Communicating in a noisy environment can sometimes seem impossible. Instead of having a fun conversation with your friends, you spend half your time saying, “Huh?” or “What was that?” This struggle only gets more complicated for the 20% of the global population living with hearing loss. Let’s take a look at a few ways hearing aids can improve communication in crowded areas.
Suppressing Background Noise
Many hearing aids use digital audio processing to separate speech from background noise. This feature helps them amplify speech without raising background sounds—a helpful advantage in crowded areas.
Spatial Audio
When someone without hearing loss hears their name called in a crowded room, they can usually locate the direction the sound is coming from—a skill called “sound localization.” Hearing loss can dampen or completely remove your ability to locate the direction of a sound, making it harder to focus on a specific person’s speech in a noisy crowd.
Many newer hearing aids include spatial audio, a program designed to mimic the sound localization skill in humans.
Smartphone App
Modern hearing aids are smarter than ever, thanks to smartphone apps that let you adjust audio settings instantly. Many of these apps include a handy “favorites” feature, allowing you to save custom settings for specific places you frequent. For example, if you often dine at Seasons 52 or similar bustling restaurants, you can fine-tune your hearing aids for that environment and save the settings. Next time you’re there, just select your favorite, and you’re good to go—no need to start from scratch.
Better Confidence and Concentration
Dealing with hearing loss can make social situations pretty stressful. It’s hard to stay confident when you’re worried about missing what someone says. That’s where hearing aids come in—they’re like a little confidence boost in your ears. Instead of stressing about whether you’ll catch every word, you can relax and focus on the conversation in front of you.
Hearing loss doesn’t have to ruin social outings for you. With the help of your hearing aids, you can get back to enjoying time with your loved ones, regardless of the environment. To learn more about how hearing aids can benefit you, contact Collin County ENT today for an appointment with one of our specialists.