Why Does My Friend Like His Hearing Aids Better Than I Do? Part 2
How long did they put off wearing hearing aids before getting help?
This may sound strange to you. Why would that matter? The reason this is so important is that due to sound deprivation caused by a hearing loss, almost everyone over time losses their ability to process sounds into words. That means if you did not use hearing aids when you first could have used them, no doubt you have this problem to some degree.
We measure how well you can understand speech with a simple phonically balanced word list. It is measured from 100% to 0%. About 6% of patients in my private practices have 0% of word understanding. So even with hearing aids on but not allowing them to get other clues when someone is talking to them, like lip reading, they can hear sounds of speech but the brain just can’t make sense of it.
Why Does My Friend Like His Hearing Aids Better Than I Do, Part 1
Many people tell everyone they know how good they can hear with their hearing aids. They really notice and can appreciate what their hearing aid is doing for them. Then there are those who always complain and say they are junk. They talk to someone that loves their hearing aids and become frustrated because they aren’t doing nearly as well. It’s very important to understand the reasons why there is such a difference.
The three most important factors that attribute to your success are:
The degree of your hearing loss.
How Long Should It Take to Get Accustomed To Hearing Aids? Part 3
The newest digital chips have made adjusting hearing performance, especially in noise, a very seamless process for most. I have been told by so many of my patients that within a day or two they have forgotten they are hearing with a hearing aid. The reason is, of course, the control of sound for each patient’s hearing loss and the proper adaption of compression which most manufactures have gotten very good at. Most manufacturers are so good now that the loud growth tests we used to run on each patient very seldom needs to be done anymore.
Anyone can be assured that they will be very surprised by the sound quality and clarity provided by today’s technology.
How Long Should It Take to Get Accustomed To Hearing Aids? Part 2
Today’s digital hearing aids have changed all of that. We now can actually create a very normal dynamic range of hearing for most patients. We can measure where the patient hears soft sounds at the different frequency of speech. Then we can measure where sounds get too loud in each frequency and plug that into a digital chip and we have provided our patient a very normal dynamic range of hearing. If properly fit and by the hands of someone skilled, most will find it is a very small adjustment for them because what is being provided is natural and clear. Most will begin at a lower level than needed and over a period of time they will be brought up to normal targets.
How Long Should It Take to Get Accustomed To Hearing Aids? Part 1
It used to take many weeks, even months, for patients to adjust and get accustomed to hearing with analog hearing aids. The reasons are many.
Analog hearing aids provided amplification for all frequencies unless the proper slope was ordered for the patient. The fitter had to understand acoustic performance of sound inside the ear. If they did not know how to modify every mold or ear piece for specific hearing losses, the patient had to adjust on their own to sounds being over exaggerated or unnatural. The lack of control of the loud sounds in specific areas of the hearing range also made it difficult for patients with recruitment to even get adapted to amplification. Also the use of compression could not be utilized to provide a normal dynamic range of hearing like with today’s digital hearing aids.
Do I need to wear my hearing aids all the time?
My usual answer to patients is, “Only when you want to hear what’s being said.” Hearing aids, in many ways, are like glasses. So do you wear your glasses all the time? Most of us do. The reason being that it is too much of a hassle not to wear them and very inconvenient when we are trying to read small print to get up and find them. It’s important to be able to see who’s at the door or when working with small objects.
The same is true with hearing aids. If you don’t put them on you’re going to miss what is said on TV or when someone is talking or someone knocks at your door and you can’t hear the knock. The need for good hearing is so important especially if you live alone. Safety is one of the biggest concerns for anyone who wants to live independently.
How Soon Should You Start Wearing a Hearing Aid – Part 2
I often ask people who come to get help with their hearing loss how their loss is affecting those who they are close to. At least 95% tell me that’s the real reason they came to see me, because of the effect it was having with those close to them.
Another extremely important reason to start wearing hearing aids early is to keep the stimulation of sound to the brain going. Over time if there is a lack of sound stimulation to the brain it almost always causes a loss of the patient’s ability to comprehend or make out words.
So when should you think about wearing a hearing aid? I would encourage you to act when you realize it is starting to affect your life at work and especially with those you are close to.
How Soon Should You Start Wearing a Hearing Aid, Part 1
Normal hearing on an audiogram is from 0 db to 30 db in the speech range between 250 to 8,000 Hertz. Most people in this range function normally and seem to hear and understand most conversations even when noise or background sounds are present.
When a hearing loss goes beyond the 30 db level is when it usually becomes noticeable to the individual with the hearing a loss. Interestingly, almost all hearing losses begin in the high frequency range. What is noticed is not so much a drop in volume because their low tones are in the normal range. However what is noticed is a drop in understanding or clarity of words. If you had a high frequency loss you would really notice a problem when someone was speaking and they had a soft or high pitched voice. That’s when most start asking others to repeat what was said. Usually the biggest challenge comes when they are in a group or in any noisy situations like in a restaurant or when their TV is on and someone tries to talk with them.
All Hearing Aids Are Not the Same and I Can Prove It, Part 3
The Speech Mapping showed this. Speech Mapping gives us a readout of the frequency correction within + or – 3db of the hearing aids correction in the speech range. This is measured by inserting a probe microphone into the ear canal alongside the hearing aid. So what is measured is what the correction is for the patient while they are wearing the hearing aid.
The second measurement we started performing was the HINT or Hearing in Noise Test, which was developed to measure the patient’s improved ability to understand words in noise. When I started this testing 10 years ago I found out that most instruments performed miserably. There were some, fortunately, who performed at the level they were advertised. The sad part is that if you bought a hearing aid and were told it would help in these situations, unless you were lucky enough to choose the very few who could perform what they advertised, you were very disappointed.
All Hearing Aids Are Not the Same and I Can Prove It, Part 2
This is because the major component that affects word understanding for a hearing loss is the loss of high frequencies. In the high frequency range is where the high pitched consonances are sounded out in words. And it is the consonances that give us the meaning to most of the words in the English language. So throw a little background noise into the mix and all that someone who has a hearing loss hears are the vowels or the base sounds in a word. This is why the biggest complaint with our patients is, “I can hear but just can’t make out the words.”
