"I realized I had hearing loss when I couldn’t hear the blinker in my car. Then, I noticed trouble hearing in movies, in social situations and on the job. When you have hearing loss on a construction site, it can be life-or-death, really. I finally realized, 'Wow, I’m in trouble.'
My quality of life is so much better now. I wish I had my hearing checked a long time ago."
Michael Cave
Church restoration specialist and HearingLife patient
How I discovered I suffered from hearing loss
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Music I think the construction business really added to my hearing loss. I'm a church restoration specialist.
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Michael walks into a church |
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I was very involved with hammer drills and Sanders compresses going off and on. If you have hearing loss on a construction site it could be a life-or-death situation really. I realized I had hearing loss when I couldn’t hear the directions in my car and my men would just reach over and turn it off and then they'd say to me “Mike you got to get your hearing checked”.
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Michael and his coworkers are working in the church. |
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Music My son was home and he said dad you want to see this movie and I said okay. The plotline was something I was getting a little fuzzy on so I leaned over to my son in the middle of movie and said “is that his dad” and of course everybody in the movies here too turned around. I think I finally realized wow I'm in trouble.
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Michael and his sons is walking on the street and laughing together. |
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Music I would notice it in social Settings. Michael would miss some of the things that being said to him, and so I would just try to say something to help him understand what was going on and tried to be subtle.
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Pictures of Michael and his wife. Zoom in on his wife talking. |
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I kind of stopped trying to talk to my dad at some point because it seemed like he didn't listen.
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Zoom in on Michael’s son talking |
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Music I think the big thing was my grandchildren. My wife would say to me did you hear what James said, he said “papy play with me” and if he wasn't in my vision, if he was on the side I wouldn't hear him |
Pictures of Michael and his grandchildren |
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Music When I went to HearingLife, my audiologist just made me feel totally comfortable and beyond my expectations of what a person would be in that situation because it was new to me.
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Zoom in: Michael Talking |
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Music I was with him that day and as soon as she had calibrated what she thought he would need in both ears instantly there was a difference. I just felt like I was getting my my Michael back. |
Zoom in: Michael’s wife talking |
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Music Since the hearing aids our phone conversations are pretty drastically different like we have real phone conversations.
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Zoom in: Michael’s son talking |
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Music I really wish that I had addressed this hearing loss problem and had my hearing checked a long time ago. My quality of life is just so much better now. It's like everything opened up to me like I'd been asleep. It's just a matter of you know taking a problem and really addressing it and then once you do you feel good. It changed my whole life.
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Michael biking and doing sports |
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Music I'm Michael cave and I'm a church restoration specialist. I'm a father, a grandfather, and a HearingLife patient
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Michael walking with his wife |
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HearingLife logo |
No two paths to discovery are the same
Hearing is like your fingerprint — everybody’s is different. Just as no two people hear quite the same, sufferers of hearing loss all have their own unique story of how they came to understand they had a problem.
It’s not always easy to acknowledge hearing loss, but it’s important that you do so. There can be serious consequences to leaving your hearing loss untreated, and many benefits to treating hearing loss.
Do you have concerns about your hearing? We welcome you to speak with our experts to learn about what may work for you.
Quiz yourself: Should I get my hearing checked?
Answer a few questions to see if you could benefit from a hearing assessment.*
Question 1 – Around the table
Do you have trouble following conversations when there are 4 or more people present?
Question 2 – Family and friends
Have you received advice from your family or friends to get your hearing tested?
Question 3 – Understanding what others say
Do you ever struggle to understand what others are saying because you cannot hear properly?
Question 4 – TV or radio
Do you find yourself turning up the TV or radio even when the volume is loud enough for others?
Your Result:
A hearing assessment is relevant for you
Your answers indicate that you experience symptoms of hearing loss. We strongly recommend booking a hearing assessment in one of our hearing centers.
The result is an indication. An in-person hearing assessment can determine if you have a hearing loss.
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Your Result:
A hearing assessment seems relevant for you
Your answers indicate that you experience some symptoms of hearing loss. We recommend booking a hearing assessment in one of our clinics.
The result is an indication. An in-person hearing assessment can determine if you have a hearing loss.
Book your complimentary hearing assessment:
Your Result:
It cannot be determined here if a hearing assessment is relevant for you
Your answers do not indicate that you experience symptoms of hearing loss. However, if you experience trouble hearing, we recommend booking a hearing assessment in one of our hearing centers.
The result is an indication. An in-person hearing assessment can determine if you have a hearing loss.
Book your complimentary hearing assessment:
Exhibiting symptoms of hearing loss?
It may be difficult to accept hearing loss, but leaving it untreated can affect your quality of life.
Socializing becomes exhausting when you are not able to fully understand and communicate with others. Because conversations take so much more mental energy, hearing loss can also lead to irritability, negativism, anger, stress and depression. There are also potential financial ramifications: hearing loss can reduce your performance at your work or educational institution. Hearing loss and depression have been linked. Moreover, because it reduces your awareness, it increases risks to your personal safety. That’s why it’s important to take heed if you are experiencing hearing loss symptoms.
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Sources:
1. Deal JA, Betz J, Yaffe K, et al, for the Health ABC Study Group. Hearing impairment and incident dementia and cognitive decline in older adults: the Health ABC Study J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 2016; published online April 12. DOI:10.1093/gerona/glw069. 66
2. Lin FR, Metter EJ, O’Brien RJ, Resnick SM, Zonderman AB, Ferrucci L. Hearing loss and incident dementia. Arch Neurol 2011; 68: 214–20. 67
3. Gallacher J, Ilubaera V, Ben-Shlomo Y, et al. Auditory threshold, phonologic demand, and incident dementia. Neurology 2012; 79: 1583–90.
4. Pichora-Fuller MK. (2008a) quoted in Convention News, “Celebrating 20 Years, AAA is Hear to Stay” from: Advance for Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists. By Jason Mosheim, speech-languagepathology-audiology.advance.web.com/editorial.
5. The National Council on Aging, The Consequences of Untreated Hearing Loss in Older Persons, May 1999.
https://www.ncoa.org/wp-content/uploads/NCOA-Study-1999.pdf
6. Beck DL, Clark, JL. Audition matters more as cognition declines and cognition matters more as audition declines. Audiology To-day. 2009;(3):48-59.
7. Packer, Lisa. "Research shows severity of tinnitus is related to emotional processing." Healthy Hearing. Accessed April 16, 2019.
8. Jung D, Bhattacharyya N. Association of hearing loss with decreased employment and income among adults in the United States. Ann Otol Rhinol Laryngol. 2012;121(12):771–775. [PubMed]