Does Using A Hearing Aid Weaken Your Real Hearing?

If you’ve recently been diagnosed with hearing loss, your audiologist likely recommended hearing aids to address this issue. With a plethora of devices to choose from, you may have an extensive list of questions regarding how the technology works and if there are any associated safety concerns. Many people ask the question, does using a hearing aid weaken your real hearing? And the short answer is no, it doesn’t! This guide aims to explain exactly why, so read on to learn more.

Can My Hearing Aid Cause Hearing Loss?

This is a question that is asked on a regular basis, attributed mainly to a misconception that hearing aids actually can cause hearing loss. In fact, this couldn’t be further than the truth. Prescription hearing aids are created specifically to help alleviate the symptoms of hearing loss, so they’re not going to have the opposite effect.

As long as your hearing aids have been programmed properly to suit your specific hearing loss, then you will simply be reaping positive rewards! Many studies suggest that hearing aids can help to keep your hearing sharper while delaying the natural progression of your hearing loss, so there’s no reason to suggest that a hearing aid could in any way damage your hearing.

Could Hearing Aids Damage Hearing?

Well, it’s all a trick of perception. When you have been wearing your hearing aids for several weeks, you might be feeling that you can’t hear as well without them like you could before. In reality, this misconception takes place due to the fact that your brain is playing tricks on you.

Most people who experience hearing loss wait around seven to 10 years before they choose to seek help from an expert audiologist. As a result of this gradual worsening in hearing health over a longer period of time, the brain simply becomes accustomed to the hearing loss and perceives this level as normal.

Benefits of Hearing Aids

So, when you start to wear your hearing aids more often and benefit from better clarity and confidence, you will begin to get used to the new clear sound. After your brain has readjusted to the improved level of hearing, taking your hearing aids out may cause you to notice your hearing loss far more than usual. Sometimes, without your hearing aids sounds can appear much quieter, but this is because they are – it just means that your hearing aids are successfully doing their job!

This somewhat confusing process can be compared with your eyes’ ability to adapt to dark or light surroundings. If you have spent several hours in a dark room, then you might start to make out the shape or color of furniture or other items around you. Then, when you switch the lights on your eyes need to adjust to the new brightness so that everything can become clear and easy to see. However, if you were to then switch the light off again, you won’t be able to see the shapes or colors like you did before. This certainly doesn’t mean that your vision has deteriorated simply due to light exposure, and it’s exactly the same with hearing aids and hearing loss.

How Can a Hearing Aid Help?

You can expect lots of different benefits when you choose to use a hearing aid. Hearing aids can help your hearing loss considerably, providing you with greater clarity so that you can listen to things more clearly. You can also expect to gain more confidence when you get a hearing aid, especially when you are talking to your loved ones or colleagues at work, as you stand a better chance of understanding them and participating fully in a conversation.

Further mental health benefits include a reduced chance of isolation and social avoidance, as you may find that you simply choose not to involve yourself due to your hearing loss. Hearing aids can also help your physical health too, as many people with hearing loss feel uncomfortable doing things like exercising outdoors or attending a gym class. However, a hearing aid can help you to gain peace of mind, so you can get involved and work out without any fear.

It’s always a good idea to contact an audiologist if you think that you can benefit from a hearing aid. It’s highly unlikely that you will experience any kind of adverse effects for your hearing abilities by using a hearing aid, so be sure to reap the many rewards today!

If you’d like to learn more about the benefits of hearing aids, then contact our team at Brentwood Hearing Center. Call us at (615) 866-0431 and we will be able to answer any questions that you might have surrounding your hearing loss needs!