Julie Raney is a certified and licensed audiologist. She has a B.S. in Communication Sciences and Disorders and a Master’s Degree in Audiology from Idaho State University. She has worked as a clinical audiologist in Colorado since 2005. She specializes in hearing amplification for adults and delivers her services in both English and Sign Language.

The Whirlwind of Realization

At first, it may be a sense of denial that greets us. It’s easy to rationalize the missed words as simple distractions or to blame external factors for our difficulty catching the sounds around us. We often downplay the signs, convincing ourselves and others that it’s just the natural din of life getting in our way.

When the evidence becomes too compelling to ignore, frustration often follows. Social gatherings become stressful and we feel anxiety as we strain to stay connected to the conversations that flow around us. Misunderstandings become common and we often have to ask others to repeat themselves, or stop and explain something we missed.

The Quiet Descent Into Isolation

For many, the next progression on this journey is withdrawal. There’s a cost to every interaction now—the exertion to concentrate surpasses the enjoyment of the interaction. We might slowly pull away, decline invitations, and find ourselves on the sidelines. This isolation can go hand in hand with feelings of loneliness, exhaustion, and even depression.

The Glimmer of Acceptance

Next, we find our way toward acceptance. We start to recognize that to reconnect with the world we’ll have to accept our hearing loss. This understanding marks a critical turning point—it’s what fuels our courage to seek help.

The Venturing Forth

After accepting the reality of our hearing loss, we start to acknowledge the situation, communicate our needs, and explore available solutions. In this phase, we become proactive. We may book a hearing test, find hearing aids, and realize that hearing loss does not define us.

The Shared Experience

After acceptance, we often find others who also experience hearing loss. Friends and support groups offer us validation and a chance to connect with others who know what we’re going through. Here, shared stories offer hope and support for the future.

Getting Hearing Aids

As we venture further, we start to feel empowered. Choosing to get fitted for hearing devices or using other communication strategies leads to more freedom and independence. Every strategy or device becomes a tool for reclaiming agency in our world—helping us connect with what matters most.

Improved Hearing

There’s a profound change that happens when we get hearing aids. Sounds that were faint or lost start to return, and we hear the world in a richness of detail that we’d forgotten was there. While it may take some time to adjust to new hearing aids, the journey back toward a world of sound can be a joyful experience.

Ongoing Adaptation

Accepting hearing loss is not a destination. It’s an ongoing choice to look after your hearing health and continue to adapt to new changes. It’s understanding that some days will be better than others. New challenges will emerge, demanding fresh strategies, patience, and at times, gentle self-compassion.

Finding the Right Support

The road to accepting hearing loss may have some twists and turns, but you don’t have to go it alone. With the right hearing health professionals, you’ll benefit from years of expertise and personalized solutions that can help you reconnect with the world around you. From diagnosis through to treatment, we’ll be with you every step of the way.

Book Your Next Hearing Test

If you find some sounds growing faint, or you sense a change in your hearing health, stop and take note. Remember that acknowledging the challenge is the first step toward overcoming it. Once you’re ready to accept hearing loss, we can work together to find solutions that will match your lifestyle and hearing needs.

Accepting hearing loss starts with understanding more about your hearing health. Visit us for a hearing test, and set foot on the path to a richer, fuller hearing. Together we’ll find out more about your hearing needs, and help you rediscover all the sounds you’ve been missing.