You asked for help with one simple task: take out the trash. But, regrettably, it never got done. “I Didn’t hear you”, they say. Funny how that works, how your partner failed to hear the one thing you requested from them. The colloquial term for this is “selective hearing,” and it’s often a sign of failing communication.
We have the tendency to view selective hearing as a negative, kind of like it’s a character flaw. It’s as if you’re accusing someone of purposely not listening. But selective hearing might actually be related to untreated hearing loss rather than a short attention span.
Selective hearing – what is it?
You’ve most likely had at least one or more scenarios in your life where someone has accused you of not listening, even if no one specifically used the term “selective hearing”. Selective hearing occurs when you can clearly hear information that’s helpful to you but conveniently miss the bit that’s negative. You hear the part about cooking a delicious meal but miss the part about cleaning up the dishes. That kind of thing.
As a behavior, selective hearing is very common. But this behavior is more prevalent in men than women, according to some research.
How people are socialized does provide some context and it may be tempting to make some assumptions from this. But hearing health is probably another major factor. Let’s say your “selective hearing” starts to become more prominent or more common. That could actually be an early indication of hearing loss.
Communication can be impacted by hearing loss
Communication will certainly be more difficult with undiagnosed hearing loss. You’re likely not surprised by that.
But here’s the thing: oftentimes, communication issues are an indication of hearing loss.
Symptoms can be really hard to detect when hearing loss is in the early phases. Your tv may get a little louder. When go out to your local haunt, you have a hard time hearing conversations. You probably just assume it’s because of the loud music. But besides situations like that, you may never even observe how loud daily sounds can be. Your hearing can slowly diminish because of this. Up to the time you’re having difficulty following along with daily conversations, you almost don’t notice.
Your hearing health is worrying your partner
You will notice some of the people in your life are beginning to worry. Yes, selective hearing is a rather common aggravation (even more aggravating when you already feel as if no one listens to you). But as it turns out more and more often, irritation may turn to worry.
And your partner may want you to find out what’s going on by having you schedule a hearing test.
Your partner’s worry is significant and it’s important for you to recognize that. Have an open conversation and consider that they have a caring attitude and not just aggravation.
Other early indications of hearing loss
If your selective hearing is getting worse over time, it might be worth keeping an eye out for some of these other early signs of hearing loss. Here are some of those signs:
- Difficulty hearing in crowds
- Having a tough time distinguishing consonants
- People sound far-away or muted when they talk
- Having to ask people to speak up or slow down
- Turning up the volume on your mobile phone, television, or radio
You should contact us for a hearing test if you have any of these symptoms.
Always protect your hearing
Safeguarding your hearing is so crucial to preventing hearing loss. Limit your exposure to loud settings (or at least use earmuffs or earplugs when you must be around noise). Hearing aids can also help you have more effective communication, which can smooth over many rough patches that your hearing loss may have caused in the first place.
A diminishing attention span will be to blame for most selective hearing incidents in your life. But when you (or somebody around you) notices your selective hearing getting worse, you may want to take that as an indication that it’s time to get your hearing assessed.