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DiscussionHearing Loss: Come introduce yourself and connect with others
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Replies to "Hello - I am following this group to learn how to help my 85 year old..."
If there is a vestibular (balance) center within a reasonable distance, that would be a good place to start on both the dizziness and pain: If you're dizzy (esp. if you're older), your balance is undoubtedly impaired, which leads to horrific pain, just from the effort of staying upright. Good news is that balance exercises are hardly exercises, can often be worked into daily things you do anyway. That won't explain the hearing loss or help it, but will make a huge difference. Basically, once your inner ear isn't providing balance information, you naturally tend to use vision, which is all bad: every time you move or even move your head, your focal point changes, leading to total confusion. You need to learn to use your third balance system, proprioception, which is the info your get from your feet, ankles, knees, etc. In simple terms, if you're standing on a windy point, proprioception "tells" you which way to lean and just how much. I have Meniere's, have done vestibular exercises every stinkin' day for nearly 40 years; as a result I lead a more active life than most people my age (79). I still do fisheries data collection on a wild little river on Oregon's north coast, by myself, hiking miles upstream, crossing the river far from anyone else (no cell reception for 20 miles), and finish by crawling up above a waterfall. Nothing I do would be possible if I didn't do vestibular exercises daily.