{"id":2878,"date":"2024-10-10T16:24:45","date_gmt":"2024-10-10T22:24:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/southvalleyent.com\/?p=2878"},"modified":"2024-10-10T16:24:47","modified_gmt":"2024-10-10T22:24:47","slug":"how-does-hearing-loss-affect-your-ability-to-distinguish-between-words","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/southvalleyent.com\/how-does-hearing-loss-affect-your-ability-to-distinguish-between-words\/","title":{"rendered":"How Does Hearing Loss Affect Your Ability To Distinguish Between Words"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Have you ever found yourself hearing someone but not understanding them? You may know that they\u2019re speaking loud enough but struggle to distinguish between the specific words they say. When this happens, words like \u201cbread\u201d and \u201cthread\u201d or \u201c15\u201dand \u201c50\u201d can get intermingled, leading to confusion and extra mental effort to understand. Let\u2019s take a look at why people with hearing loss<\/a> often struggle to distinguish between words and what you can do about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why Does Hearing Loss Affect Word Distinguishment?<\/h2>\n\n\n
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Sound frequency is measured in hertz (Hz). Though it may vary a little from person to person, the range of sound frequency humans can hear is roughly 16 to 16,000 Hz. The majority of human speech sounds fall into the 300 to 3,000 Hz range. When a patient has an inner ear hearing loss of at least 30 to 40 dB, recognizing and discriminating between speech sounds becomes difficult or impossible<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many people with hearing loss struggle to distinguish between consonants because they often fall within higher frequency ranges. This means that just as someone with high-frequency hearing loss might have trouble hearing birds chirping in Conservation Garden Park, they may also have difficulty discerning subtle differences between words like \u201ccat\u201d and \u201ccap\u201d due to the high-pitched sounds of consonants. While these minor changes may not seem like too big a deal at first, they can significantly hamper clear communication, leading to frustration and miscommunication, especially in noisier environments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Can I Do?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There are a few ways you can improve your speech discrimination, including:<\/p>\n\n\n\n