Exploring the Connection: Key Questions Answered About Introversion and Hearing Loss
Welcome to 4 Questions & 4 Insights #7, where we explore four questions about hearing loss, introversion, and everyday communication.
1 Why Do Introverts Feel Drained by Too Much Talking or Social Interaction?
2 Does Hearing Loss Make People Avoid Conversations or Social Settings?
3 How Do Introverts Prepare for and Navigate Social Conversations?
4 How Do People With Hearing Loss Handle Conversations in Noisy Environments?
1 Why Do Introverts Feel Drained by Too Much Talking or Social Interaction?
13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate, broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
Matthew 7:13-14 NIV
It made me think of how different introverts and extroverts are wired. Imagine extroverts have wide doors and introverts have narrow doors (the various senses).
Now imagine this. During an event, sensory stimuli like light, touch, and noise easily enter through the wide doors of extroverts. However, for introverts, those stimuli create a bottleneck at the narrow door. Introverts have to sort through these stimuli:
- What is most important?
- In which order must I process this?
All to ensure it enters orderly and heads to the right neural pathways.
Consider this being repeated over a few hours, and that is only controlling what enters through the senses, not even the actual processing of this input.
And these are just stimuli from the environment. Add conversation into the mix, and it gets worse.
Everything is fighting for your attention until it feels as if you are swept up in a tsunami.
Suppose speech wins the battle over these stimuli. In that case, you need to reach into your long-term memory for information to formulate a response while worrying if you look foolish for taking so long to reply.
Their sensitivity to sensory input and the mental energy to process information before formulating responses are why introverts tire quickly in social situations and from too much talking.
PS! I am using the broad and narrow gates as a metaphor. I am not saying extroverts are on the wide road to destruction and introverts on the narrow road to life.
2 Does Hearing Loss Make People Avoid Conversations or Social Settings?
I’ve been wearing hearing aids for more than 45 years. I am not one to shy away from communication challenges with hearing loss, but I am selective about what I say yes to.
Headache. Tension. Ringing ears. Some events are not worth it!
Very loud environments! To avoid noise fatigue and damage to residual hearing. Loud noise can be uncomfortable and painful. Following conversations is challenging and mostly unsuccessful, leaving you feeling left out, and you don’t enjoy the experience anyway.
Phone conversations remove the visual cues we rely on. Relying only on our hearing is stressful, and using the speakerphone makes no difference if people don’t speak clearly.
Video calls can be helpful, but bad lighting and shadows can still make reading visual cues challenging.
Low-quality speakers on low-budget phones add another barrier, since not everyone can afford the latest and greatest. To avoid frustration and listening fatigue, I don’t take calls from unknown callers and speak to friends and family through video calls.
You can’t avoid some situations, but I try to limit them or take someone with me as a hearing buddy.
Running errands is exhausting since I am confronted with many challenges, like trying to hear the cashiers in noisy shops, or missing the announcement for the next till when standing in a queue.
Events can leave you feeling lost and frustrated if they have inadequate sound systems and no assistive technology like hearing loops or captions.
Seating at large tables for lunch creates distance, dampens sound and makes it difficult to follow visual cues. The hum of conversation in the background further drowns out speech.
Hearing loss shouldn’t keep you from living an optimal life, but knowing your limitations is crucial. Sometimes, the energy cost or possible damage to your residual hearing is not worth it.
As the old adage goes: “Knowledge is power.”
Knowing what challenges you face as an introvert or a person with hearing loss in social settings helps you make an informed decision about attending and prepare for them.
3 How Do Introverts Prepare for and Navigate Social Conversations?
I don’t. Not in the traditional sense.
As long as I know about an event beforehand, I subconsciously adjust to the idea. But if you spring it on me at the last minute, I’ll go into a flat spin. I feel like I’ve been caught in a whirlwind without control. I don’t know where to start or what to do. Needless to say, I won’t be going to the event calmly, making interaction more difficult.
With an introvert’s vast knowledge, they don’t lack topics to talk about. But first, they need to get the conversation started. We all know those moments when you are first introduced to someone. What do you do after the initial nice to meet you? The silence stretched like a rubber band nearing its breaking point. You feel flushed, your palms sweat, and your thoughts jumble.
It is why memorising a few conversation starters and topics is a lifesaver!
4 How Do People With Hearing Loss Handle Conversations in Noisy Environments?
My husband and I planned to eat out for my birthday. But on the day we decided to cancel because he developed a migraine. Just as well, because I learned the place we had in mind is a sports bar. And on top of it, a big rugby game took place, and the bar would have been packed with supporters.
It means the biggest enemy to conversation. Noise!
Sometimes, conversation in noise is inevitable. So this begs the question: “How do people with hearing loss handle conversations in noisy environments?”
Some techniques help, but none of them are perfect. Conversations in noisy areas are hit and miss.
a) Hearing aid profiles and settings
Hearing aids don’t amplify selectively, they amplify speech and noise. What is crucial is where the microphones in the hearing aid are focusing?
This is why different profiles and settings are crucial. A restaurant setting will turn off microphones focusing on the back, and let you focus on the person in front of you.
Reducing volume doesn’t help because it will minimise speech and noise.
The voice clarity function helps only a little because of weak speech input in noise.
The noise filter helps dampen background noise, but also dampens speech.
b) Visual cues
Visual cues are crucial in noisy environments. Lipreading can help to catch missing words, but according to lipreading instructor Helen Barrow, even skilled lipreaders only catch every third or fourth word. So, you may still be left with gaps. I first saw this explanation on LinkedIn, but could not find it again.
Another caveat is familiarity. Lipreading is not instant with strangers; you need to know their mouth shapes and way of speaking. This only happens after a few conversations.
Proper lighting is also vital to clearly see speakers’ faces.
Gestures and microexpressions only help with nuance and emotions, not content.
c) Technology
A portable microphone can stream speech directly into your wireless-capable hearing aids. But it is only an option in a small group. Its effectiveness depends on how well it picks up speech in noise, and if speakers remember to pass on the mic to the next speaker.
Transcription apps vary in quality but will likely struggle in noisy environments. Bad input invariably leads to bad output.
Although is bypasses your hearing aids microphone to eleminate background noise, hearing loops streaming to a telecoil is not an option during conversations. It is useful in a structured environment where input from one person is sent via the loop directly to a person’s hearing aids. They are suited for use at venues, churches, auditoriums, or conference halls.
d) Hearing buddy
Following conversations in noise is challenging without a support system. A hearing buddy can help fill you in on what you’ve missed. It can be someone you know who accompanies you. Or someone you ask at the event.
Considering the noise, they must communicate with you in writing since whispering in your ear is challenging under ideal circumstances. So either type on their phones for you to read, or use a good ol’ pen and paper (if there is sufficient light).
Although there are aids and techniques for conversing in noise, they all have limitations, and you can’t always communicate effectively. It requires intense focus and is exhausting. And the noise is overwhelming for sensitive ears. So, when people with hearing loss excuse themselves to take a break in a quiet corner, show them kindness and compassion.
But please, don’t join them unless you will be silent with them…
I have talked about various ways to help you get the best from your social encounters in this article. From a list of topics, using hearing aid profiles and settings, focusing on visual cues, and using technology, these strategies will allow you to enjoy conversations more and attend events more often.
Stay tuned for more insights!
This article is part of an ongoing series exploring key questions about introversion and hearing loss. In the next post, I’ll answer the following questions:
- What Strategies Can Introverts Use to Communicate More Effectively in Social Situations?
- What Are the Best Techniques for Communicating With Someone With Hearing Loss?
- How Does Constant Overstimulation Affect Introverts Emotionally?
- How Does Hearing Loss Impact a Person’s Emotional Well-Being in Conversations?
Please be on the lookout for the next post in the series (every third week of the month), where I’ll answer another set of questions.
Curious about the rest of the series?
You can explore all the articles in 4 Questions & 4 Insights: Navigating Life as an Introvert with Hearing Loss
Quiet Words that Linger.
If you’d like more reflections like this, you’re warmly invited to subscribe—or drop a comment to share your thoughts. You can also browse the Silent Courage store for stories and tools created with care.
Leave a Reply