Do you have a senior over the age of 70 in your care? There’s a lot to keep in mind. Bringing a senior to a heart specialist or scheduling an appointment with an oncologist feels like a priority, so you’re not likely to forget anything like that. What slips through the cracks, however, are the small things, like the annual appointment with a hearing specialist or making sure Mom’s hearing aids are charged up. And those small things can make a big difference.
For The Health of a Senior, Hearing is Important
More and more published research has echoed one surprising truth: your hearing is vitally important. Additionally, your hearing is essential in a way that goes beyond your ability to listen to music or communicate. Depression and loss of cognitive abilities are a couple of mental health issues that have been associated with neglected hearing loss.
So you unwittingly increase Mom’s chance of dementia by missing her hearing appointment. If Mom isn’t able to hear as well these days, she could begin to separate herself; she stops going to see movies, doesn’t meet with her friends for coffee, and eats dinner by herself in her bedroom.
When hearing loss takes hold, this sort of social separation happens very quickly. So if you notice Mom or Dad starting to become a little distant, it may not be about their mood (yet). It could be their hearing. And cognitive decline can ultimately be the consequence of that hearing loss (your brain is an organ that needs to be exercised or it begins to decline). So with regards to a senior parents physical and mental health, recognizing and treating hearing loss is essential.
Making Hearing a Priority
By now you should be convinced. You now recognize that untreated hearing loss can lead to several health issues and that you should take hearing seriously. How can you make sure ear care is a priority? There are several things you can do:
- Once per year a hearing screening should be scheduled for anyone over the age of 55. You should help a senior parent schedule and show up for these appointments.
- Keep track of when your parents are wearing their hearing aids, and see that it’s daily. In order to ensure the hearing aids are operating at their optimum capacity, they should be used consistently.
- Help your parents remember to charge their hearing aids each night before they go to bed (at least in situations where their hearing aids are rechargeable).
- Monitor your parents’ habits. If your parent is slowly turning the volume on their TV up, you can identify the issue by scheduling a consultation with a hearing specialist.
- And if you find a senior spending more time at home, backing out on friends, and separating themselves, the same applies. Any hearing challenges can be diagnosed by us when you bring them in.
How to Reduce Health Problems in The Future
Being a caregiver probably isn’t your only job so you likely have a lot to deal with. And hearing concerns can feel a bit trivial if they aren’t causing immediate friction. But there’s very clear evidence: a multitude of serious health problems in the future can be avoided by managing hearing loss now.
So when you take a loved one to their hearing exam, you could be preventing much more costly health conditions in the future. Depression could be eliminated before it even starts. And Mom’s chance of dementia in the near future will also be lessened.
That’s worth a trip to see a hearing specialist for most of us. And it’s certainly worth a quick reminder to Mom that she needs to be using her hearing aid more diligently. And that hearing aid will make your conversations with her much easier and more enjoyable.