Hearing Loss and Memory

Listening Takes Work: Why Hearing Loss Can Cloud Your Memory

If you’ve ever forgotten a name mid-conversation or struggled to recall what someone said, you’re not alone. In some cases, it’s not about your memory but about your hearing.

As hearing becomes more challenging, your brain has to work overtime just to make sense of what you’re hearing. That extra effort can take a toll on memory, focus and mental clarity. In this blog, we’ll explain the link between hearing and memory and offer practical tips to lighten the cognitive load.

Hearing Loss And The Brain: What’s The Link?

Your ears collect sound, but it’s your brain that actually does the listening. When you experience hearing loss, your brain may not receive clear signals. As a result, it has to work overtime to fill in the gaps.¹ This is known as increased cognitive load, and it can affect memory in a number of ways. Here’s how:

• Increased mental fatigue: Straining to hear throughout the day can be mentally exhausting. Your brain is constantly working behind the scenes to decode muffled or unclear sounds, which can leave you feeling foggy or drained, especially after conversations or social outings.²
• Divided attention: When your brain is busy trying to hear, it has less capacity to focus on everything else - like remembering details, following a story, or staying engaged in a conversation.³ This split focus can make it harder to concentrate or multitask.
• More effort, less energy: Hearing should be effortless, but with hearing loss it takes a lot of energy. The more your brain has to compensate, the more it pulls energy from other mental functions, like problem-solving, decision-making, or short-term memory.
• Stress: Struggling to hear can be frustrating and isolating. Over time, this can lead to increased stress, which affects both your mental wellbeing and your memory.⁴ Stress hormones like cortisol have been shown to interfere with how the brain processes and stores information.

Practical Tips To Lighten The Mental Load

The good news is there are simple steps you can take to reduce cognitive strain and support both your hearing and memory. These include:

• Take listening breaks: Give your brain time to rest and recover after long or challenging listening situations. Even a few minutes of quiet can help reduce mental fatigue.⁵
• Stay socially active: Keeping your brain engaged through conversation and social outings can help strengthen memory and overall cognitive health. Choose quieter environments when possible to make social time less tiring.
• Practice mindfulness and memory techniques: Simple tools like repeating names out loud, writing things down, or using visual associations can help your brain retain information more easily. Mindfulness exercises, like slow breathing or short meditations, can also reduce stress and sharpen focus.
• Give your brain context: Help reduce some of the cognitive load that comes with hearing loss by helping your brain fill in the blanks. This might look like facing the person you’re speaking to so you have an easier time seeing facial expressions, paying attention to body language, asking them to speak slower or asking for clarification when needed. Contextual clues can make it easier to understand and remember conversations.
• Use hearing aids if needed: Hearing aids don’t just improve your hearing, they may also reduce the effort your brain spends trying to process unclear sound. That frees up energy for thinking, focusing and remembering.

If you’ve noticed more mental fog, forgetfulness or fatigue, your hearing might be playing a part. The good news? The sooner you address hearing loss, the easier it is to give your brain the support it needs. Book a hearing check at your local Connect Hearing clinic today where our expert team can assess your hearing health and ensure you find the right support to stay clear-headed, connected, and confident in everyday life.

References:

1. Brain Health D.C. (n.d.), The Silent Thief: How Hearing Loss Impacts Cognitive Function Over Time, brainhealthdc.com, accessed 30 June 2025.
2. JAMA Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery (6 July 2023), Hearing Loss and Fatigue in Middle-Aged and Older Adults, JAMA Network, accessed 30 June 2025.
3. Trends In Hearing (December 2008), Selective Attention in Normal and Impaired Hearing, National Library of Medicine, accessed 30 June 2025.
4. The Egyptian Journal of Otolaryngology (26 March 2024), The effects of stress on auditory system: a narrative review, Springer Open, accessed 30 June 2025.
5. The University of Tennessee Health Science Centre (n.d.), Listening Breaks and Listening Fatigue in Adolescents with Hearing Loss, hifla.org, accessed 30 June 2025.