Everybody jokes that kids have selective hearing – they only hear what they want to hear.
Ask them to clean up their room while you’re watching TV with them and there will be no response.
Yet if you try to sneak some chocolate out of the fridge, while they are watching TV at the other end of the house – amazingly, they’ll hear THAT!
A few years ago my hubster thought that *I* was suffering from selective hearing loss – aimed solely at him. It lead to some tension in our relationship, as he felt that I no longer seemed interested in what he had to say!
But the truth was, unless I was looking directly at him, I really couldn’t distinguish what he was saying. If he had his back to me, or was in another room, or there was background noise such as the television, try as I might I just couldn’t catch what he was saying.
Aware of his hurt, I tried desperately to compensate. Whenever he spoke I would concentrate with all my might, to no avail. Sometimes I cheated and pretended that I heard – but more often than not, I was caught out when I gave a totally unrelated response!
He also quickly realised that my “mmm – hmmm” was an attempt to mask the fact that I had absolutely no idea what he was saying!
So I made an appointment to have my hearing checked. Keen to solve the mystery, hubster came along too.
Why I Had Unintentional Selective Hearing
“Well, the good news is your hearing is pretty much perfect!” announced the specialist, before continuing:
“The bad news is, there is one particular frequency where your hearing does drop out. It’s around this certain number of hertz. You can hear perfectly above this frequency, and just as well below it, but there is one particular pitch that you cannot hear.”
“What sort of noises have that hertz?” asked my husband (you can tell he used to be in the sound team at our church!)
“Oh, things like a truck motor idling … and men’s voices!”
We were flabbergasted! Because I was plagued with hay fever and sinus for years (until I underwent two years of allergy injections), over time the blockages had affected my hearing.
Once we were aware that it WAS actually a problem, and not just selective hearing, we learned to work around it. My hubster is much more patient with me now – although he still gets frustrated sometimes!
Can you imagine if my hubster HADN’T come to that appointment with me? There is NO WAY he would have believed me when I told him what the specialist said!
Have you ever been accused of selective hearing by your significant other? When was the last time you had your hearing checked?!
Why not book a free hearing check during Hearing Awareness Week (August 21-27, 2016)?
Maybe I should get A checked out – he seems to have very selective hearing at times !!!
Have the best day !
Me
You just never know, as my story proves!
Oh wow, it is great that you were able to sort it out. A little boy I nannied for had the same problem and was constantly plagued by colds. His parents didn’t believe that he had a hearing issue until we got that test.
Yes, it’s hard for people to understand something they can’t “see” as being wrong or impaired.
Oh that is amazing! Thank goodness you found out and that your hubby was with you! It’s the reverse in our place. My hubby is the one with hearing difficulties due to a burst eardrum when he was young! Min xo
How frustrating! Perhaps you and my hubster can get together and share tips on how to manage your hearing impaired spouses!
lol think my hubby wishes for the opposite sometimes when I am nagging him! So glad that they found out why though, must have been frustrating.
It is annoying for him sometimes, even though he’s a lot more patient now he knows what’s wrong …
That’s pretty funny!! I might try that one on my hubby to get him back for all his selective hearing hehehe #TUST
How strange that it’s a certain frequency. You’re right – it’s a good thing he went to the appointment with you!!
Truth is stranger than fiction 😉
How weird and how interesting Janet! I think my husband suffers from selective hearing too, he might have to check if he has something like this condition but for women voice!
You just never know 😉
Our Lottie has selective hearing loss as well – possibly around the same level as your own. Her hearing specialist said she will not be able to hear her boyfriend on the phone when she is older… but by then phones will no doubt be redundant for romance!! x
And to think when hubster and I were dating, there were no mobile phones, computers, Facebook, Twitter – in fact, I didn’t even have a phone installed in my flat for about the first 6 months! Torture!!!
Wow, I had no idea that there is such a thing as selective hearing. Maybe that is why I am having a hard time hearing my daughters lately. My husband isn’t a problem at all, but I think that I have bad hearing at higher frequencies!
Thanks for commenting today on my Hearing Loss post at Lifestyle Fifty. I hope my reply to yours wasn’t flip because I thought maybe this was going to be an out and out funny about selective hearing 😉 Which of course it is and it isn’t. I’m sorry to hear that you have problems, but like you said, yes, how necessary in an ironic way that your hubster went along with you to the appointment or he would never in a month of Sundays have believed you! I know mine wouldn’t have 😉
Hi Jo, no worries, I didn’t think it was flip … it IS a funny story. So glad hubby was there!
Yep. Just found out I have severe hearing loss in one ear. At least my husband agrees to have subtitles on movies now. He hates subtitles but now he knows I actually need them
Yes, my hubster hates them too! What do you think your hearing loss might be from – going to too many rock concerts when you were younger? 😉