According to one recent survey, nearly 30% of people have gone more than ten years without getting a hearing test. One of those people is Sofia. She goes to her yearly doctor’s appointments, she visits a dentist every six months, and she gets the oil changed in her car every 3000 miles. But she hasn’t had a hearing examination in quite some time.
There are lots of reasons why it’s essential to get hearing assessments, detecting initial symptoms of hearing loss is likely the most significant one. Knowing how frequently she should get a hearing exam will help Sofia keep her ears (and hearing) as healthy as possible for as long as possible.
How Frequently Should You Get a Hearing Test?
If the last time Sofia had a hearing examination was a decade ago, we might be alarmed. Or we may think it’s perfectly normal. Depending on how old Sophia is, reactions may vary. That’s because hearing professionals have different guidelines based on age.
- It’s normally suggested that you have a hearing exam around every three years. There’s no harm in having your ears checked more frequently, of course! But at least every three years is the bare minimum. If you are subjected to loud noise frequently or work in a field where noise is common, you should decide to get screened more frequently. It’s easy and painless and there’s truly no reason not to do it.
- If you are over fifty years old: The general suggestion is that anybody above the age of fifty should undergo hearing checks yearly. Hearing loss is more liable to affect your life as you get older because noise damage starts to add up. Also, there are other health concerns that can affect your hearing.
If you would like to have hearing examinations or tests more frequently, there’s certainly no harm in that, at least in terms of your hearing. Since the last time you had a hearing test, you might have new injury you should recognize, so more frequent hearing exams might be helpful.
You Should Get Your Hearing Checked if You Notice These Signs
There are definitely other times besides your yearly hearing test that you might want to schedule an appointment with your hearing specialist. In some cases, you start to notice some symptoms of hearing loss. And in those cases, it’s often a good plan to immediately get in touch with a hearing professional and schedule a hearing exam.
Some of the signs that might prompt you to get a hearing test could include:
- Phone conversations are always hard to understand
- Constantly asking people to slow down or repeat themselves during a conversation.
- Having a hard time hearing consonants (generally speaking, consonants are spoken in a higher pitch than vowels, and it’s those high-frequency sounds that are generally the first to go as hearing loss takes hold)
- Your hearing is muted as if there is water in your ears.
- Turning your music to excessively high volumes (if your neighbors begin to complain, that’s a good sign you need to see a hearing specialist right away).
- When you’re in a noisy situation, you have difficulty hearing conversations.
When these warning signs start to add up, it’s a good sign that the perfect time to get a hearing test is right now. You need to recognize what’s going on with your hearing and that means getting a hearing test as soon as possible.
Hearing Exams, What Are The Advantages?
There are plenty of reasons why Sofia may be late in having her hearing exam. Denial is a leading choice. Perhaps thinking about it is something she is just avoiding. But there are actual benefits to getting your hearing tested per recommendations.
Even when your hearing is completely healthy, a hearing exam can help create a baseline reading, which makes deviations in the future simpler to detect. You can safeguard your hearing better if you identify it before it becomes a problem.
That’s the reason why Sophia needs to go to her regular hearing exams before any permanent impairment happens. By catching your hearing loss early, by getting your hearing tested when you should, you’ll be keeping your ears healthier longer. It’s essential to consider how hearing loss will affect your overall state of health.