Could Your Hearing Loss Raise Your Spouse’s Risk of Depression?
New research has found that having a spouse with hearing loss may increase one’s risk of depression in married heterosexual couples—particularly if you’re a normal-hearing husband and your wife has hearing loss.
Details About the Study
The study examined data from 11 waves of the Health and Retirement Study to create estimated age-based mixed models that explored how a) one’s own hearing, b) one’s spouse’s hearing or c) both spouses’ hearing affects changes in depressive symptoms over time.
The findings show that gender plays a prominent role:
- For men, their wives’ hearing loss, their own hearing loss and both spouses having hearing loss were associated with increased depressive symptoms.
- For women, their own hearing loss and both spouses having hearing loss were associated with increased depressive symptoms. However, their husbands’ hearing loss was not. 1
In short, having a spouse with hearing loss affected the mental health of normal-hearing men but not normal-hearing women.
Researchers offered several explanations for these findings, including:
- Women are expected by society to be caregivers, so supporting a husband with hearing loss may be viewed as a regular part of their lives. However, men are not traditionally expected to be caregivers, so they may find emotionally supporting a wife with hearing loss more stressful.
- A woman has several sources of social support outside the marriage to help them cope with their husband’s hearing loss, while a man often relies solely on their wife for emotional support.
The Bottom Line
Hearing loss impacts more than the person who has it. It can also have serious consequences for a spouse’s mental health.
That’s why it’s so important for people with hearing issues to take action. Getting hearing loss treatment, using communication strategies and accessing mental health counseling can help ensure they—and their marriage—stay happy and healthy.
Ready to take the first step to better hearing? Call us now to schedule a consultation.
1 West, J. et al. (2023). The impact of hearing loss on trajectories of depressive symptoms in married couples. Social Science and Medicine. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10478395/
