The Benefits Of Using ALDs In The Home And Other Everyday Settings

An assistive listening device is anything except a hearing aid that helps a person experiencing hearing loss communicate more effectively. These devices work through sound amplification, visual alerts and vibrotactile technology. They can be hugely beneficial to those who use them; read on to find out why this is.

Improved Relationships

You might not have considered this point before, but the fact is that hearing loss can make it hard to have good relationships. This could be a romantic relationship, friendships, or even relationships with acquaintances and work colleagues. If you’re unable to hear well, then it will be hard to communicate and have conversations, and this can lead to issues within any relationship. On top of that, no matter how much your loved ones and friends might want to be supportive, it will ultimately become frustrating if they have to keep repeating themselves or they’re never entirely sure if you can hear them or not.

You might even start avoiding situations in which you know you won’t be able to follow conversations, meaning you start to have less of a social life. Using assistive listening devices can make this problem much less of an issue. Using these devices means you’ll be much more able to enjoy conversations with anyone in your home or in a workplace, for example.

More Independence

Living alone isn’t always easy if you have hearing loss. You might feel vulnerable because you can’t hear the doorbell or the telephone, or a smoke detector alarm might be too quiet. The last thing anyone wants is to feel unsafe in their own homes, but if you have any hearing loss, this might be exactly how you feel. This could mean you are unable to be entirely independent, which can cause a lack or loss of confidence, and you might miss out on many things in life.

When you use assistive listening devices, this problem will be solved, and you can be as independent as you want to be. The world will open up to you, and you’ll be able to follow your dreams much more easily.

Better Work Performance

If you have hearing loss, your work performance might not be as good as it could be; this is something that those who experience hearing loss often say is the case. The reason is, again, a lack of confidence because you might not hear instructions clearly, and you’ll be worried about making mistakes. You might therefore not push yourself as hard as you know you can work because you need to ensure you are doing things right, and this will take you longer if you are unable to hear everything clearly.

This is why you should speak to your manager about assistive listening devices at work. It might be possible to install a hearing loop, for example, which will ensure that you can hear precisely what you are expected to do and work with a lot more confidence. Your performance will improve, and you’ll be able to move forward with any career goals you might have.

Reduced Chance of Tinnitus

There are a number of reasons why someone might experience tinnitus, but one of the most prevalent is because they are straining to hear. This can cause an opening (perilymph fistula) in the membrane separating the middle ear from the inner ear, which can lead to tinnitus, among other issues. So, when you no longer have to strain to hear because you are able to make use of assistive listening devices, the chances of this fistula occurring are much lower, meaning your chances of developing tinnitus are lower too.

Tinnitus can be a hugely disruptive issue, leading to lack of sleep, poor performance at work and even mental health problems like depression. Avoiding it by using assistive listening devices is a simple thing to do that can have far-reaching positive consequences.

Lower Risk of Cognitive Decline

Someone who has hearing loss that is left untreated will have a higher chance of developing cognitive decline as they get older. This is because the area of the brain that focuses on speech recognition will have to work harder to combat the hearing loss, and this means it won’t be working on maintaining understanding in other areas – hence cognitive decline can take place.

When you utilize assistive listening devices around the home, and elsewhere, you can protect your brain and stave off this debilitating condition as much as possible.

For more information about assistive listening devices and all other aspects of hearing loss, please contact the experts at Rametta Audiology & Hearing Aid Center. We are happy to talk through your options with you and can be reached by calling Tarentum: (724) 409-4439 or Vandergrift: (724) 567-3233.