Autumn Qi Chats | Week 4

autumnbalance
Written By Angi McClure

Can you hear me now?

This week’s Neuro-Qi Chat highlights the importance of hearing protection as you train for better balance!

Hearing Check-In: Training the Hidden Sense of Balance

When was the last time you thought about your hearing?

Most people don’t realize how profoundly hearing affects not only how we connect to the world but also how we balance within it. The vestibulocochlear nerve (cranial nerve VIII) carries two critical streams of information from the inner ear to the brain:

  • Auditory signals (sound, speech, environmental noise)

  • Vestibular signals (equilibrium, head movement, spatial orientation)

It’s not just about what you hear — it’s about how your brain interprets those signals and uses them to adjust posture, coordination, and even emotional state. A loud bang doesn’t just startle you — it shifts your body into a protective crouch. That’s hearing and balance working together in real time.

And yet, very few of us have any plan to protect this system, much less train it.

 

HEARING TRAINING: Why Less is More

 

Here’s the surprising truth: your auditory system thrives on quiet just as much as stimulation. Protecting, resting, and strategically training your ears can keep the vestibulocochlear nerve sharp, resilient, and ready to support both hearing and balance.

1. Protect What You Have

  • Use earplugs or earmuffs in loud environments: concerts, construction, restaurants, even hair dryers and vacuums.

  • Think of this as strength training for your ears: protecting now preserves capacity later.

2. Create Quiet Habits

  • Limit exposure to unnecessary noise — lower the volume, skip the earbuds.

  • Design quiet zones at home: soft curtains, carpets, or even noise-cancelling headphones to reduce daily background stress.

  • Autumn lesson: just as trees release their leaves, let go of the excess noise you’ve normalized.

3. Practice Hearing Drills

Neuroplasticity applies here too — the brain rewires based on sound input.

  • Finger Tap Test: Close your eyes and have someone tap their fingers at varying distances and sides. Train your brain to localize sound.

  • Tonotopic Mapping: Play tones across frequencies (apps or tuning forks) and notice which you hear clearly or strain to perceive.

  • Music Immersion: Listen with focus — track instruments, spacing, and tonal shifts to sharpen auditory discrimination.

4. Support Through Whole-Body Health

  • Exercise, nutrition, and hydration improve blood flow and fluid balance in the inner ear.

  • Movement practices like Qigong regulate the nervous system, reducing overstimulation that often worsens auditory fatigue.

 

Neuro-Qi Tip o’the day!

Give your nervous system space to listen within.

🟠 Try this simple Qigong exercise:

  • Gently massage around the ear ridges, then cover the ears with palms.

  • “Cup” your ears softly, allowing warmth and silence to settle in.

  • Finish with slow breaths, giving both hearing and the nervous system a reset.

🟠 Take a quiet moment today:

  • What’s the degree of noise pollution in your home and daily life?

  • What could you turn down, turn off, or let go of to create more silence?

*Video posts every Friday by 11:30am Mountain Time

Resources:
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(03)15044-1/fulltext#back-bib1

Angi McClure
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Autumn Qi Chats | Week 3