What Are the Symptoms of Hearing Loss?

Symptoms of hearing loss can be difficult to identify, particularly if the onset is gradual. Many times a loved one notices a problem before the person with the hearing loss does. Symptoms of hearing loss may include difficulty hearing in background noise. Examples of noisy environments may include social settings with several people speaking at once, such as restaurants, grocery stores, churches, movie theaters, and sporting events. Hearing in the car can be especially difficult. Road noise drowns out conversation, and at the same time, it’s impossible to face the person you are speaking with.

Most people's hearing deteriorates in a gradual manner. Without visual cues, you may find it increasingly difficult to hear conversational speech in the car. All of us, even those of us with normal hearing, benefit from good communication strategies such as facing the person you are speaking with. Those of us with hearing loss have an especially difficult time hearing what someone is saying when that person is not facing you. You may find that you are unable to follow the conversation without face-to-face visual cues and particularly struggle when someone speaks to you from another room. Additionally, you may find that you need more volume than others to listen to the television or radio.

Another symptom of hearing loss is feeling as if people seem to mumble. You may frequently find yourself thinking “if so-and-so could just enunciate or slow down, I’d have no problem hearing.” Frequently asking for repetition is common. It’s possible you may not even hear that someone is speaking to you in the first place, or you may find that you frequently ask people repeat themselves because you weren’t able to understand what they said to you.

A general difficulty following conversation can cause listening fatigue, which is another symptom of hearing loss. Many people tell me they are so exhausted from filling in the blanks of what they cannot hear that they prefer to just not even try to participate in conversation. Hearing loss can be exhausting to both the speaker and the listener. Isolation and withdrawal from social activities are quite common when a person with hearing loss finds engaging in conversation to be too difficult to keep up with.

Tinnitus, which can be described as a ringing or buzzing sound in the ears, is another symptom of hearing loss. Research indicates that hearing loss is the most common cause of tinnitus. However, it is important to note that there are a variety of other factors that cause tinnitus. If you are experiencing some or all of the above symptoms, speak with your doctor to schedule a hearing evaluation. This is the only way to know for sure if the symptoms you may be noticing are possibly related to hearing loss.

A quick note about sudden hearing loss! Although it's relatively uncommon, if you've noticed your hearing decline in a very short period of time (e.g., over a few days or weeks), you should seek help from an audiologist and/or ENT doctor immediately. Sudden hearing loss usually occurs in one ear and may be accompanied by the feeling of plugged-up ears, dizziness, and/or tinnitus. This type of loss needs proper diagnosis and treatment as quickly as possible, as there are some treatment options like corticosteroids (treatment delayed after 2-4 weeks may be less likely to reverse or reduce hearing loss). Also see HearingTracker's webpage, Sudden Hearing Loss: The Answers You Need.