A loss of hearing is a downer, don’t you think? But can we treat it like any other obstacle in life and stay positive, I think so. For this, it is fundamental to keep a healthy mind in a healthy body and to maintain a sense of purpose. Mindfulness and regular meditation have been very helpful to me and I will explain why. Over time I am hoping that mindfulness will develop into a way of living that brings greater focus and effectiveness as well as kindness and caring in everything I do. Hopefully after reading this page, you see it also as an excellent way to manage hearing loss.
Mindfulness
What are meditation and mindfulness – JP’s version
During the pandemic (May 2020), I decided to join an 8-week evening class arranged by the Oxford Mindfulness Foundation (OMF) using Zoom. I enjoyed it and I have kept practising on and off with them and on my own since then.
My aim in taking up mindfulness and meditation had more to do with the idea of pursuing general well-being than dealing with my loss of hearing per sé. The pandemic was raging then and we were all suffering mentally if not physically. I also suffer from regular headaches so I thought some form of relaxation should help. In fact, only practising meditation takes 10 to 20 minutes most evenings has helped me enormously to clear my mind of all the clutter of the day including the anxiety related to the pandemic.
There are several approaches to meditation, involving different techniques or methods and many of us struggle to differentiate between mindfulness and meditation. The purists will know how they differ. For my part, mindfulness is a form of general awareness and is non-judgemental in its approach. I see mindfulness as a sort of brain training to strengthen focus and awareness and meditation forms part of the core practice. I like to do it sitting quietly with the idea of clearing my mind of the continuous flow of thoughts and emotions. My wife says she does it knitting … everyone is different, I would be hopeless at knitting.
During meditation, I like to concentrate my attention on a single point of focus, preferably my breathing. Many years ago I did some Transcendental Meditation (TM) – for which I used a mantra, the utterance of the Vedic word ‘Om,’. This mantra acted as a focal point. Mindfulness is different as it pays closer attention to parts of the body for an extended period. From my experience, I have found that listening to my breathing and seeking the sensations that my body generates are powerful ways to relax.
It may sound easy and there is always the risk of falling asleep if tired – I find it quite hard to stop my mind from wandering, but I am told this is normal. We are often unaware of this inner dialogue, like the murmur of a river or stream. At any given moment, we are lost in thoughts, just like at school when the teacher tells us to pay attention.
Our mind is continuously bombarded with self-talk, ideas, images, and reminders so when we try to focus, we succeed only momentarily. With practice, we get better at it but being able to keep a clear mind is extraordinarily difficult even for experienced meditators.
My original research into meditation
I had been aware of the benefits of meditation through my reading of various books about the Dalai Lama and Buddhism. I came across TM or “Transcendental Meditation” while a student in Lille in the late 1970s. I practised it for a short while but gave up as there were always more pressing things to do in life. If you recall The Beatles travelled to India in 1968 to practice TM with a leading Yogi teacher. This turned out to be one of their most creative periods and apparently, they wrote 48 songs during that phase of their life.
From my reading, the author that inspired me the most is Matthieu Ricard, a Buddhist monk who studied cellular genetics. Matthieu lived in the Himalayas most of his life, today he lives in France and is a bestselling author. He collaborated in numerous scientific types of research on the positive effects of meditation on the brain. I would recommend his short book “The Art of Meditation”.
You can practice alone, but I would suggest starting with some guided meditation via an app or an online course. “Petit Bambou” is one of many fun and multilingual apps. Equally well-known are “Calm” and ‘Headspace” – Below you will see a link that provides you with more information on these apps.
Why meditate – how does it help if you have hearing loss?
The benefits of regular meditation or mindfulness are profound. Some schools are now adopting the idea to help teachers and young students to experience a deeper sense of calm and relaxation. When you focus on your breathing, you aren’t worried about an argument you had with your friend on the playground or a deadline at work. You become immersed “in the moment” and your nervous system can relax. This process is proven to alleviate stress and increase your alertness and responsiveness to your environment including your own body.
If you follow a guided mindfulness session, you will also learn to recognize when a physiological reaction is occurring, like your chest feeling tight when you’re anxious. It will help us to “tame our monkey mind” and bring our attention back to us and our environment. It is well known that deep breathing alleviates some physiological reactions (sweating, and increased heart rate) in difficult situations.
As we know a reduction in hearing creates communication problems that impact our ability to engage confidently with others. It is not difficult to understand that communication of poorer quality creates stress and anxiety. Being able to listen to others, to observe their facial expressions, tone of voice, and body language form a critical part of our social life.
Mindfulness and meditation help us to address these issues as it teaches us amongst other things to be kind to ourselves and to respond with compassion and empathy. As there is no finite medical solution or cure for sensory neural hearing loss (or tinnitus for that matter), I am confident that mindfulness is one of the best ways to enhance our health and well-being.
A word about tinnitus
I am fortunate not to suffer from tinnitus, but a number of my friends do, and I very much sympathise with this distressing illness. According to research up to one person in seven will experience in their life some form of tinnitus or ringing in the brain. This is the perception of sounds generated by the nervous system of the ear and brain. The cause of tinnitus is still not fully understood, but in the same manner, as deep hearing loss, it creates emotional distress and anxiety and can be very tiring.
Often the main relief for people suffering from tinnitus is to practice meditation or mindfulness and to accept the sound as it is. During the meditation sessions, I understood that the ringing in their ears subsided.
If your loss of hearing is hurting you then be kind to yourself.
We’re often harder on ourselves than we are on anyone else. Our failure to hear well generates complex feelings that can make us grumpy and unhappy. I feel that meditation has been teaching me to counter those negative voices. I really enjoy that aspect of personal development and suggest you also investigate if your loss of hearing is making you suffer.
Practising mindfulness has helped me to pay better attention to the present moment without judgment. During my short sessions, I start to focus on my breath, but then I can turn to other things. If it’s an evening session, I like to value all that I have enjoyed during the day and if it’s in the morning what I plan for the day ahead. It’s the process of bringing all of those senses to our attention by engaging our mind on, it in a positive way, that is helpful. That includes a desire to alleviate suffering i.e., compassion for others. In this, I think of friends or family members who have a much more difficult time because of illness or hardship. This slow process of understanding the nature of our daily experience adds to each of our personal wisdom. One of the key revelations of mindfulness for me was that our thoughts do come and go and knowing that certain experiences will pass, we are not alone. This, in itself, is wonderful therapy.
“Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them, humanity cannot survive.
— Dalai Lama
Useful links for more information:
For comprehensive information on meditation try the first link and for a choice of the best app the second.
https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/meditation/in-depth/meditation/art-20045858
https://www.healthline.com/health/mental-health/top-meditation-iphone-android-apps#comparison
