Hearing Loss Symptoms Can Cause Feeling of Grief

Grief is a healing process that can be induced by the loss of a loved one, loss of a limb, even the loss of something as simple as a job. There are five widely accepted stages of grief that an overwhelming majority of people go through when they experience a loss. A person’s life is dependent on what they hear and how they react to sounds and speech, making hearing loss  just as dramatic as the loss of a loved one.

The first stage of grief is denial. The person experiencing hearing loss will deny there is a problem. The more friends and family insist there is a problem, the more a person with hearing loss will withdraw from contact and avoid social situations that may expose their hearing loss to others.

The second stage of grief is anger. Someone experiencing hearing loss can lash out against friends and family, blaming them for the problem instead of acknowledging the problem and agreeing to get help. Anger can manifest itself against those closest to the person experiencing the hearing loss.

The third stage of grief is bargaining. Those with religious beliefs may bargain with God, promising to do whatever they can if they can have their hearing back. Along with anger, bargaining is a continuation of the denial of a situation.

The fourth stage of grief is depression. This stage can last an indeterminate amount of time and is a serious condition. All three of the first stages of grief are still felt, though the person experiencing hearing loss may now be numb to the fact. A deeper level of depression may be entered once the hearing loss is fully diagnosed. Depending on the extent of and reason for the loss, the patient may still refuse to research their situation and find assistance with their hearing loss.

The fifth and final stage of grief is acceptance. Once the patient accepts the fact they are losing their hearing, acceptance of the situation will alleviate all the previous stages of grief. Entering into, emotionally and psychologically, the state of acceptance can facilitate the patient’s involvement in their treatment and care.

In some cases of hearing loss, the five stages of grief can last for a very long time. In fortunate cases of hearing loss, the stages of grief are moved through quickly and the patient reaches the stage of acceptance early in the loss. The sooner hearing loss is recognized and diagnosed, the more quickly tools such as hearing aids can be employed for a better quality of life.

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