The only one thing that you requested was for the trash to be taken out. But, regrettably, it never got done. “I Didn’t hear you”, they say. Curious how that works, how your partner didn’t hear the one thing you requested from them. This “selective hearing” is a normal indication that communication is failing.
We tend to view selective hearing as a negative, almost like it’s a character defect. It’s as if you’re accusing someone of deliberately not listening. But selective hearing could actually be connected to untreated hearing loss instead of a short attention span.
Selective hearing – what is it?
You’ve likely had at least one or more situations in your life where someone has accused you of not listening, even if no one specifically used the phrase “selective hearing”. When you miss all the stuff you don’t want to hear but hear everything else, that’s selective hearing. You hear the bit about the chocolate cake, but you don’t hear the part about the calories. Things like that.
As a behavior, selective hearing is extremely common. However, most studies point to males failing to hear their partners more frequently than women.
It might be tempting to make some assumptions about that (and the way that individuals are socialized definitely does play into how this behavior is contextualized). But hearing health is likely another major factor. Let’s say your “selective hearing” begins to become more prevalent or more common. That could actually be an early sign of hearing loss.
Communication can be impacted by hearing loss
Undiagnosed hearing loss can certainly make communication much harder. You’re most likely not surprised by that.
But here’s the thing: oftentimes, communication problems are a sign of hearing loss.
Symptoms can be really hard to notice when hearing loss is in the early stages. Your tv might get a little louder. When go out to your local haunt, you have a hard time hearing what people are saying. You probably just presume it’s because of the loud music. But besides scenarios like that, you may never even notice how loud everyday sounds can be. This allows your hearing to slowly (but surely) deteriorate. You barely notice the issue until you’re at the point where you frequently have trouble hearing conversations.
Your partner is becoming concerned about the health of your hearing
The people close to you will probably be worried. Your family and friends will likely be irritated when they think you’re purposely missing what they say. But that aggravation often becomes concern when they recognize that hearing loss may be the real culprit.
So, your partner might suggest you set up a hearing exam to determine if something is wrong.
It’s significant to pay attention to your partner’s concerns. Have an open discussion with them and welcome their help because they care about your well-being and aren’t just irritated with you.
Other early indications of hearing loss
If your selective hearing has become worse over time, it might be worth keeping an eye out for some of these other early signs of hearing loss. A few of those signs include:
- Speech sounds distant or muffled
- Consonants are hard to make out
- Cranking the volume up on your devices
- Hearing in crowds is difficult
- Having to ask others to speak up or slow down
You should call us for a hearing exam if you have any of these symptoms.
Wear ear protection
It’s crucial that you take steps to safeguard your ears in order to prevent hearing loss. If you can’t stay away from overly loud noise, make sure you wear hearing protection, like muffs or plugs. Hearing aids can also help you communicate effectively, which can smooth over many rough patches that your hearing loss might have caused in the first place.
In most cases throughout your life, selective hearing is going to be an artifact of a diminishing attention span. But when you (or someone around you) notices your selective hearing becoming worse, you might want to take that as an indication that it’s time to get your hearing assessed.