Hear Ye, Hear Ye! Do you need a hearing test?

Hi ,

October is Audiology Awareness Month. In some ways it's sad that we need a month dedicated to making people aware of what audiologists do. But once you know the role of an audiologist and are blessed to work with a good audiologist, your life will certainly be changed for the better.

There is confusion between the training levels and roles of Ear, Nose,Throat (ENT) physicians, Audiologists, and Hearing Aid Provider so let's clear it up.

ENTs are physicians trained to medically and/or surgically treat ears, as well as noses and throats. They are a great place to start if you have a history of medical problems in your ears such as chronic ear infections. However, only 5% of hearing loss in adults is medically treatable, so in most cases a visit to an ENT clinic for hearing concerns is not necessary. Audiologists and hearing aid providers are required to refer you to an ENT doctor if you have signs of a potentially medically treatable hearing loss, like asymmetrical hearing loss or ringing, balance problems or conductive hearing loss.

Audiologists are not physicians, but we are "doctors of hearing". Our role is to gather pertinent case history information, evaluate, diagnose and treat hearing loss and tinnitus (and in some cases, balance disorders). Treatment might look like hearing aids or other assistive devices and some audiologists can evaluate for and then provide the follow up care for cochlear implants or bone-anchored hearing devices that are surgically implanted by a specially trained surgeon. Audiologists are now required to have a three or four year doctorate degree where they received extensive training in auditory neuroscience, acoustics, diagnostics of the hearing and balance systems, auditory rehabilitation and hearing conservation. They are the best first step for the vast majority of people who suspect they have hearing loss.

Hearing Aid Providers (HAP) are trained to provide hearing tests solely for the purpose of fitting hearing aids. To become a HAP in the state of Colorado, you must have a high school diploma, apprentice with an audiologist or another HAP for six months and take a national exam recognized by the state's Department of Regulatory Agencies. Many of the practicing HAPs may have more education and experience, so with everything, it is important to get to know the provider you are working with.

Hearing HealthCare Centers proudly staffs doctors of audiology in each of our seven locations so you can be sure you are in the best hands when you make an appointment with us.

Ch'ears'!

Whitney Swander, Au.D.

Owner, Doctor of Audiology

P.S. Have you air-fived your favorite audiologist lately?

It’s October, the beginning of the fall season with memory evoking sights and smells. I love everything about the season with the cooler weather, the smells of pumpkin spice, and leaves changing colors. Sounds also make the seasons memorable. What kind of things do you hear during this time of year? I love the sound of leaves crunching under my feet, geese honking as they fly overhead, and the sound of wood crackling in a fire. Are you able to hear these sounds? If these subtle sounds aren’t noticeable it is possible that you have a hearing loss. October is also Audiology Awareness Month, so let’s talk about some early signs of hearing loss that can help you to identify if you or a loved one has hearing loss.

The onset of hearing loss can occur from illnesses, hereditary, noise exposure, and aging. The most common type of hearing loss is a high frequency hearing loss. High-frequency hearing loss occurs when the tiny hair-like sensory hearing cells in your inner ear are damaged. When a high frequency hearing loss is present the following symptoms may occur:

People are mumbling when they talk
Does it sound like people are mumbling and you are having to ask them to repeat themselves? Are female and children voices harder to hear? With a high frequency hearing loss, you can often hear people talking but you have difficulty understanding them. The high frequency part of our speech language is the clarity of speech. As a result, you may misunderstand important parts of the conversation and respond inappropriately or think people are mumbling when they are not.

Do you or a loved one experience any of these symptoms? Seeking help from an Audiologist is the first step to treating hearing loss. Even if you do not have these symptoms it is important to establish a baseline and continue to monitor it over the years. Studies have shown that untreated hearing loss can be linked to mental health conditions such as depression, isolation, and decline in cognitive function. The earlier a hearing loss is treated the sooner these declines can be alleviated. You can learn more about this in Dr. Swander's Book, Isolation is Optional. Reply to this email if you'd like a free copy.

I was only two years old when my parents realized I had a hearing loss. My own name was difficult for me to pronounce because I couldn't hear the sounds correctly. I was very insecure in my younger years, but as I educated myself about exactly what my hearing loss was, I started advocating for myself and learning more about hearing loss and audiology. I did a presentation on hearing loss and cochlear implants when I was in high school before I even knew I was getting a cochlear implant. I also wanted to become more involved in the deaf culture and joined the National Deaf Volleyball Team and traveled to Washington DC to train and competed in Argentina for a tournament, which allowed me to learn and use sign language. I wore hearing aids from age two until my senior year in high school when I got my first cochlear implant. Six years later I got an implant in the other ear - what a game changer.

Technology has changed so much over the years that there's no way I would be hearing as well as I do today if I was still wearing my first device or my second device from 7-10 years ago.

Hearing technology is more and more tuned in and able to detect and mask background noise better and provide better speech understanding in those difficult situations. Hearing devices are not meant to last forever.

Growing up with hearing loss, I am passionate about advocating for hearing loss and finding devices to help with awareness for when patients are sleeping or do not have their hearing devices on.

Here are a couple of fun questions to get to know Dr. Shawna better.

What do you do to improve your mood when you are having a bad day?

If I’m having a bad day, I like looking at my pictures on my phone to remind me of all the good times. Seeing pictures of my friends, family, pups and food (yes, I’m one of those foodies who takes pictures of their food!) Looking at the pictures makes me forget why I was upset in the first place.

If space travel became widely available, would you go?

Yes, I would love to see what the earth looks like from far above. I love traveling by air and seeing how the ground looks with all the development in cities and farming communities. Farm grounds are my favorite as it looks like a patchwork quilt with all the different color and shapes of fields. So to be able to see the Earth from higher above would be pretty neat!'