The Din at Dinner

For some, dinner parties are torture. Someone at the end of the table tells a funny story. Another person jumps in to share a related comment. The fast pace, the continual interruptions, the background noise. People covering their mouths when they speak, sometimes speaking in the opposite direction. Everyone seems to keep up, to be enjoying themselves, laughing and smiling at the appropriate times, relishing the connectedness with old and new friends. Everyone except those with hearing loss.

Overwhelmed by the layers of chatter and only catching bits and pieces of the conversation can make people with hearing loss feel alone and isolated in this situation. And because it’s been an awkward and embarrassing experience, some will decline the next dinner party invitation with friends. We’re only just beginning to appreciate the importance of hearing and the true cost of ignoring a loss to what is arguably our most undervalued sense.

Important new research

On average, people wait 8.9 years from the time of realising they have a hearing loss until they take action (Time From Hearing Aid Candidacy to Hearing Aid Adoption: A Longitudinal Cohort Study Simpson, et.al, Medical Univ. of South Carolina, Ear and Hearing 2018). But according to a study in the Journal of Otolaryngology, people who wait 10 years have a:

• 52% higher risk of dementia

• 41% increased chance of depression

• 29% higher risk of falls

If the impact on socialising with friends isn’t enough to impel you to do something about your hearing loss sooner rather than later, these statistics just might.

If you can relate, contact our team to discuss your hearing needs.