Hearing aids

[CodyAK]

I’m a few years younger, still AD but on the way out with a med retirement. Tinnitus was/is bad, hard on hearing, pain/pressure in my ears and ended up with the Audiologist recommending hearing aids. I have the Oticon brand external hearing aids. Every pro and con that the ear doc told me is true. Not so hard on hearing, conversations w/ background noise is a lot easier to understand. Specific settings for different environments help. Haven’t had an issue with my hearing aids in cold weather (interior AK) but boy there’s something with the left side hearing aid. Connectivity can be wonky but cycling power and fully charging the box and hearing aids themselves usually resolve the issue. I typically wear mine at work and take them out as soon as I get home.

Also use mine for streaming and phone calls… no issues at all.

 

[TLB2]

Im going to have to get a set in the future. The tinnitus bothers me more than not hearing

 

[Rich M]

You won't ever hear like you used to, so don't expect it.

Hearing aids will increase what you can hear but mostly it is for clarity, new aids will help folks with direction.

I been wearing them for almost 50 years and talk with folks when they get a pair, usually they are disappointed in them.

 

[Kenn]

You won't ever hear like you used to, so don't expect it.

Hearing aids will increase what you can hear but mostly it is for clarity, new aids will help folks with direction.

I been wearing them for almost 50 years and talk with folks when they get a pair, usually they are disappointed in them.

When you first get hearing aids you have to get used to them because you’re hearing sounds you haven’t heard in a long time and sounds that you may not want to hear at all. You also need to plan on going back to the dealer to tweak them so they sound right to you. As said, it is not going to be as good as normal hearing but it is a big, big improvement.

If you decide to wait until your hearing gets real bad it will be much harder to adapt to them. There is some very credible research on hearing loss contributing to dementia and that should be a pretty good incentive to get them.

 

[Kopmana]

You won't ever hear like you used to, so don't expect it.

Hearing aids will increase what you can hear but mostly it is for clarity, new aids will help folks with direction.

I been wearing them for almost 50 years and talk with folks when they get a pair, usually they are disappointed in them.

I just got hearing aids for the first time, im 33 years old, with high frequency loss, above 3000 hz my hearing is gone, I assume from gunshots.. I can agree, I am not impressed with them yet. my hearing seems so clean without them when, but when i wear them, it seems like there are so many loud background noises. fans drive me nuts! Hopefully I can get them set better to where I enjoy wearing them. They are behind the ear rechargeable Starkey's.

 

[Kenn]

I just got hearing aids for the first time, im 33 years old, with high frequency loss, above 3000 hz my hearing is gone, I assume from gunshots.. I can agree, I am not impressed with them yet. my hearing seems so clean without them when, but when i wear them, it seems like there are so many loud background noises. fans drive me nuts! Hopefully I can get them set better to where I enjoy wearing them. They are behind the ear rechargeable Starkey's.

Get your dealer to turn them down, if you can't. Use them at a lower volume and gradually increase it as you get used to them. Crumpling a sheet of paper can be pretty annoying for a while.

 

[mt terry d]

A few years ago my wife talked me into getting my hearing checked.
I knew I had much hearing loss as well as a healthy case of tinnitus.
Some sounds I couldn't hear, couldn't begin to have a conversation in a crowded room
or bar. Or if there was some mechanical background noise like a furnace or AC.
The guy ( Miracle Ear) did the test. beep beep beep beep beep beep BEEP!! until
you hear it then signal. Then try another tone or note.

( When he hit the note of my tinnitus I asked him to stop and put the headphones
on my wife. I said "play one level of that sound below when I could first hear it."
He did and my wife almost screamed as she jerked off the headphones. "You listen
to that all the time?!" Yes. Always. I learned to ignore it)

It was graphed on a computer so the device could be set up accordingly.

We left with my new hearing aids. Stopped at Costco. I was perusing the books while
wifey was shopping and I heard someone speaking (I thought to me) and I turned and
here was a lady a good 20 feet away talking to her husband. I could hear and, more strangely,
understand every word she said! I was blown away.

At home I found myself asking wifey to turn down the TV. Yeah, that never happened before.

But after a short while I discovered the downside of them.
They did nothing for conversations in groups or bars.
Mechanical sounds are amplified even more.
I work outside a lot and use power equipment a lot also and wind noise is crazy.
I've used ear protection for many years while using saws, riding MC, shooting, etc to try to save what's
left and the hearing aids were just a nuisance.

I haven't worn them for probably 15 years now. I never will.
They were $7000 at that time, which i didn't have.
Should have put that $$ into bitcoin. Or powder & primers.
Or beer.

I sincerely hope you have better results.

 

[PlumberED]

Congrats on getting hearing aids, that was a smart move on your part. I have had behind the ear hearing aids for about 10 years. I like the non rechargeable type better, they are smaller and the batteries last for 3ish days. Hearing aids helped my hearing a great bit, I can mostly hear my lovely bride and my grandkids, I really struggled with their soft voices. They didn’t help in loud environments with a lot of background noise, I don’t think that will ever get better. Wind sucks, mechanical noise makes discerning spoken words impossible. I had to accept the fact that hearing aids ain’t as good as original equipment. But overall they are helpful and I would buy them again.

 

[Rich M]

I just got hearing aids for the first time, im 33 years old, with high frequency loss, above 3000 hz my hearing is gone, I assume from gunshots.. I can agree, I am not impressed with them yet. my hearing seems so clean without them when, but when i wear them, it seems like there are so many loud background noises. fans drive me nuts! Hopefully I can get them set better to where I enjoy wearing them. They are behind the ear rechargeable Starkey's.

It does take some getting used to. I love not wearing mine, say that I'm the only one in the world who can be still and not hear anything - no tinnitus at this point. Do need them more and more to understand speech tho. Lots of folks speak softly and few people will make accommodations for family members, never mind a deaf stranger.

The hearing aids will have comfort settings and possibly different background settings - they can set them to reach a certain point and then stop magnifying certain sounds above that. (Should shut down for a gun shot, crashing plates, squealing little girl) Likewise, diff background settings - office meeting vs noisy restaurant vs windy woods. I agree that you need to visit the hearing aid folks a couple times to tweak them and get it the best it can be for you. Worst case you can do what i do - take em out when something is annoying or you don't need em in.

I have 2-D hearing. Many folks can discern overlapping sounds and depth in music - whatever is the most prominent noise is what i hear. You might be talking but if a jet flies overhead, i hear the jet and not the jet & you.

I also like the ones with external batteries, we get big storms and power outages down here... Would expect a lot out of hearing aids w rechargeable batteries, just not willing to risk it. My disposable batteries seem to last 2 weeks. My hearing aids have lasted at least 10 years per set, only 1 set had any kind of mechanical failure as the wires were corroding, from ear sweat i guess. The digital stuff should last longer and if you buy a pair, get a pair that has capacity/power for additional adjustments.

Good luck.

 

[Kopmana]

A few years ago my wife talked me into getting my hearing checked.
I knew I had much hearing loss as well as a healthy case of tinnitus.
Some sounds I couldn't hear, couldn't begin to have a conversation in a crowded room
or bar. Or if there was some mechanical background noise like a furnace or AC.
The guy ( Miracle Ear) did the test. beep beep beep beep beep beep BEEP!! until
you hear it then signal. Then try another tone or note.

( When he hit the note of my tinnitus I asked him to stop and put the headphones
on my wife. I said "play one level of that sound below when I could first hear it."
He did and my wife almost screamed as she jerked off the headphones. "You listen
to that all the time?!" Yes. Always. I learned to ignore it)

It was graphed on a computer so the device could be set up accordingly.

We left with my new hearing aids. Stopped at Costco. I was perusing the books while
wifey was shopping and I heard someone speaking (I thought to me) and I turned and
here was a lady a good 20 feet away talking to her husband. I could hear and, more strangely,
understand every word she said! I was blown away.

At home I found myself asking wifey to turn down the TV. Yeah, that never happened before.

But after a short while I discovered the downside of them.
They did nothing for conversations in groups or bars.
Mechanical sounds are amplified even more.
I work outside a lot and use power equipment a lot also and wind noise is crazy.
I've used ear protection for many years while using saws, riding MC, shooting, etc to try to save what's
left and the hearing aids were just a nuisance.

I haven't worn them for probably 15 years now. I never will.
They were $7000 at that time, which i didn't have.
Should have put that $$ into bitcoin. Or powder & primers.
Or beer.

I sincerely hope you have better

It does take some getting used to. I love not wearing mine, say that I'm the only one in the world who can be still and not hear anything - no tinnitus at this point. Do need them more and more to understand speech tho. Lots of folks speak softly and few people will make accommodations for family members, never mind a deaf stranger.

The hearing aids will have comfort settings and possibly different background settings - they can set them to reach a certain point and then stop magnifying certain sounds above that. (Should shut down for a gun shot, crashing plates, squealing little girl) Likewise, diff background settings - office meeting vs noisy restaurant vs windy woods. I agree that you need to visit the hearing aid folks a couple times to tweak them and get it the best it can be for you. Worst case you can do what i do - take em out when something is annoying or you don't need em in.

I have 2-D hearing. Many folks can discern overlapping sounds and depth in music - whatever is the most prominent noise is what i hear. You might be talking but if a jet flies overhead, i hear the jet and not the jet & you.

I also like the ones with external batteries, we get big storms and power outages down here... Would expect a lot out of hearing aids w rechargeable batteries, just not willing to risk it. My disposable batteries seem to last 2 weeks. My hearing aids have lasted at least 10 years per set, only 1 set had any kind of mechanical failure as the wires were corroding, from ear sweat i guess. The digital stuff should last longer and if you buy a pair, get a pair that has capacity/power for additional adjustments.

Good luck.

Thank you for the review on hearing aids! Im basically in the same boat as you with 2D hearing ha ha. i like that analogy. I will just need to keep visiting audiologist until i get them se well.

 

[Bluefish]

Couple things, as you go years without hearing frequencies you lose the ability to hear them. Your brain forgets that sound. this often leads to hearing aids being less effective. People wait too long to get them and then it’s too late.

second, your brain ages and it’s the filter than allows you to pick up speech in crowded spaces. If you were to record a room and then play it back, that’s the raw data your ear is getting. It’s your brain that’s the filter to pick up what you want to hear. As we age, the brain becomes less able to do this. Between that and the high frequency hearing loss it becomes hard to pick out speech with background noise.

third hearing aids only amplify up to about 6-7k. That means with a typical high frequency hearing loss you really can’t hear the 7-9k harmonics that help process which word a person is saying.

 

[mt terry d]

Another thing I miss is what I'd call "directional" hearing.

If I hear an elk bugling ( you never know how many you're not hearing) it's very hard to tell which direction it's coming from.
A huge disadvantage when solo hunting.

Glad you guys are jumping in early in hopes of a better future.

 

[Sanford17]

For those scared of hearing aids being uncool or to expensive I recommend giving Costco a try. For under $2k you can get a quality set of aids that 90% of people will never notice you are wearing. And it’s about as cheap as you can get a decent quality hearing fitted for your specific hearing loss. You will be amazed of the sounds that you can now hear and conversation you were missing out on. Yes there are still a lot of differences from normal 100% hearing and so obstacles because of them being an electronic. But your overall quality of life is so much better. You get use to the limitations of them but technology is moving fast and they keep getting better.