Lately, Chris has been a little forgetful. For the second month in a row, she missed her doctor’s appointment and has to reschedule. And before she went to bed she even forgot to run the dishwasher (looks as if she’ll be handwashing her coffee cup this morning). Lately, she’s been allowing things slip through the cracks. Chris has been feeling mentally exhausted and drained all the time but, curiously, she doesn’t feel forgetful.
It can be difficult to recognize that feeling until it’s sneaking up on you. Frequently, though, the trouble isn’t your memory, in spite of how forgetful you might appear. Your hearing is the real problem. And that means there’s one tiny device, a hearing aid, that can assist you to considerably improve your memory.
How to Enhance Your Overall Cognitive Function And Memory
So, having a hearing test is the first step to improve your memory so you will remember that dentist appointment and not forget anyone’s name in the next meeting. A standard hearing examination will be able to determine if you have hearing loss and how bad any impairment may be.
Chris hasn’t recognized any symptoms of hearing loss yet so she hesitates to schedule an appointment. She can hear in crowded rooms fairly well enough. And when she’s at work, she doesn’t have a problem hearing team members.
But just because her symptoms aren’t recognizable doesn’t mean that they don’t exist. In fact, memory loss is commonly one of the very first detectable symptoms of hearing loss. And it all involves brain strain. It works like this:
- Your hearing begins to fade, perhaps so gradually you don’t realize.
- However mild, your ears start to notice a lack of sound input.
- The sounds that you can hear, need to be amplified and interpreted which causes your brain to work extra hard.
- You can’t notice any real difference but in order to make sense of sound your brain needs to work overtime.
Your brain only has so much processing power which can really be stressed by that kind of burden. So you have less mental energy for things such as, well, memory or for other cognitive functions.
Dementia And Hearing Loss
When loss of memory is extreme, the result could be dementia. And there is a link between hearing loss and dementia, though there are a number of other factors involved and the cause and effect relationship is still somewhat uncertain. Still, there is an increased danger of cognitive decline in those who have neglected hearing loss, which can begin as memory loss and eventually (over the years) develop into more extreme issues.
Hearing Aids And Preventing Fatigue
That’s the reason why managing your hearing loss is indispensable. As stated in one study, 97.3% of people who suffer from hearing loss who used hearing aids for at least 18 months showed a marked stabilization or improvement in their cognitive functions.
Various other research has shown similar benefits. It’s unquestionably helpful to wear hearing aids. When your brain doesn’t have to work quite as hard, your overall cognitive function improves. Memory loss and problems with cognitive function can have lots of intricate factors and hearing aids aren’t always a magic bullet.
The First Symptom of Hearing Loss is Frequently Memory Loss
This type of memory loss is mostly because of mental exhaustion and is normally temporary. But if the fundamental issues are not addressed, that can change.
Loss of memory, then, can be something of an early warning system. You should set up an appointment with your hearing professional as soon as you recognize these symptoms. As soon as your fundamental hearing issues are dealt with, your memory should go back to normal.
As an added benefit, your hearing health will likely improve, too. The decline in your hearing will be slowed significantly by wearing hearing aids. In this way, your general wellness, not only your memory, could be enhanced by these little devices.