It may be your tradition to start the year with a list of resolutions or goals. I am a goal setter. I, personally, set three goals at the start of a new year. A goal, by definition, is something that you are trying to do or achieve. And I choose three goals (no more, no less) because I feel three goals are quite attainable, and more likely to be achieved, then ten or fifteen goals or resolutions. I also try to set realistic goals because at the end of the year who really wants to feel like they didn’t accomplish any of their goals. So, for example, last year one of my goals was to send at least a birthday card to all my family members, and if I was really good, to close friends. This may seem trivial to some, but there are 28 people in my immediate family, so it was a big accomplishment at the end of the year for me to say I sent my parents, my siblings, their spouses, and all my nieces and nephews birthday cards. I think because it was a realistic goal, I also accomplished sending birthday cards to other relatives, my husband’s family, and many close friends. I would say that at least one of my three goals was accomplished in 2013, and that feels good! And because of the drive to accomplish this goal, it now has become habit, which is even better.
Have you made your goals or resolutions for 2014? Setting a goal to make 2014 a year for healthy hearing is a very realistic and achievable goal. But maybe you are not sure what that means to you.
1. Perhaps you have never had your hearing tested, or it has been awhile. You are feeling you are not hearing as well as you used to, or family and friends are telling you your hearing is not the same. By getting a comprehensive hearing exam, you will learn
- If you have a hearing loss
- If you do have a hearing loss, you will learn how it is affecting your daily listening environments
- If you have a hearing loss, appropriate recommendations can be made
- If you have not had a hearing exam in awhile, a current exam will allow you to see if your hearing loss has changed or if it is stable. If change has occurred, appropriate programing changes to your hearing aids can be made
2. You wear hearing aids but don’t feel like you are hearing as well as you would like. Many times a good, thorough cleaning of the hearing aids as well as checking and removing any wax build-up in your ears can make a significant difference in your hearing. It is important to maintain appropriately functioning hearing aids in order to hear your best, and by scheduling a clean and check visit, you are well on your way to hearing your best!
3. Hearing aid technology is always advancing, and it may be time to update your current hearing aids. A hearing aid appointment allows you to discuss current hearing aid technology and whether or not you are a candidate for an upgrade.
Do any of the above situations apply to you? If so, working on hearing your best and towards healthy hearing may be a very realistic and attainable goal for you to set in 2014. Write it down, make it official – on a post- it, in your journal – somewhere you will see it often to keep you motivated towards accomplishing that goal. And at the end of 2014 you will feel so great knowing you are hearing your best and that you have achieved one of your goals.