How To Make the Most of Dating With Hearing Loss

Dating always has the potential to be a little nerve-wracking! If you have hearing loss, you may be worried about how it might impact your dating life or how to talk about it with any new potential partners.

Let’s go over a few ways to make the most of dating when you have hearing loss.

Prioritize Your Hearing Health

Hearing loss is a very common condition. The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders states that “one in eight people in the United States aged 12 years or older has hearing loss in both ears.” The good news is that it’s also a very treatable one.

If you’ve noticed changes in your hearing, make it a priority to schedule an appointment for a hearing test. After getting your results, your audiologist can work with you to find the right pair of hearing aids that will make communication with others easier, making dates and other social events much less stressful.

Pick Quiet Date Spots

Even with hearing aids, a crowded bar or live music event may not be the best place for a date if you have hearing loss. Instead, opt for a quiet stroll or lunch at a mellow Naples café like Kunjani Craft Coffee & Gallery. Remember that it’s not just volume that is important, but lighting as well. Pick well-lit environments so that you can better see your date’s face when they are talking.

Talk About Effective Communication Strategies

Though you might feel a bit hesitant talking about your hearing loss, it will make it easier for both you and your date if you take some time to discuss it. This affords you the opportunity to talk about effective communication strategies, like making sure they are facing you during conversation and not covering their mouths. It also helps to eliminate any frustration or hurt feelings that might come from them assuming that you weren’t listening to what they were saying instead of just not hearing it.

Utilize Helpful Hearing Technology

Many hearing aids can utilize technology like Bluetooth® or telecoil to help you to stream sound directly into your hearing aids if you’re out watching a movie or sporting event. If you stay in and watch something at home, you can use Bluetooth as well as closed captioning to make sure you don’t miss anything that’s said and can instead relax and enjoy the show with your date.

For more information or to schedule an appointment with one of our hearing experts, contact Center For Hearing today.

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The Future of Hearing Devices: Deep Neural Networks & Artificial Intelligence

February 14, 2025

Hearing technology has come a long way over the years; however, one aspect of hearing loss that many hearing aids have difficulty addressing is trouble understanding speech in noise. Fortunately, some of today’s state-of-the-art devices can solve this problem utilizing deep neural networks (DNN) and artificial intelligence (AI). Sensorineural hearing loss causes difficulty understanding speech in background noise. This type of hearing loss is caused by damage to the hair cells of the inner ear that convert soundwaves into electrical energy, which are then interpreted by the brain. This causes the quality and quantity of the signal sent from the ears to the brain to diminish over time, resulting in the brain expending more energy and effort to make sense of it. DNNs may help improve the transmission of the neural code, making hearing easier on the brain. [1] It’s important to know what DNNs are to understand how they can help. DNNs are a subset of AI. They rapidly analyze large data sets so that they can teach hearing aids and other technological devices how to respond to data like a human would, all while verifying accuracy and making corrections. DNNs are beneficial in hearing technology because they can help with speech enhancement. DNNs can be applied as “time-frequency masks,” meaning select sounds—like speech—are allowed while other sounds are suppressed. DNNs can also identify and separate multiple voices, selecting a primary voice to emphasize and secondary voices to suppress. This feature can help hearing device wearers in a variety of settings. For example, at a restaurant or party, the hearing device can emphasize a conversation partner, allow other nearby voices at a reduced volume and suppress background noises such as dishes clinking. Schedule an appointment to talk to Center for Hearing about our vast state-of-the-art hearing solutions today— (239) 434-0086. [1] Published by Douglas L. Beck. (2021, January 15). Deep neural networks in hearing devices. Retrieved April 2, 2021 from https://www.hearingreview.com/hearing-products/hearing-aids/deep-neural-networks

Startup Aims to Develop the First Gene Therapy for Hearing Loss

February 14, 2025

A Boston biotech startup is attempting to develop the first gene therapy treatment for hearing loss. If successful, it promises to offer new hope to the estimated 300,000 Americans who suffer from gene-based hearing loss—a number that includes more than 4,000 newborns. The timing may not be ideal, but biotech companies have been largely immune from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and ensuing recession. Developing new drugs takes years, so these companies are better able to weather storms. And the efforts of biotechnology companies that are focusing on tools to prevent and treat potentially fatal health threats has resulted in soaring stock values for many of these companies, even in the face of the current crisis. Akouos, the Boston startup, was founded in 2016. Its goal is to develop the first gene therapy to treat hearing loss and is targeting a specific form of deafness that results from mutations in a single gene. They are experimenting with adeno-associated viruses, using them as vectors to deliver DNA that encodes a functioning gene in certain target cells. Around 7,000 people are afflicted with this type of genetic hearing loss. Adeno-associated viruses are considered viable candidates because they don’t usually cause disease and can be customized to treat a variety of genetic conditions. The company has partnered with two influential organizations: Massachusetts Eye and Ear and Lonza, a Swiss manufacturing company that holds contracts with various pharmaceutical makers. Manny Simons, Akouos’ co-founder and chief executive, holds a degree in neuroscience from Harvard College, a Ph.D. in biomedical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and an MBA from Harvard Business School. His desire to help those with hearing loss stems from his passion for playing the piano. “It’s easy to take hearing for granted,” said in a Boston Globe interview. “Maybe because music has been important to me, it’s something that I take a little less for granted.” [1] [1] Saltzman, J. (2020, June 22). Akouos, a startup developing a gene therapy for hearing loss, raises IPO value to $125 million - The Boston Globe. Retrieved June 30, 2020, from https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/06/22/business/ipo-upped-akouos-boston-startup-working-gene-therapy-hearing-loss/