Many people are familiar with the mental exhaustion you get at the end of a long day of meetings, or a multi-hour family reunion in Don Ball Park. Mental fatigue happens when you have excessive cognitive demands. These demands could include problem-solving, stress or, for people with hearing loss, understanding speech.
Why Does Hearing Loss Cause Mental Fatigue?
When you live with hearing loss, you have to work a little harder to understand speech, especially in noisy environments. Think of it like working through a puzzle. With each sentence you encounter, you have to identify the context and use it to fill the space of any missing words. Over the course of a busy day, working through all those puzzles can leave you exhausted.
Finding ways to accommodate your hearing loss is crucial in preserving your energy.
Three Helpful Lifestyle Adjustments
Try the following to minimize hearing loss-related mental fatigue:
- Wear hearing aids. Hearing aids collect and amplify speech. By bringing that amplified speech right to your ears, they’ll reduce the amount of effort you need to put into following along and participating in conversations.
- Talk face-to-face. You may have noticed that conversations are harder to understand over the phone. Part of that difficulty stems from the lack of visual cues, such as lip movements and body language. Try to have your conversations face-to-face. Don’t talk from separate rooms or look down at your phone. When possible, switch phone calls to video calls for better understanding.
- Sit in the middle. If you’re getting ready for a long day of meetings, pick a centrally located seat where you can see the most people at once. Looking at the speaker will reduce the energy you have to put into understanding them.
- Minimize background noise. Background noise is a well-known struggle for people with hearing loss. If you’re able, lower the volume in your environment by turning down the music or TV, asking people to avoid shouting and switching locations if the area you’re in is unmanageably loud.
- Take breaks. We all need a break sometimes. If you’re feeling worn out, don’t try to push through. Instead, take ten to fifteen minutes to relax in a quiet environment.
The above tips will ease communication strain and save your energy for the more fun things in life. For more information or to schedule a hearing consultation with one of our specialists, contact Massachusetts Hearing Group today.