There are lots of possible causes of tiredness, everything from not being able to sleep at night to respiratory problems like sleep apnea. But there is something more common that can also cause tiredness and that’s hearing loss.
In part, that’s because hearing loss can be a slow-moving, subtle condition. You may not immediately distinguish the symptoms and, as a result, you might feel as if you’re constantly tired for no reason. This can be a frustrating experience. In addition, this exhaustion can often result in irritability and, ultimately, social isolation. Luckily, your energy levels will typically increase once you get your hearing loss treated.
Your brain will compensate for gradually progressing hearing loss
Hearing loss is normally a gradually advancing condition that gets worse over time. You might not even realize that you have a hearing loss at first. Even prevalent symptoms, like turning up the volume on your TV and smartphone, can be easy to miss if you’re not looking for them.
Fatigue is one of the most obvious symptoms of hearing loss. No matter how much rest you get, you could still feel exhausted. This symptom, unfortunately, isn’t usually associated with hearing loss.
Because the cause happens in your brain, the symptoms aren’t usually considered an ear issue. When your ears aren’t getting as much information, your brain works overtime to make sense of it all. Just as sustained periods of intense concentration can leave you worn out, the extra brain power required to hear what individuals are saying can be exhausting. Left untreated, this fatigue can grow worse over time, affecting your quality of life and your ability to perform daily routine tasks.
The role of stigma
So when individuals begin to feel tired, why wouldn’t they simply visit a hearing specialist? One partial reason is that people just don’t connect tiredness with hearing loss. But there’s another reason that may ultimately be more detrimental: stigma. There’s a feeling that hearing loss is bad or ruins your life or that there’s nothing that can be done about it. People will often avoid seeking treatment because of these false notions.
However, as more people are open about their hearing loss experience, the stigma has started to disappear. Many individuals understand that hearing loss isn’t some type of social failing, and the very small construction of modern hearing aids makes them easy to hide around people who unfortunately will not get over this stigma.
It’s unfortunate that this social stigma can make it harder for people to find the care they need because this frequently leads to hearing loss that gets worse over time when it may not have to.
How to manage hearing loss-associated fatigue
The earliest phases of hearing loss may not have any evident symptoms. That makes it difficult to effectively take a reactive approach, and it’s why many hearing specialists favor preventative techniques. Hearing specialists advocate for routine screenings in order to create a baseline of your healthy hearing, that way they will be able to identify changes to your hearing in later screenings. Early treatment will be a lot more effective after we have determined that baseline.
If your hearing loss is causing fatigue, there are a few steps you can take to lessen that exhaustion as much as possible. Some of the easiest and most common steps include the following:
- Give yourself a break in between conversations: In between conversation, take a quiet break somewhere. Your brain is working extra hard to engage in conversation and brief rests will make that more sustainable.
- Try to find more quiet, isolated spots for conversations: Distinguishing voices from background noise can be difficult when you have hearing loss (often whether you’re wearing hearing aids or not). It will be easier, and less tiring, to understand conversations if you move them to a quieter spot.
- If you use hearing aids, wear them as frequently as you can: One of the primary functions of hearing aids is to clarify human speech, making understanding conversations a lot easier. This means your brain won’t have to work as hard and you won’t experience the same amount of fatigue.
- Schedule an assessment with a hearing specialist: It’s important to monitor your hearing health. When hearing loss is in its early stages, your brain doesn’t have to work as hard as it does when the condition worsens, and a hearing specialist can diagnose hearing loss when it first begins to develop.
So if you’re dealing with an unusual amount of exhaustion and tiredness, with no evident cause, it might be time to plan a visit to your hearing specialist. Treating hearing loss can help you lessen your exhaustion and boost your energy. Don’t let stigma cause your hearing loss to continue to be neglected.