Canberra’s live music scene is incredible. It’s also very loud.

Spilt Milk. Enlighten Festival. A Tuesday night at The Basement or Bar on the Hill. Canberra punches well above its weight when it comes to live music — and that’s something to celebrate.

But here’s the thing nobody’s talking about: average sound levels at entertainment venues typically sit between 104 and 112dB. That’s the kind of volume that, with repeated exposure, causes real, permanent damage to your hearing.

And it’s not just live music. Australian research has flagged nightclubs, pubs, bars, fitness classes, cinemas, and live sporting events as high-risk leisure activities for young adults.

Once it’s gone, it’s gone.

There’s a common misconception that hearing damage can simply be fixed later. It can’t. There is no surgery, no hearing aid, no treatment that restores lost hearing. Damage to the delicate structures of the inner ear is permanent.

What makes this especially sneaky is that hearing loss is cumulative and often invisible — it creeps up on you over years of loud exposures, and by the time you notice, significant damage has already occurred.

Your ears are already trying to tell you something.

• Ringing or buzzing in your ears after a gig or night out (tinnitus)

• Sounds seeming muffled or dull for hours after loud exposure

• Frequently asking people to repeat themselves

• Finding it hard to follow conversations in noisy environments like restaurants

These early signs are your body’s warning system. Don’t ignore them.

This is entirely preventable. Here’s how.