{"id":2704,"date":"2024-03-15T08:54:31","date_gmt":"2024-03-15T15:54:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sandiegohearing.com\/?p=2704"},"modified":"2024-03-15T09:02:22","modified_gmt":"2024-03-15T16:02:22","slug":"how-to-make-friends-when-you-have-hearing-loss","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sandiegohearing.com\/how-to-make-friends-when-you-have-hearing-loss\/","title":{"rendered":"How To Make Friends When You Have Hearing Loss"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Maintaining social connections is an important aspect of mental well-being at all ages. It can be harder to make friends later in life, and age-related hearing loss can make that even more difficult.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As we age, we\u2019re likely to lose hearing. In fact, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nidcd.nih.gov\/health\/statistics\/quick-statistics-hearing#:~:text=1%20in%208%20people%20in,based%20on%20standard%20hearing%20examinations.&amp;text=About%205%25%20of%20adults%20ages,for%20adults%20ages%2055%2D64.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">10% of adults ages 55\u201364 have hearing loss<\/a>, and 22% of people aged 65\u201374 have hearing loss. It\u2019s helpful to understand how hearing loss can make it more difficult to be social and what you can do to stay connected with those around you and even make new friends.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Social Impacts of Hearing Loss<\/h2>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1254\" height=\"836\" src=\"https:\/\/sandiegohearing.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Woman-with-hearing-loss-hangs-out-with-friends.jpg\" alt=\"Woman with hearing loss spends time with friends\" class=\"wp-image-2707\" style=\"width:566px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sandiegohearing.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Woman-with-hearing-loss-hangs-out-with-friends.jpg 1254w, https:\/\/sandiegohearing.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Woman-with-hearing-loss-hangs-out-with-friends-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1254px) 100vw, 1254px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p>Hearing loss makes social interactions more difficult in several ways. In conversation, people may sound muffled, and you may need them to frequently repeat themselves. The concentration and energy required to follow conversations with hearing loss can lead to listening fatigue. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.audiology.org\/consumers-and-patients\/hearing-and-balance\/fatigue\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Listening fatigue can have the following effects<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Feeling tired after events<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Increased stress and anxiety<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Irritability<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Trouble concentrating<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Memory loss<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s hard to connect with others when you\u2019re feeling tired and irritable. Additionally, it\u2019s harder to connect genuinely with others if you don\u2019t know what they\u2019re saying. This can leave you with a feeling of loneliness and isolation that friendships can help remedy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Tactics To Connect<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>There are some steps you can take to reduce the effects of listening fatigue and the feelings of social isolation that may come with hearing loss. It\u2019s still possible to build new friendships with hearing loss Consider the following:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Take steps to improve communication skills: Get your hearing checked regularly to maintain your existing hearing. Consider hearing aids at the recommendation of your hearing specialist. Hearing aids can not only improve your ability to hear conversations in noisy settings but also help with the confidence needed to pursue new friendships.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Start with your network: You can start slow to build confidence when trying to make new friends. Invite coworkers for coffee or reach out to old friends you\u2019ve not seen in a while.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Join a support group: You may be able to join a local Facebook group or a hearing loss support group through San Diego Central Library or Mountain View Community Center. Support groups are a great environment to meet people who understand what you\u2019re going through and can offer advice and friendship.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Don\u2019t exclude those without hearing loss: It\u2019s a great idea to let others know about your hearing loss so they can use tactics to communicate with you in a clearer way. If they know, they can ensure they\u2019re facing you when speaking and repeat things if necessary.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/sandiegohearing.com\/hearing-aids\/benefits-of-hearing-aids\/\">Wear your hearing aids<\/a>. Don&#8217;t be afraid to use the tools that help you most when building relationships with others. <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Hearing loss doesn\u2019t have to be a guarantee of isolation. <a href=\"https:\/\/sandiegohearing.com\/hearing-loss\/\">With effort<\/a>, you can make friends through all stages of adulthood with hearing loss.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To learn more about your hearing health or to schedule a hearing test for you or a loved one, contact San Diego Hearing Center to schedule an appointment today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><ul class=\"related-posts\"><li><a href=\"https:\/\/sandiegohearing.com\/habits-to-prevent-hearing-loss\/\" class=\"related-post\">Habits to Prevent Hearing Loss<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/sandiegohearing.com\/im-tired-all-the-time-do-i-need-a-hearing-test\/\" class=\"related-post\">I\u2019m Tired All the Time, Do I Need a Hearing Test?<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/sandiegohearing.com\/how-to-know-if-youre-a-good-candidate-for-hearing-aids\/\" class=\"related-post\">How To Know If You\u2019re a Good Candidate for Hearing Aids<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Maintaining social connections is an important aspect of mental well-being at all ages. It can be harder to make friends later in life, and age-related hearing loss can make that even more difficult. As we age, we\u2019re likely to lose hearing. In fact, 10% of adults ages 55\u201364 have hearing loss, and 22% of people&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2707,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[11,16,12,7,14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2704","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog","category-blog-post","category-hearing-aids","category-hearing-loss","category-hearing-test"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sandiegohearing.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2704","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sandiegohearing.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sandiegohearing.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sandiegohearing.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sandiegohearing.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2704"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/sandiegohearing.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2704\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2709,"href":"https:\/\/sandiegohearing.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2704\/revisions\/2709"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sandiegohearing.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2707"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sandiegohearing.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2704"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sandiegohearing.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2704"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sandiegohearing.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2704"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}