Today's Hearing Aids Mean No More Need For Denial
There are few occupations SharpEar where the use of your auditory senses are as important as making a living in the world of music. That's why it's so unfortunate that many musicians tend to suffer from some degree of auditory loss at some point in their careers. This is true across the field of music, for anyone who creates and performs for a living. The sounds at a concert are necessarily loud in order to let everyone in the theater, auditorium, or arena hear the music. And for many musicians, the damage doesn't begin or end there, but rather extends to practice as well. If you don't want to be faced with wearing a hearing aid while trying to perform your music, here is what you should know.
It is a fact that regular exposure to high decibel levels can and will lead to noise damage. The hair cells of the cochlea, which are responsible for translating vibrations and sending those translations on to the brain, are damaged by high decibels. In many cases, such as the attendance of a single loud concert, this damage is only temporary. In many other cases, where the individual is exposed to high levels on a regular basis, the damage can become permanent and significant. Since a large portion of being able to play music is being able hear the music, those with significant damage to their ears often suffer in their careers.
Some of the symptoms that accompany noise related auditory loss include the loss of higher pitches in sound, a consistent ringing of the ears (tinnitus), a lessened ability to tell the difference between two separate pitches (a talent a professional musician can not afford to lose and one that won't be helped by even the most advanced hearing aid), a difficulty in parsing speech, and increased sensitivity to pain in the ears. While there are therapies and listening devices that can help anyone who has suffered from noise related damage, there is only so much science can do when it comes to restoring your ability to hear.