Athletes might be physically fit and active most days. However, many of them can experience hearing loss.
If that sounds like you, then you’ll love this post. It explores how you can adapt to becoming hard of hearing as an athlete, even if you’re in the peak of your career.
Here’s our hearing tips for athletes:
Know Your Rights
The first step is to do your research and know your rights. Just because you have hearing loss, it doesn’t mean that you are any less eligible to take part in competitions.
Usually, there will be a local sporting body you can use that deals with athletes like you who have a disability. All you need to do is contact them and get them to send you a pack, telling you your rights and responsibilities, and how to navigate what can sometimes be a challenging situation.
Build Mental Resilience
The next step is to build mental resilience. Living with hearing loss can be a setback for some people, but also an opportunity for others.
For example, a lot of athletes focus on visualization to help them deal with problems like frustration and feeling annoyed with how life has turned out. Also, look for ways to process auditory cues more efficiently.
You can also try things like connecting with support groups or mentors, like other athletes with the same issues. These people who have already been through the same problems as you know what it’s like and what you need to do to get through them. Often, they can hear your story personally and show you a path forward that you can use to get to where you want to go in your sport.
Use Assistive Sports Gear
You might also want to try using assistive sports gear in some settings. Wearing helmets or headbacks in football can be a great way to hold hearing aids in place and prevent them from getting damaged.
Another approach is to simply wear in-ear devices. These slot into the ear canal and allow you to avoid any external components that might become damaged during contact sport or intense exertion. Ultimately, it is up to you what you choose and how you make it work for you.
Train In Quieter Settings
Another way to deal with hearing loss as an athlete is to simply train in quieter settings. Most hearing loss is caused by exposure to loud noises, especially among younger people, so if you can block out sounds, that’s ideal.
The best way to do this is by removing yourself from noisy training environments. Excessive exposure to loud music on headphones can put you at a distinct disadvantage.
You also want to avoid gyms that focus on playing loud music. While these make you feel pumped up, they can also cause long-term damage to your ears.
In some cases, you may also want to wear hearing protection. Earbuds and muffs can be a great way to cancel out the sound and prevent hearing loss from worsening.
