SPONSORED CONTENT:

With the frequent usage of masks in public spaces, the owner of Foothills Hearing Centre says some communication may be missed by those experiencing hearing loss.

"A lot of communication is through facial cues," says clinic owner Katie Sherwood. "Now we can't tell if someone's smiling, grinning at us, or you know you can't tell what they're saying. So a lot of people with hearing loss are losing a lot of cues now, so they're relying more on their auditory senses."

"The other big thing is, people losing their hearing aids with their masks on," explains Sherwood. "They pop their mask off and out goes their hearing aids as well, so I've been recommending people use those ear-savers so they don't actually have the mask on their ears. It's pretty scary, they're not a cheap thing to lose, so you want to protect your investment."

Sherwood says Foothills Hearing Centre was open throughout the pandemic for emergency appointments only, but now that they're fully open, they're using personal protective equipment.

"We did do some doctor referrals," confirms Sherwood."But now we've been fully open again. Obviously we've got some more PPE stuff in between us, but it's pretty back to normal."

Foothills Hearing Centre has been around since 1986, and Sherwood herself has owned the clinic for fourteen months.

She says hearing aids have come a long way since the 80's.

"Originally when hearing aids first came out, the hearing aids were adjusted with screws," says Sherwood. "Now hearing aids are 100% digital. I can fine-tune anything. I can fine-tune wind noise, a certain frequency… now our hearing aids all come with tinnitus therapy. So if anyone ever needs some help with that ringing, we can turn that on."

Sherwood says to look for small cues, to know if it’s time to get your hearing tested.

"It's small cues, even if you notice that you're turning the TV up a little bit every day, or you're turning up the screen on your computer to talk a little bit every day -- those are really good cues that you're starting to say, 'Oh, maybe I do need to get my hearing tested.' And you know, it's a half-hour appointment -- nothing painful, it's quick in and out, and it's always good to have the information and be educated with what you're dealing with."

Sherwood stresses there shouldn't be any stigma associated with hearing loss.

"The stigma behind hearing aids -- it's silly,” says Sherwood. “We have all sorts of different lifestyles that come into our clinic. We have some people that just want to watch TV, pick up the phone, that's about it. Then we have CEO's of big companies that are at big round tables with 20 or 30 people, trying to listen to everybody across the whole room. And then farmers that have a lot of equipment noise -- anybody and everybody. Once people come in and realize how easy it is, or how quick, or how technically advanced they are… people most times say ‘why didn't I do this earlier?’”

Sherwood says it’s the accumulated damage after years of bad habits that can impact hearing loss for many people.

"Generally you've got to be in that noise exposure for several hours a day, every day, for probably five, six years,” says Sherwood. “So if somebody is listening to their headphones constantly, too loud, it definitely can add to some hearing loss."

Foothills Hearing Centre provides an advanced method of finding out what kind of hearing aid is best for each individual's lifestyle.

"I'm one of the only certified people in southern Alberta to do what's called a Lifestyle Tracker," says Sherwood. "We fit you with trackers, they're just like normal hearing aids, and you go out and wear them for about a week, and it logs your different environment's background noise. You come back a week later and we make an educated assumption on what type of hearing aid you should be wearing. The extra week of effort gets you the proper hearing aid the next five years."

Sherwood says people lose the ability to hear high frequencies first, and this may go unnoticed.

“Usually people come in when it starts to affect speech," says Sherwood. "But the rustling of the leaves, the birds chirping, all those soft sounds slowly go away that you might not notice. It’s quite astounding when they say ‘this is the first time I ever heard birds in about twenty years and I didn't realize I couldn't hear the birds!’ or ‘I could hear the bumble bees buzzing while I was gardening’...”

Sometimes loved ones have a difficult time admitting they have a hearing issue, but Sherwood has some questions you can ask your loved one.

“Do you want to miss your grandchild’s first words?” she asks. “Do you want to miss them asking have important questions for grandma and grandpa? It’s what’s important in life, and do you really want to miss it? It’s a big compromise to lose one of your main senses. When people come in and say ‘I can hear my grandkids - I can hear what they're saying’ - that’s the most rewarding part.”

To book your appointment with Foothills Hearing Centre, call 403-652-7718 or visit https://foothillshearing.ca/