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HEARING
LOSS AND SOUND THERAPY
Hearing
loss is the most common problem of people over 60.
But since these last 10 years it appears that youngsters
have exactly the same problem.
Why does hearing
deteriorate?
There are many contributing causes
to hearing deterioration. Some of the more common ones are:
# Repetitive ear infections (otitis, glue ear)
# Cochlear damage due to prolonged exposure to loud noise.
It can be a professional loss for people working in a noisy
environment. It is the main cause for the youngsters' hearing loss :
rave parties, disco, MP3 players!
# Lack of high frequencies sounds to stimulate the ear.
# Lack of good muscle tone in the middle ear, caused by
stress or poor diet. As you have
# Psychological factors - inability to resolve personal
issues and communicate. As there was tings we did not want to hear
from people of the family or others, we shut our hearing.
# Otosclerosis - overgrowth of the cochlear bone which
results in fusing the stapes to the cochlea.
# Acoustic neuroma ( a benign tumor which may develop on
the hearing and balance nerves near the inner ear. The tumor results
from an overproduction of Schwann cells -- small sheet-like cells --
that normally wrap around nerve fibers) or cholesteatoma (a skin
growth in the middle ear behind the eardrum)
# Ototoxic drugs
(antibiotics, aspirin, cancer medicines, diuretics,...
Is deterioration
inevitable with age?
No. It is not exactly the number of
years of living that causes hearing damage, it is the number of
years of noise abuse. Young people who listen to rock music often
have a hearing level equal to fifty years old factory workers.
But yes: presbyacusis exists (1/2 people over 65 y) as well
as presbytia. We remark easier presbytia than presbyacusis:
we cannot read anymore the newspapers. Why? Because our eye muscles
do not function well, they cannot accommodate. The crystalline lens
also become stiffer. It is exactly the same for the ear but it takes
longer to remark it. The muscles of the middle ear do not work well
and do not tune the sounds. However people in their eighties have
experienced dramatic improvement in their hearing through using
Sound Therapy and making a rehabilitation of the muscles.
What is "conductive
hearing loss"?
Conductive hearing loss refers to
any disorder in sound transmission system in the middle ear. The
bones and muscles in the middle ear adjust and tune the hearing
mechanism so that sound can travel from the ear drum to the inner
ear.
Sometimes surgery is required in the middle ear. Surgery can be
followed by Sound Therapy, as any surgery requires post operative
rehabilitation.
Hypertension or lack of tone in the middle ear muscles (tensor
tympani and stapedius) also leads to conductive hearing loss.
What is "sensorineural"
hearing loss?
Sensorineural hearing loss refers
to damage which has occurred inside the inner ear, where the sensory
cells transmit sound to the auditory nerve. Loud or prolonged sound
flatten the fine, hair like sensory cells - called cilia - in the
inner ear. When the cilia are flattened they cannot longer pick up
sound vibrations, so the sound doesn't reach the auditory nerve. A
diagnosis of nerve deafness does not necessary mean the nerve is
damaged - it may just be the cilia have been flattened.
How Sound Therapy may
help?
Sound Therapy helps in 3 ways:
1- EXERCISING THE MUSCLES
The middle ear contains two tiny muscles, the sensor tympani and the
stapedius. Good muscles tone and flexibility is essential for the
fine tuning of the middle ear mechanism. The alternating high and
low frequencies cause the ear muscles repeatedly tense and relax.
This exercise may restore the muscles tone and improve the
functionning of the whole ear mechanism.
2- STIMULATING THE CILIA
On the Sound Therapy program, the low frequency (low tone) sounds
are progressively removed and the high frequencies are augmented.
These high frequency sounds stimulate the cilia (the fine hair
sensory cells in the inner ear). Where the cilia have been flattened
by too much noise, the high frequency sounds may stimulate them to
return to their upright position. This mau restore the person's
hearing in the high frequencies.
3- PSYCHOLOGICAL OPENING
Hearing is sometimes closed down to some extent for psychological
reasons. Sound Therapy encourages resolution of psychological issues
by re-introducing high frequencies and re-creating the pre-birth
experience of sound. A the psychological issues are resolved, the
person may allow themselves to open to the full range of hearing.
How effective is it?
More research is needed to
determine the effectiveness or Sound Therapy on hearing loss.
However, feedback received from Sound Therapy listeners over the
last fifteen years indicates that most people experience some
improvement in their hearing.
Numerous people have reported that:
Their family no longer have to shout at them
They can hear the birds again.
They can follow a group conversation.
The sounds are clearer and crisper.
They no longer need their hearing aids.
The people who have reported these
benefits include:
- People with industrial deafness
- Those who needed an hearing aid 80% of the time.
- People in their eighties.
- Those told they have nerve deafness and nothing could be
done.
In some cases it requires several
months of listening to improve hearing. Persistence is essential.
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