Some types of hearing impairment impact more than one-third of the population of 65 years old to 74 years old in America. For adults 75 years of age and older, that one-third rises to one-half! (This information is courtesy of NIDCD – the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communications Disorders.)
After seeing those fast facts, you might think there would be a huge population of people who use hearing aids. Here’s a surprising statistic: Hearing aids are not used by 6 out of 10 people who have hearing loss on a moderate to severe level. What’s even more surprising about this is that a person’s very independence can be threatened if they cannot hear what’s going on around them. Hearing impairments affect everyone in various ways, but for retirement-age individuals, they can be devastating.
Here’s how the independence of your loved one can be threatened by hearing impairment.
Relationships
Personal relationships can be negatively impacted by hearing loss. Because they can’t understand anything people around them are saying, the affected adult may withdraw from conversations. In some cases, because they can’t hear, they talk more – and loudly. Rather than interacting with others, they simply monopolize conversations.
People may be looked upon as inattentive, arrogant, non-caring, disoriented, confused, and more, just because they can’t hear correctly.
Danger
It can actually be extremely dangerous to have an untreated hearing impairment. The following may occur:
- The person may not hear oncoming traffic when crossing the street
- They may not hear honking horns or sirens when driving
- If an intruder is in the house, they may not hear it
- They may not hear someone knocking on the door or ringing the doorbell
- Smoke detectors may not be noticed or heard
- They may not take their medication appropriately because they didn’t hear their doctor’s instructions correctly
Quality of Life
Taking into consideration what you’ve just read, it shouldn’t be surprising to find out that if an older adult has trouble socializing, driving safely, or taking their medicines correctly, they will be at risk for a loss of independence and a lower quality of life. What’s more, other health issues can occur as a result of a cascading effect caused by hearing loss. While traveling and even in their own home, retirement age adults are at risk when they can’t hear properly.
However, older adults can once again live independently and restore their quality of life by being treated for their hearing loss. This can include using some type of device.
Get the Help Your Loved One Needs
Morada Grand Prairie offers assisted living with so many amenities, it’s like living at a resort! There is always someone around – 24/7 – so the environment in which your loved one is living is far more safe and secure than living alone. In an assisted living community such as ours, everything your loved one needs or wants will be well within reach. For everything we do here, exceptional service and care are the foundation.
