Who should get a hearing test?
RAYOVAC® wants to empower our customers to hear more, so they can live their best lives. The first step is recognising there is a problem and taking a hearing test, before consulting with a hearing specialist called an audiologist.
For many people it is their friends and family who first recognise the, sometimes gradual, changes in hearing in their loved ones. Don’t be afraid to talk about hearing loss. Do you recognise yourself or anyone you know in the following examples?
What hearing personality type are you?
We’re all different and our attitudes towards hearing loss vary. Do you recognise yourself in one of our hearing personas?
‘I’m ignoring it’, Ivor
Ivor has noticed that he has to turn up the volume on his radio louder with the passing years. And sometimes he has missed calls from his daughter, despite the phone being in the same room as him. He has a sneaking suspicion his hearing is deteriorating but he’s managing it well so for now he’s just getting on with life until it becomes really bad. Then he’ll go to the doctor.
‘I’m compensating’, Constance
Constance has known for a while that her hearing isn’t as good as it once was, but she’s become really good at compensating. She’s taught herself to lip read, always asks her guests to sit close by and has a list of stock answers that allow her to gloss over most conversations, so even if she’s not picking up the whole conversation, she can piece it together. She’s coping, so there’s no need to seek help.
‘It’s not my problem’, Peter
Peter often thinks his partner has the TV volume to quietly, thinks people mumble in conversation and that they’re just being too noisy at parties. It’s easier to do his own thing – turn the volume up, ask friends to repeat themselves or avoid the party. This problem with hearing isn’t his problem, it’s theirs.
‘I know I need help’, Helen
Helen knows that her hearing is not what it was. Her family have been pushing her for a while now to go and get her hearing checked. She is ready to speak to someone about it, she just doesn’t know who. Helen is unsure of what a hearing test might involve and what it will cost. She is worried about what the outcome of the test might be and about the possibility of having to wear a hearing aid.
Find out more about identifying the symptoms of hearing loss in adults, children and babies.
Find out what to expect from your first visit to an audiologist
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