New Zealand’s #1 Direct to Consumer Hearing Aids
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New Zealand’s #1 Direct to Consumer Hearing Aids
600+ Five Star Reviews
By Don Hudson, CEO of PocketAid
When we think of hearing loss, we usually picture someone cranking the TV volume up to max or constantly saying “What?” in every conversation. But what if the signs were more subtle – strange little quirks in your daily life that you’d never guess were connected to your ears?
Here are five surprisingly early signs of hearing loss that might catch you off guard.
If clinking cutlery, squeaky shoes or even the rustle of a crisp bag make you wince, it might not just be you being irritable. Some people with early-stage hearing loss experience hyperacusis, a bizarre twist where their brain amplifies sound instead of dampening it.
Imagine being at a café and the clatter of plates sounds like a cymbal crash every time. It’s not only uncomfortable, it’s exhausting. This sensitivity can sneak in early and is often mistaken for anxiety or general noise aversion.
Persistent buzzing, ringing or hissing in the ears, also known as tinnitus, isn’t just the result of a loud night out. It can actually be your auditory system waving a tiny red flag.
It’s one of the most common signs that your hearing might be on the decline, even if you haven’t noticed any trouble understanding speech yet. In fact, tinnitus is often the brain’s way of compensating for lost frequencies that your ears are no longer detecting.
We usually blame tiredness on a long day or a lack of coffee, but listening fatigue is a real phenomenon, especially for people with mild hearing loss.
If you find yourself zoning out in meetings, ducking out of social events early or needing a break after phone calls, your ears might be working overtime just to follow the conversation. This cognitive drain often shows up before people even realise they’re missing words.
Your ears help you stay upright. So, when hearing begins to falter, especially if it’s linked to the inner ear, your balance can take a hit too.
You might find yourself feeling a bit unsteady on stairs, turning corners awkwardly, or feeling a sudden spin when you roll over in bed. While it’s easy to blame poor sleep or age, your vestibular system (housed in your inner ear) could be behind the wobble.
Ever felt like your voice was booming inside your own head? Like you’re talking into a tin can? This strange experience can be linked to unusual hearing issues like a patulous Eustachian tube or superior canal dehiscence – conditions that often sneak in early but go undiagnosed for years.
Some people even report hearing their own heartbeat or chewing with thunderous clarity. If your own body is suddenly louder than the world around you, it might be time to take notice.
If any of these strange but telling signs feel uncomfortably familiar, don’t worry. You don’t need to rush into a clinic or commit to hearing aids just yet. Your first port of call should be your GP, who can help assess the situation without pressure.
Before you take the leap into hearing clinics or contemplate the cost of hearing aids, you can try out your hearing in a totally new way using the PocketAid Hearing Aid Simulator, a free, private online tool designed to help you make sense of what’s really going on.
Whether you’re in the early stages of noticing something’s “off” with your hearing, or you’re just curious, the PocketAid Hearing Aid Simulator is a gentle, practical first step toward understanding how hearing technology might (or might not) help you on your terms.
Don Hudson is the CEO and co-founder of PocketAid, an Australian health-tech company providing affordable, ready-to-use hearing aids online.