ensuring you can enjoy better hearing and cognitive function moving forward. Call today!
