Hearing aids are so far removed from what they used to be and the technology inside them is fantastic now. There are some wonderful cosmetic options where you can match the colours of the hearing aids to your skin and hair colour which make them so much more discreet meaning you can just get on with your day-to-day life.

You actually don’t need to know if you need a hearing aid or not before you come in to see us at one of our clinics (Wombourne, Hagley or our Rubery day centre) because your Audiologist will tell you exactly what you need based on your hearing test results. Your hearing care professional will advise you whether you are ready for hearing aids yet or whether you should just have regular hearing checks at this stage. It may also just be impacted ear wax (which we can assist with too!).

Here are some of the things to be aware of that might mean you need to get your hearing tested. The hearing test doesn’t mean you automatically need hearing aids though but if you do, Jo, Sophie and the team have absolutely everything you need to be hearing well again and get on with your daily life.

You say pardon a lot. If you find yourself saying pardon a lot it could be because of an ear wax buildup but it also could be because you are missing the important parts of conversation. For example, with age related hearing loss (presbyacusis), people often lose the high-frequency sounds first because of a audiological phenomenon and called the doormat effect. This means that you can miss the important consonants at the beginning of the words which mean you can’t keep up with the conversation, so it is important to get your hearing checked so we can see if those need our attention in order to get you hearing well again.

You turn the television or radio up a lot, or more than your partner/others in your household. You might have noticed that you used to have the television volume on 25 now it is on 35 keeping in mind that all televisions are different or that your partner has it on a much lower level. You might find yourself straining or feeling tired to hear certain things in the house that you used to hear just fine before. This can be an indicator that it might be a good idea to get your hearing checked with ear care experts like us at Hear in Hagley and Hear in Wombourne.

You find yourself missing parts of the conversation. This one is very common and can be frustrating for other people around you as well as yourself. Missing parts of the conversation can lead to you saying pardon a lot as we have mentioned. This is key to every day communication and connection with others so it is important not to feel left out or that you are on your own with this. Everyone will struggle to hear at some point in their lives for different reasons, so you will find that the people around you will totally understand if you involve them in your hearing journey.

You have started to avoid conversations or meeting others because you know you don’t hear well. Over the years, we have seen a lot of people do this and spend more time on their own or stop their social activities completely where they used to love going out and interacting with others. This is a main driver for us because our role here is to get people living their lives to the full and not holding back on anything because they have hearing that they don’t have to think about on a day-to-day basis.

You have hearing concerns and it has started to affect your mental health. Over time, knowing that you need to do something about your hearing and not taking action can drag you down and make you feel anxious or slightly depressed. It is important to take action before you get to this stage as it can change your personality and your lifestyle and affect others around you. Taking action and getting a simple but in-depth hearing evaluation can be the clearest step forward to knowing all of your options and then you have all of the information in front of you and can try to move forward with your life and get hearing well again.

If you are experiencing any of these concerns or know somebody else who is, please get in touch and take advantage of one of our hearing tests or ear wax removal service. We are very much looking forward to meeting you! (CONTACT LINK)