--- title: "Hearing Loss | Sutter Health" description: "My husband has been complaining that I'm not hearing everything he says. If I had hearing loss, wouldn't I certainly know it?" url: "/ask-an-expert/answers/hearing-loss-1051061258" --- 1. Home / 2. Hearing Loss # Hearing Loss * * * Medically reviewed by - Wendy Schreuder, M.S. ## Question My husband has been complaining that I'm not hearing everything he says. If I had hearing loss, wouldn't I certainly know it? ## Answer Hearing can decrease gradually over many years, and many people do not realize it until someone else points it out. Spouses, family members and close friends usually notice the changes first. I have had patients tell me they are hearing fine even though they struggle to hear conversation in restaurants or don't hear the birds outside. “I'm fine as long as only one person talks at a time”, “I hear my husband talking, but he seems to mumble more now”, “I can't understand why I hear the furnace going but not voices on the television”. These are all very common statements. Many times these statements indicate some degree of hearing loss. But because these changes have occurred gradually, the person has adapted to hearing less and less. I often say that if we could turn back the clock to a time when someone was hearing normally and then give them their hearing loss all at one time, they would be surprised to see how much they are missing. If there is any question about your hearing, a hearing evaluation is an easy way to determine what you are missing. Hearing loss does not always mean needing hearing aids. Hearing loss can be caused by many factors including wax in the ears, problems in the transmission of the sound to the hearing nerve, and in many cases learning some communication strategies to assist you in certain situations. This information is usually discussed during your hearing evaluation. ## Explore related topics Ear, nose and throatEarsHearing Loss ## Related questions View all questions - Health Q&A ### Are Two Hearing Aids Needed? I have two hearing aids, but find that sometimes when I use both, the sound is too intense, so I remove one. Are two hearing aids really necessary? - Health Q&A ### Diabetes and Hearing Loss I have diabetes and I read recently that people with this disease have a higher risk of hearing problems. Why would this be, and is there anything I can do to prevent it? - Health Q&A ### Hearing Loss Research Is there any research being done to help treat and prevent hearing loss? So many older people I know seem to be dealing with it. - Health Q&A ### Hearing Loss and NSAID Use I take ibuprofen daily for back problems, but I read recently that sometimes it can cause hearing loss. Is this true, and how much would you need to take to cause this to happen? - Health Q&A ### Heart Disease and Hearing Loss Connection? I recently read that hearing loss is more common in people with heart disease or those who've had a heart attack. Why would this be? View all questions ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"MedicalOrganization","name":"Sutter Health","@id":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/#medicalorganization","url":"https://www.sutterhealth.org","logo":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/static/images/sutter-health-logo.svg","address":{"@type":"PostalAddress","streetAddress":"2200 River Plaza Drive","addressLocality":"Sacramento","addressRegion":"CA","postalCode":"95833","addressCountry":"US"},"areaServed":{"@type":"AdministrativeArea","name":"California"},"sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/SutterHealth","https://www.instagram.com/sutterhealth/","https://x.com/SutterHealth","https://www.youtube.com/sutterhealth","https://www.linkedin.com/company/sutter-health","https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sutter_Health"]} ``` ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/ask-an-expert/answers/hearing-loss-1051061258#breadcrumblist","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Hearing Loss"}]} ``` ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"MedicalWebPage","@id":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/ask-an-expert/answers/hearing-loss-1051061258#medicalwebpage","url":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/ask-an-expert/answers/hearing-loss-1051061258","name":"Hearing Loss","description":"Hearing can decrease gradually over many years, and many people do not realize it until someone else points it out.","inLanguage":"en-US","medicalAudience":{"@type":"MedicalAudience","audienceType":"Patient"},"isPartOf":{"@id":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/ask-an-expert/answers"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/ask-an-expert/answers/hearing-loss-1051061258#breadcrumblist"},"mainEntity":{"@type":"Question","@id":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/ask-an-expert/answers/hearing-loss-1051061258#question","name":"Hearing Loss","text":"My husband has been complaining that I'm not hearing everything he says. If I had hearing loss, wouldn't I certainly know it?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","@id":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/ask-an-expert/answers/hearing-loss-1051061258#answer","text":"Hearing can decrease gradually over many years, and many people do not realize it until someone else points it out. Spouses, family members and close friends usually notice the changes first. I have had patients tell me they are hearing fine even though they struggle to hear conversation in restaurants or don't hear the birds outside. “I'm fine as long as only one person talks at a time”, “I hear my husband talking, but he seems to mumble more now”, “I can't understand why I hear the furnace going but not voices on the television”. These are all very common statements. Many times these statements indicate some degree of hearing loss. But because these changes have occurred gradually, the person has adapted to hearing less and less. I often say that if we could turn back the clock to a time when someone was hearing normally and then give them their hearing loss all at one time, they would be surprised to see how much they are missing. If there is any question about your hearing, a hearing evaluation is an easy way to determine what you are missing. Hearing loss does not always mean needing hearing aids. Hearing loss can be caused by many factors including wax in the ears, problems in the transmission of the sound to the hearing nerve, and in many cases learning some communication strategies to assist you in certain situations. 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