HUH?! What?! Come Again?!

[ubnserved]

First let me say I know that I have hearing loss a little bit, I have trouble keeping up with the conversation in a noisy room. That said there is absolutely no reason that a hearing aid should cost $1000. They should be covered by insurance.
IF they can make a phone sound like it has surround sound for under $500 they should be able to make a hearing aid that amplifies your yapping mouth so that others can understand it. Wife says that I'm a grouch any way so it all comes down to this. .... I don't really care what you have to say anyway. If I really needed to hear better I'm sure that there is an app for that.....lol. by the way smile life is to short not to.

 

[hunter_le five]

I found this thread amusing. I've had hearing problems since a young age, due to 1) refusing to ever wear my ear plugs at the shooting range when I was a teen (big mistake), and 2) a diving accident when I was in high school that almost completely destroyed my right ear drum.

Consequently, I have trouble even in one-on-one conversations sometimes. If there is a lot of background noise (music, other people talking, car engines, machinery, television) - forget about it.

*ambient noises*
Them - "garble garble garble blah blah blah."
Me - "Haha, yeah, right."
Them - "That was a question..."
Me - "Sh!t..."

Most people just know to speak up when addressing me. Sometimes I have to remind SWMBO to talk at me or I can't hear her. If she's facing the other way it gets warble-garbled.

I know I should get a hearing aid, but even in my late twenties I'm already old and crotchety. Now get off my lawn.

 

[Winepharm]

Yeah, I have hearing loss too. Shooting a shotgun with out hearing protection and 6 years in an artillery unit refusing to wear ear plugs. Idiotic, I know.

Again on the lighter side, one of my dads friends that I used to fish with was almost deaf and refused to use hearing aids. On one of our fishing trips I asked him (rather loudly) if he had heard the joke about the astronaut to which he replied "No thanks, I've already had some." I loved that man dearly and still miss him.

 

[CreamyGoodness]

So we have a move in the right direction (that confirms my thesis). My father went to the doctor today and for a $5 copay had both ears flushed. He is experiencing immediate relief from the ringing he was complaining of, and seems to have regained a considerable amount of his hearing. He, and I, are tickled pink.

At $5, a painless proceedure that cant hurt and just might help is a no-brainer...

 

[Brews]

I pretty much have ringing in my ears all the time. I went to the doctor and had my hearing tested. She said I had a 50% loss of the highs but mid range and lows seemed to be fine. She asked me if I wanted hearing aids and I though, for what, so I can hear my wife better. I told her I would rather live with the excuse.

 

[estricklin]

As an audiologist these are the kinds of statements that make me sick. I always love what Creamy and Cheezy post about, but this reply got me revved up.

1. Yes, hearing aids are expensive. That being said, there are many state agencies that will foot the bill and there are entry level devices that start around $1000 each.

2. Hearing aids DO work. Just ask any one of my patients. Especially the ones who come in bawling because they were able to participate in conversation at Easter brunch for the first time in 10 years. Only complaint? I wish I had done this sooner.

3. Feedback is a thing of the past. Current technology utilizes phase cancellation to eliminate feedback 100%. Not an issue, moving on.

4. Current technology uses up to 26 channels of bandwidth, meaning definition at better than 1/3 octave ranges.

5. If you think hearing aids are sold to maximize profit ask my wife. Audiologists are grossly underpaid as a profession. If I didn't love what I do, I sure as he77 wouldn't be doing it. There is nothing more rewarding to me than when a patient comes in and tells me that I have changed their life and helped restore something missing from their life.

6. The FDA average for upgrading (i.e. buying new hearing aids) is 3.7 years. Most of my patients get AT LEAST 4-5 good years out of a decent set of devices.

7. END RANT

All in all, it sounds like you went to the wrong place. Is your hearing healthcare provider a Doctor of Audiology or a hearing aid dispenser? Dispensers need an associates degree and a 6 month course. Audiologists require a minimum of a Doctoral degree POST bachelors. If you are in the Chicago area come see me and I will change the way you think about hearing aids. That I promise.

The company I work for sends us for audio metric testing every year, and for the first 6 or 7 I never gave it much thought, until the time before last. After I finished the test, the guy giving it explained that I had hearing loss in my left ear. He then asked if I had any "loud" hobbies and I told him that I shoot guns and play guitar, he said "AND you work in the oilfields!!". I was pretty upset when I left, I kept thinking "How? I'm not even 30.". I swear I have the hardest time hearing my wife in that ear too, it's like her voice is in a certain range that makes it that much harder, she gets PISSED at me all the time because I can't hear her.

Now I'm sure I'm not to the point of needing hearing aids or anything, but I don't WANT to be either. I ordered some muffs with the highest noise protection rating I could find for shooting, and I wear my hearing protection at work religiously. Still I'm sure I'm headed for it eventually, and what really bums me out about that is I've already learned from having bad vision, just how intolerant the world and it's people are, with people who have physical handicaps. No one cares, and they are pissed if it inconveniences them in the slightest way. I'm sure a lot of folks don't get hearing aids because they are just plain embarrassed about it.

 

[CreamyGoodness]

The company I work for sends us for audio metric testing every year, and for the first 6 or 7 I never gave it much thought, until the time before last. After I finished the test, the guy giving it explained that I had hearing loss in my left ear. He then asked if I had any "loud" hobbies and I told him that I shoot guns and play guitar, he said "AND you work in the oilfields!!". I was pretty upset when I left, I kept thinking "How? I'm not even 30.". I swear I have the hardest time hearing my wife in that ear too, it's like her voice is in a certain range that makes it that much harder, she gets PISSED at me all the time because I can't hear her.

Now I'm sure I'm not to the point of needing hearing aids or anything, but I don't WANT to be either. I ordered some muffs with the highest noise protection rating I could find for shooting, and I wear my hearing protection at work religiously. Still I'm sure I'm headed for it eventually, and what really bums me out about that is I've already learned from having bad vision, just how intolerant the world and it's people are, with people who have physical handicaps. No one cares, and they are pissed if it inconveniences them in the slightest way. I'm sure a lot of folks don't get hearing aids because they are just plain embarrassed about it.

I just dont understand where the embarrassment comes from. If you broke your finger, would it embarrass you to wear the little finger splint? If you were farsighted, would you be embarrassed to wear glasses or contact lenses?

I'm not picking on you, but its a lot easier for one person with hearing loss to see a doctor and combat it (be it by having their ears flushed or by getting a hearing aid) than it is for for everyone else around that person to repeat themselves over and over or shout. Its not a small inconvenience to be 10 minutes into an explanation about something important only to find out the other person didnt hear you (or worse, wasnt listening) and have to start all over again. Sorry... I just wont do it.

 

[Homercidal]

I'd MUCH rather have a talk with someone with a hearing aid in than CONSTANTLY have to repeat myself, even though I was speaking very normally. We used to have a guy here at work who would have you repeat EVERY SINGLE THING because he didn't catch it the first time.

On the other hand, it's much easier to talk about the MIL behind her back when she is not wearing her hearing aids...