It’s Not ALL Bad

My first reaction to the unpleasant results of my first serious hearing test was “ugh”. I’m only 50 years old and I have to wear hearing aids. Those are for old people! It never occurred to me that there could be a possible upside.

Of course, here I am 30+ years later, with one cochlear implant and one gigantic hearing aid, I have discovered many positive outcomes. First, technology has improved so that the devices can produce amazing results, restoring hearing capacity to levels that weren’t possible before. Also, I have increased sensitivity to and compassion for ALL people with disabilities, noticing that many people are affected by a variety of limitations, they still function, and life goes on. And more importantly, by embracing my hearing loss and advocating for myself and others, I am part of a movement to elevate awareness of hearing loss as an enormous national health problem, and hopefully helping others find a way to accept their own hearing loss, treat it early and live a good life in spite of it.

But what about this benefit that I did not anticipate? Did you know that many people with hearing loss have heightened experiences in their other senses? I noticed many years ago that my sense of smell had become much more refined, and more sensitive. I have been able to smell subtle things that may have gone unnoticed before. And unpleasant smells can linger until they are replaced with something significantly different (and more pleasant). I have also noticed an increased awareness in peripheral vision, which is a good thing as I am getting older and that ability can tend to diminish.

A recent article in Hearing Tracker (How Losing your Hearing Can Supercharge Your Other Senses), describes how when hearing is lost, the brain rewires itself so that other senses, such as vision, touch, and smell, step in to take over parts of the auditory cortex, which is the part of the brain responsible for processing sound. For most people, vision is the main sense that steps in to take over, which is helpful for reading lips and reading body language. But for others, it may be touch or smell.

It is comforting to know that while hearing loss is a significant challenge, both physically and emotionally, and treating it early is essential for good brain health, you may find your other senses are heightened as you adjust to your hearing devices.