Hearing Loss Stigma Isn’t The Problem, The Hearing Industry Is

I have been living with hearing loss and working as an advocate and innovator in hearing care for decades. I am tired of hearing the same outdated refrain: stigma.

Yes, stigma exists. But the way we keep talking about it — cautious, clinical, and stuck — has become part of the problem. It signals limitation instead of possibility. It feels more like a warning than an invitation. That kind of language does not inspire action. It encourages avoidance.

We have been talking about stigma in hearing care for decades. Yet the messaging has not changed. It still sounds uncomfortable and hesitant. Meanwhile, public conversations around mental health, aging, and neurodiversity have evolved. But hearing care continues to fall back on language rooted in loss.

It is time to change the tone entirely.

That was the takeaway from this year’s Future of Hearing Healthcare Conference, hosted by Hearing Health and Technology Matters. I participated in a panel discussion on the persistent stigma surrounding hearing support. While stigma remains a factor, the conversation around it is stuck. The panel agreed: the industry needs to stop expecting people to meet it on clinical terms. Instead, we must meet people where they are.

We can not keep blaming stigma for lack of adoption. The hearing space has a deeper problem — a storytelling and customer experience gap that continues to turn people away.

The Classic Excuses Still Dominate

We have all heard the same list of reasons why people avoid hearing support:

• Hearing aids make people look old
• They’re unattractive or uncomfortable
• Admitting hearing loss feels like admitting weakness
• Devices interfere with lifestyle or identity
• They’re too expensive
• Most people think their hearing isn’t bad enough yet

These excuses are decades old and yet they remain. That is because hearing aid companies have not dismantled them. Whether legacy brands or OTC newcomers, the marketing often focuses on technical features or promotional discounts. But those strategies rarely answer the real, unspoken concerns people have.

Cost is a real issue, yes. But so is value uncertainty. If people do not understand what they will get back — socially, emotionally, professionally — then the price will always feel too high.

A Forbes Health survey found that nearly half of U.S. adults believe there is a stigma associated with hearing aids. And 41 percent said they would feel embarrassed to wear one. That is telling. But even more revealing is how little has changed to address those feelings in a meaningful, sustained way.

Hearing Loss Feels Like a “Dimmer Switch”

Most people do not notice hearing loss right away. That is because it rarely happens all at once. What I like to refer to as the “dimmer switch” is how gradual hearing loss unfolds for many of us as we age.

It starts subtly. You ask someone to repeat themselves. Background noise becomes harder to manage. You turn up the TV. You leave conversations feeling mentally drained. Eventually, you might begin to withdraw from the situations you once enjoyed, not from lack of interest, but because they are simply too hard to navigate.

This is not denial. It is how we adapt. The shift happens slowly, so people adjust without realizing just how much clarity they have lost.

The problem is that while this process is common, it is rarely discussed with any emotional nuance. Compare that to vision care. Glasses are celebrated. They are stylish, expected, even aspirational. But hearing support? Still burdened with outdated associations.

That needs to change. And it begins by recognizing that the real challenges people face are not just about hearing — they are about confidence, connection, and control.

What People Are Really Asking For

Over the years, I have had numerous and ongoing conversations with people navigating hearing challenges, from longtime hearing aid users to those just starting to notice something has changed. One thing is clear: what people are asking for is not in the features list. It is in the emotional subtext.

They would say:

• “I want to stop pretending I heard that.”
• “I miss being able to speak up in meetings.”
• “I hate feeling invisible at family dinners.”
• “I can’t focus when noise overwhelms me.”
• “I don’t have hearing loss, I just can’t function in loud spaces anymore.”

These are not just clinical cases. Some are dealing with noise sensitivity, others with auditory fatigue. Both deeply affect quality of life, work performance, social participation, and emotional wellbeing.

These are not product problems. They are emotional problems. And if the industry can not connect to that layer, it will continue to fall short of meeting real human needs.

What I Learned at Apple and What Retail is Starting to Remember

During my time at Apple, I helped lead accessibility initiatives and saw firsthand what it takes to build trust. It was not about pushing products. It was about creating spaces where people felt seen, heard, and empowered to explore solutions.

The Apple Retail philosophy followed its “Apple Steps of Service” framework:

• Approach with a warm welcome
• Probe to understand needs
• Present a personalized solution
• Listen actively
• End with a fond farewell and invitation to return

It worked because it was human. Not transactional, it is relational and captures something I have repeated many times — people come to shop and return to learn.

That mindset is showing up in other places now, including hearing care.

In a recent conversation I had with Alfonso Cerullo, President of LensCrafters, we spoke about how the brand is expanding beyond vision with the addition of Nuance Audio Hearing Glasses. What stood out is how closely their evolving customer journey reflects a more intentional, trust-based model, one that similarly echoes the Apple retail approach. It is about treating hearing care the same way we treat vision: with ease, clarity, and design that meets people where they are.

That approach is what the hearing space needs more of. It is not about gadgets. It is about the space we create around them.

What Needs to Change

To make real progress, hearing health needs to stop leading with product specs and start leading with how people want to live.

Ask better questions:

• How are your conversations?
• Are you fatigued at work?
• Are you able to focus and feel presence?
• What will make you feel better and present in your life?

People are not resisting hearing support because they are ashamed. More often, they are confused, under-informed, or simply uninvited. We can change that by creating spaces of trust, not pressure.

The Opportunity Ahead

Hearing is not just a health issue. It is a human experience. It influences how we live, work, and connect.

It is time to bring hearing support into the wellness category, alongside sleep, mental health, and movement. And it is time for brands to stop managing stigma and start designing connection.

The brands that do this well won’t just earn trust. They will unlock one of the most underserved opportunities in consumer health today.

Let us stop managing hearing loss.

Let us start designing for confidence, clarity, and connection.