Everyone experiences feeling dizzy or losing their balance at some time or another. Luckily, most of us only feel it occasionally, for example when standing up too quickly. However, sometimes balance issues can become a regular problem.

 

Hearing and balance

Hearing and balance are closely linked. It’s common for people with hearing loss to suffer with a balance problem. In fact, as many as 30% of people suffering with hearing loss may also have balance issues. However, hearing loss doesn’t always cause problems with balance. It depends on the type of hearing loss someone has. You can also have balance problems without hearing loss. Something simple like poor blood circulation, an infection, or trauma can be enough to send your balance out of whack.

 

How does balance work?

Your inner ear, eyes, and musculoskeletal system all have to work together, so you can stand, walk and sit up straight without losing your balance or feeling dizzy. If something goes wrong with one of these three things, you can experience a problem with your balance.

 

How your inner ear keeps you balanced

Deep inside your inner ear there are two small balance organs: the saccule, and the utricle. These contain tiny gravity-sensitive crystals that move around, brushing against little hairs on the walls of the saccule and utricle. It’s these hairs being brushed that sends movement signals to your brain. Trauma or sudden movements can dislodge the crystals making you feel dizzy or nauseous. The official name for this condition is Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV). Luckily, special exercises can get the crystals back in the right place.

 

Ear infections and balance

Inner ear infections caused by viruses or bacterial infections can make parts of your inner ear inflamed, affecting your hearing and balance. So long as you get the problem diagnosed and treated quickly, most inner ear infections won’t cause long-term damage.

 

Hearing aids and balance

As we rely on our ears for balance, using a hearing aid to help improve your hearing can also improve balance, if the issue is linked to hearing loss.

 

Getting back on your feet again

If you often find yourself feeling dizzy, whether you have hearing loss or not, our friendly staff at Physicians Hearing Care can help you to get back to normal again. Getting your ears checked can be the first step towards a happier and more balanced you.

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Sarah Post, Au.D., CCC-A

As a child of deaf adults (CODA) in the Knoxville Deaf Community, she understands the struggles like no other. This sparked her passion for audiology as a career and led her to pursue a bachelor’s degree in audiology from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. After completing her degree, she continued her education at Auburn University, where she completed her doctorate of audiology (Au.D.) before returning to Knoxville to serve the local community. As a clinical audiologist at Physicians Hearing Care, Sarah provides comprehensive diagnostic services to assess patients’ hearing needs. Often requiring the assistance of amplification devices, Sarah helps patients select and tailor instruments to their specific hearing loss and needs that can improve their quality of life. With each patient, she listens and discusses their needs to develop a plan to improve their communication and quality of life. So far, there have been many life-changing moments during her time at PHC. Most of all, Sarah loves working with people to form a partnership to understand their needs, build trust, and craft customized plans to improve their hearing health.