Often, we all may have difficulties hearing speech in quiet as well as in noisy environments. Chatting with a patient today, he shared how he has problem hearing his wife while also trying to focus on the tv. He felt that he tries to keep the tv volume lower and then the “normal” is, as he put it, is that he is focusing on what he wants to hear namely his wife if she talks to him.
This is the case for many of us, what are we “tuned into? He said that, when he was in college either he had to listen to the professor or write notes,…he couldn’t do both at the same time. Now as a retired man, he needs to focus on what is necessary and often thinking outside of this, to hear his wife, as this is equally or more important. I appreciated him bringing up this perspective as it can be so true with many of us at times.
How people enunciate or project their voice, the level of background noise, people facing away, can affect how we hear. How we listen can be entirely different as this patient mentioned with the tv, his wife, and his old college days…..
What we are tuned into is such a huge part of what we hear and how we hear. It is amazing how much our attention plays a role in how we perceive and understand sound!
Yes, being “tuned-in” has many meanings. Thank you for sharing as well about how our attention affects our sound interpretation.
YES, I am just like this! I have a really hard time with doing to many things at one time. I can be easily overwhelmed when I have to many tasks to focus on. I love this patients memory of his college days. I can really relate with this patient even though I do not have hearing loss! Also, Kelly’s point about our attention playing a major roll in how we perceive and understand sound is also something I can relate to. I can hear what’s going on but I do not always listen because of all the things that are fighting for my attention. This may be my favorite blog to date! Thank you for sharing.
Jen,
Thank you for commenting in such detail! Awwww….so glad that you liked this blog!
They call it “selective hearing” but most of the time it’s our brain’s “decision” on what comes in and what gets “ignored”. As a mom of young kids it’s so interesting to me, when I’m talking with another adult and my child is saying my name repeatedly, it’s like I don’t even hear them at all!! But in the same situation I’m having a conversation and one of them cries from another room my attention is averted immediately.
Amy, brain’s decision. Nicely said!