Hearing loss can feel like the end of the world, regardless of its severity. An inability to hear impacts every aspect of life and can lead to social isolation. Yet, those who invest in hearing aids and cochlear implants understand there is life after hearing loss.
Approximately 48 million Americans suffer from some degree of hearing loss, but exciting scientific developments have revealed that there is a solution. Alongside medical devices like hearing aids, auditory training is a form of brain hearing training that can improve the listening skills of those suffering from hearing loss. Let’s explore how this auditory training therapy works and how it can help.
Auditory training activities are a series of techniques that aim to improve overall speech comprehension. Focused listening activities are designed to both optimize and enhance overall speech perception. While it cannot fully restore your hearing, it can aid the brain’s cognitive processes in registering and translating sound. Even hearing aid wearers have been known to notice an improvement in their ability to hear with auditory training, including in difficult listening environments.
Since this is a relatively new field, the techniques used are constantly changing. Particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, auditory training activities for adults are available remotely and can be done from the comfort of your own home.
Hearing training has the potential to help a wide range of hearing impairment. Most of the hearing loss community is unaware that aural rehab activities even exist because it’s such a new area of research. The potential for an auditory trainer to enhance brain function is a gamechanger for those with all levels of hearing impairment.
The benefits of an auditory workout arise not from somehow restoring cells in the ear, but from the effects on the brain. While the ear is used to listen, the brain is what processes the sound into something meaningful. Let’s examine some of the benefits of auditory training:
These benefits are less about restoring your natural ability to hear and more about your brain adapting to a new reality. Even hearing aid wearers have experienced incredible changes in their ability to process the sounds heard throughout daily life.
Is an auditory trainer a cure for hearing loss? No, but it can be effective at helping to cope and thrive while facing the challenges of hearing loss.
Auditory training for the hearing impaired will benefit some more than others. Professionals recommend hearing training for people who have experienced a recent change in their degree of hearing. For example, if someone has received a hearing aid or a cochlear implant for the first time, audiologists may recommend intensive aural rehab activities to accompany the activation of these medical devices.
Another group that may benefit from regular auditory workouts is adults who have experienced sudden hearing loss. These groups often struggle to adapt, and this type of training could help them cope with the shock of sudden hearing loss.
Other groups who could benefit include:
Even though auditory training for hearing impaired adults and children is a treatment option for several groups, most people are unaware that this option exists at all. Plus, many licensed audiologists don’t move beyond the selling, fitting, and servicing of hearing aids and other medical devices. If you want to learn more about this treatment option, speak to your audiologist to see if it’s the right choice for you.
Auditory training activities for hearing impaired individuals come in many forms. More formalized treatment will involve one-to-one sessions, but the digital world allows for an auditory workout to be performed at home without the presence of a professional. This training focuses on three key areas of the human auditory system:
Despite all this, do aural rehab activities result in a better hearing experience for someone who is hearing impaired? The answer is yes, as long as the program is effective and challenging. Studies have shown that more intensive programs yield better results. In other words, longer and more frequent sessions are more likely to lead to superior long-term outcomes.
It works because memory and speech recognition are muscles. The more a person trains those aspects of the auditory system, the stronger they will become in those areas.
Selecting the right auditory training for hearing impaired people is key to gaining the right results. There are both mobile phone apps and at-home activities available. Some are aimed at children, and others are aimed at adults or seniors. If you want to improve your listening skills through an auditory trainer, here are some of the programs recommended by professionals.
Let’s concentrate on some of the dedicated listening training apps for children. These three options can all be used on mobile devices, such as the iPad and smartphones.
Auditory Workout was created for children aged 4-12 who experience problems with speech processing and comprehension. With more than 1,000 listening exercises focusing on different aspects of auditory understanding, it’s perhaps the most comprehensive app aimed at children.
Designed exclusively for the iPad, AB Listening Adventures is targeted at children aged 4-10 with various degrees of hearing loss. This app helps to guide listening development and language skills. Each of the six games revolves around a specific story and incorporates language elements like pronouns, minimal pairs, and plurals.
Another iPad exclusive, VocAB Scenes, is designed for children aged 4-10 who need to enhance their vocabulary. The app contains highly colorful scenes to maintain their engagement, such as camping, winter fun, beach scenes, and the pet store. Every scene comes with three different games to enhance their development.
Children and adults have different hearing needs. Whereas children are more focused on development, adults must focus more on strengthening the skills they already have. For this reason, EarPros recommends analyzing different apps to check which auditory skills they focus on.
Hear Coach was developed by Starkey Hearing Technologies, which also manufactures state-of-the-art hearing aids. This suite of games trains different hearing skills in challenging environments. These games are designed to be fun, engaging, and push your listening skills to the next level. If you’re experiencing difficulties trying to hear in busier environments, this is the app for you. Unfortunately, this app is currently only available for Android devices.
LACE Auditory Training offers a daily training program that takes place online. Each session lasts for 20 minutes and helps the hearing-impaired cope with communication in challenging listening environments. LACE is available for iPad, Android, and desktop/laptop computers. If you lack the time, these 20-minute auditory workouts are easy to fit into your day.
Forbrain is an auditory trainer that focuses on improving concentration, short-term memory, and attention span. Unlike other apps, this one comes with a bone-conduction headphone and a dynamic filter microphone to support speaking. To get the best results from Forbrain, it’s recommended that the app is used daily for a minimum of six weeks.
Not everyone wants to train their listening skills digitally. Several at-home activities have been proven to enhance the auditory system, such as:
Auditory training has shown tremendous results and has a huge potential for the hearing loss community. A combination of clinical and at-home sessions performed daily over long periods of time can improve listening skills, even if you already wear a hearing aid. Find out more about this type of training by speaking to a licensed audiologist in your area with the help of EarPros. Seeking out professional help early will enable you to boost your quality of life and overcome the challenges of living with a hearing impairment. To schedule your free hearing test, contact EarPros today and begin your journey to better hearing.
