Your workplace recently adopted the trend of open-office floor plans, promoting collaboration and teamwork. But this new setup has become challenging for you. It’s because the elevated noise is making it difficult to follow along with conversation and not because you miss the privacy of cubical walls.
The inability to follow conversations in noisy settings often serves as an early indicator of hearing loss, in spite of conventional hearing exams producing normal results. You still may have trouble discerning conversations even with “Normal” hearing.
The complexity of speech perception
Speech comprehension is a complex cognitive process that requires significant brainpower. Distinguishing speech from background noise and focusing on specific voices amongst a cacophony of sounds requires optimal hearing capabilities.
It becomes increasingly demanding for the brain to focus in on speech in loud settings as we get older. As a result, it becomes mentally exhausting to be in loud settings like restaurants and bustling offices.
How to recognize the early signs of hearing loss
Here are a number of ways that early hearing loss can manifest:
- When in loud settings, conversations are difficult to make out.
- Distraction and reduced engagement in social interactions.
- The brain has to work extra hard to comprehend speech leading to increased mental exhaustion.
Hearing loss tests
It can be especially hard to detect these kinds of difficulties when standard hearing diagnostics seem to reveal normal hearing. However, researchers are exploring innovative tests to diagnose early stages of hearing loss:
- The Eye Test: A special set of glasses is utilized in this test. The movement and dilation of your pupils can be tracked with these glasses. If you’re concentrating a little harder than normal your pupils will behave in a particular way. So if this tends to happen in crowded or noisy areas, it could be a sign that you’re having to strain to hear.
- Monitoring Electrical Signals: The electrical signal sent from your ears to your brain is tracked by an EEG in this test. It will be a potent sign that you’re having some hearing difficulty if these signals fluctuate in a certain way when you’re in a crowded place.
These tests, in conjunction with personal observations, attempt to identify hearing issues at their nascent phases, facilitating early intervention.
What are the benefits of early detection?
There are two important benefits to early detection.
- Mental decline related to neglected hearing loss can be avoided with early detection.
- It offers clarity with regard to difficulties faced in environments like open offices, mitigating potential aggravations.
Think about getting help if you’re having difficulty understanding speech even with “normal” hearing.
Early detection assures timely intervention, enhancing overall auditory health and cognitive function. Contact us today and let us help you with any hearing loss you may have.