It’s important for all of us to get an adequate amount of sleep each night to renew our bodies and give our minds a rest. Though people need less and less sleep as they age, sleep is still vital, even for functions that seem to require no effort. For example, research has shown that when people are sleep-deprived or go long periods without adequate sleep, the abilities of hearing and interpreting sounds are negatively impacted, even in people with excellent hearing. The research reveals that during verbal learning, well-rested people have activated temporal lobes – the area of the brain that receives and processes sounds and then interprets them as language. But people who were sleep-deprived did not show activity in their temporal lobe during verbal learning, likely because the brain was trying to conserve resources.
This means that for people living with hearing loss, lack of sleep can impact their safety and social lives. For example, many people with hearing loss have become adept speechreaders, but it requires much energy and concentration, and being tired can make speechreading even more challenging.
Getting adequate sleep
If you have difficulty falling asleep and staying asleep, you might want to see a sleep specialist. But here are some tips from the Mayo Clinic and the National Sleep Foundation that might help you fall asleep more easily – and stay asleep – each night:
- Develop a nighttime routine. Consistency helps your body’s sleep-wake cycle stay on track.
- Avoid caffeine and alcohol eight hours before bed time. Both can interrupt sleep.
- Get daily exercise, but not right before bed.
- Give yourself time to wind down. Read a book or find another activity that relaxes you, though it’s best to avoid the blue light given off by a TV, laptop or smartphone screen.
Sleep and hearing aids
If you wear hearing aids, most people know that hearing aid manufacturers advise people to remove their hearing aids at night. But as blogger Gael Hannan – who details her life with hearing loss – points out, they don’t say why you should take out your hearing aids at night. She offers these reasons:
- You need a break from your hearing aids, and they’re uncomfortable to wear while sleeping, especially if you wear behind-the-ear aids.
- Your ear canal needs rest and to air out. Also, as we age, our skin gets thinner, even in the ears, which can lead to discomfort or even dry and flaky skin inside the ear canal.
- The hearing aids need rest, too. If you wore them 24/7, there would not be ample time for them to dry out. Most experts recommend cleaning your hearing aids at night and letting them dry with the batteries out over night to remove moisture.
For those afraid of missing their alarm clock or other important sounds, Hannan recommends using a vibrating cell phone alarm or purchasing a bed-shaking alarm clock. You can also install bed-shaking and flashing fire alarms so you feel safe at night even without your hearing aids in.
