Hearing Loss Awareness Month: 6 Signs It’s Time for a Hearing Test

Did you know that even mild hearing loss can impact how you engage with the world around you? From participating in conversations and social activities, to hearing and responding to sounds, to affecting your work, the health of your ears and your hearing influence just about every part of your life.

October is Hearing Loss Awareness Month, a good reminder for all of us to pay extra attention to hearing health. That includes scheduling an audiology appointment for a hearing test if you notice any of the subtle signs of hearing loss discussed below — or if others have brought up concerns about your hearing.

6 common signs of hearing loss

1. Frequently asking others to repeat themselves. Does it seem like people around you are always mumbling or speaking too softly? Do you have to strain to hear conversations?
2. Difficulty hearing and understanding others in noisy places. Is it hard to have conversations in restaurants, where there can be lots of background noise, or in groups when you can’t see other’s faces while they’re speaking?
3. Frequently turning up the volume on electronic devices. Is the TV or radio so loud that others around you complain?
4. Buzzing or ringing in your ears. Also known as tinnitus, the symptoms can be constant and interfere with daily activities, or present occasionally as a minor annoyance.
5. Difficulty hearing or understanding phone conversations. Do the conversations sound muffled, or does it sound like the person you’re speaking to is under water?
6. Having trouble hearing consonant sounds. In many cases, people with hearing loss can hear lower-pitched sounds, like vowels, but have difficulty hearing higher-pitched consonant sounds.

What to expect at a hearing test

A hearing test can determine if there is hearing loss and also how mild or severe it is. A hearing test may also be able to identify the specific type of hearing loss and the cause.

Hearing tests are generally quick, painless and non-invasive. Wearing headphones or earplugs with wires connected to an audiometer, you’ll listen to tones at different pitches and volumes. The hearing care provider will instruct you to respond to the tones and sounds. Another part of a hearing test can involve listening to recorded or live speech and then repeating back the words to determine how well you understand them.

Diagnosing and treating hearing loss

If a hearing test confirms some degree of hearing loss, keep in mind that hearing loss is a treatable condition for most people. Just as there are different types and degrees of hearing loss, there are many hearing loss treatment options.

Hearing aids can help amplify certain sounds in certain pitch ranges, making it easier to hear speech when background noise is present. Today’s hearing aids come in all shapes and sizes, including styles with high tech and customizable features. Other treatments of hearing loss include assistive listening devices and ear plugs that may help prevent additional hearing loss.

Since hearing loss can progress gradually, it’s not uncommon to miss or ignore mild signs of hearing loss. Addressing symptoms of hearing loss sooner rather than later can put you on the path to improved personal relationships as well as overall quality of life.

The CareCredit credit card is an easy way to pay for audiology appointments, hearing tests, hearing aids and other hearing loss treatments and products.* Use the Acceptance Locator or download the CareCredit Mobile App to find an audiologist near you who accepts the CareCredit credit card.