Hearing
- Thread starter UNCatTech
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I've had multiple people recommend getting them as early as possible so your brain can adjust.
I've also read that that hearing loss impacts brain activity and had some association to things like dementia.
ChapelHillSooner
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I don’t but I absolutely need them. I have needed them since I was 32 or so. (I am now 54.). My hearing has always been impaired but it got to the point I should have had hearing aids about that time.
In most large meetings I don’t know what the heck is going on so working from home has been a blessing.
Funny thing is I can pop my eardrums and everything will be twice as loud for a small period of time before they go back. Mentioned this to an ENT doctor at UNC but she had little to say about it. Also did an MRI and I never heard anything about the results. I think they look in my ear and see the scar tissue from surgeries as a kid and don’t want to touch it.
Worry about the relationship between hearing loss and dementia.
Will follow this thread.
1moretimeagain
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My sister has experience with hearing aids, I’ll pass along your question
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Get them
Hope you get some good advice here on the brand
1moretimeagain
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I don’t have significant hearing loss, but popping my eardrums also makes things louder for me
1moretimeagain
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My 47 year old sister says her hearing aid is prescription and the type/brand is Widex.
“Love them and worth the money. I have had hearing aid(s) for 15 years and they changed my quality of life…. Being able to engage in conversation and not sitting on the sidelines because you can’t hear. They are so advanced now and automatically adjust to my situation - listening to music, in a crowded place etc so that don’t amplify noise.
I also have greater high frequency loss. The aids are programmed to amplify at the level of your loss so low tones for me do not require the same amplification“
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Thanks, that is one of the brands the doctor recommended.
It's interesting that the OTC are half the price and from reading i can't find much explaining why one is better. They appear to have similar features.
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OahuHiHeel
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This is from a buddy of mine in summer 2023:
Just completed a hearing appointment with my dad at Beltone. He's been using his hearing aids for two weeks now and loves it. I asked if Beltone is out in North Carolina and they said their offices are nation wide. Should look into locating the nearest one where your dad lives and set up an appointment with them. It's all really quick. They complete a hearing test first with beep sounds and him raising his hands, etc and if the device you choose is in stock, he walks out wearing them.
Just completed a hearing appointment with my dad at Beltone. He's been using his hearing aids for two weeks now and loves it. I asked if Beltone is out in North Carolina and they said their offices are nation wide. Should look into locating the nearest one where your dad lives and set up an appointment with them. It's all really quick. They complete a hearing test first with beep sounds and him raising his hands, etc and if the device you choose is in stock, he walks out wearing them.
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Been through 4 pairs of cheap (sub $350.00) OTC hearing aids for my mom. She's stubborn and won't go get her ears checked and says the OTC ones do all she needs. Of course 2 pairs got returned because they didn't "do all she needs" - like actually help her hear. Charging case crapped out on one pair after a couple of months and was replaced but the same thing happened with it. I just recently purchased her the Audien Atom X and she seems happy with them. She says that they help her hearing but I think she likes the advanced charging case they come in more than anything. She's not very tech savvy so adjusting volume, settings.. on a phone app wouldn't work for her but the Audien charging case has all that built in on an easy to operate screen. They are pretty large and noticeable (my mom is petite though 5'3") so I doubt these would suit your needs but was just sharing in case anyone else is looking and knows someone like my mom.
Anyway, lots of the OTC hearing aids offer a free trial that let's you test them out, so that might be something to look into if you go the OTC route.
Jabra seems to be the company that everyone seems to agree makes the best OTC hearing aids.
This place and a few others do a good job reviewing hearing aids.
Anyway, lots of the OTC hearing aids offer a free trial that let's you test them out, so that might be something to look into if you go the OTC route.
Jabra seems to be the company that everyone seems to agree makes the best OTC hearing aids.
This place and a few others do a good job reviewing hearing aids.
rebeltarheel0408
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My dad got his from Costco a couple of years back, and it's been a huge improvement for him. My mom really needs them but is way to vain to admit she can't hear anything.
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What did you say ?
We went the audiologist and prescription route with my Mom.
Her hearing loss is across the spectrum and greatest at the highest and lowest pitches; at way up and way down the scale, her hearing is shot; so, her hearing aids don’t magnify those ranges.
Her hearing aids can be “dialed in” to best improve her overall hearing. Once every 6-12 months we go for a tune-up.
She hated the idea of getting them - she said she heard fine and didn’t need them.
Just like her cognitive decline, her hearing loss is real.
The first 2-3 months she wouldn’t wear them unless I told her to put them on. For more than a year, she’s been putting them in each day. They work.
They’re Bluetooth compatible. You can adjust some with an app. Given her dementia, we just let them ride. We do use a manual button on the exterior to turn down the amplification when in crowds.
The brand is Phonak. Model? No clue.
Her hearing loss is across the spectrum and greatest at the highest and lowest pitches; at way up and way down the scale, her hearing is shot; so, her hearing aids don’t magnify those ranges.
Her hearing aids can be “dialed in” to best improve her overall hearing. Once every 6-12 months we go for a tune-up.
She hated the idea of getting them - she said she heard fine and didn’t need them.
Just like her cognitive decline, her hearing loss is real.
The first 2-3 months she wouldn’t wear them unless I told her to put them on. For more than a year, she’s been putting them in each day. They work.
They’re Bluetooth compatible. You can adjust some with an app. Given her dementia, we just let them ride. We do use a manual button on the exterior to turn down the amplification when in crowds.
The brand is Phonak. Model? No clue.
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Regarding hearing loss impacting dementia?
It does.
As a son whose mother has dementia, macular degeneration, and hearing loss, I’ve been told by her GP, Geriatric Specialist, neurologist, eye specialist, and audiologist that hearing loss impacts cognitive function more than vision loss.
It does.
As a son whose mother has dementia, macular degeneration, and hearing loss, I’ve been told by her GP, Geriatric Specialist, neurologist, eye specialist, and audiologist that hearing loss impacts cognitive function more than vision loss.
I have Phonak which I got about a year and half ago. My problem was high frequency hearing loss and tinnitus. I hated going to restaurants with groups of people because I could just no longer hear over the din.
Now. The tinnitus is much better. No problems in restaurants. I paid just under $5000 and got 3 free consults over the next year with the audiologist.
Worth every penny and I’m a penny pincher
Now. The tinnitus is much better. No problems in restaurants. I paid just under $5000 and got 3 free consults over the next year with the audiologist.
Worth every penny and I’m a penny pincher
billybobblockhead
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My wife has had terrible hearing loss that has been happening for years. She currently wears some Phonak hearing aids. They are blue tooth compatible, and she listens and talks to me over the phone through her hearing aids. It's quite funny because I can hear the clicks as she turns down the volume when I call because I'm so loud. Compared to the ones that she got when we were about 5 or so years into our marriage, these are excellent with great functionality for different events. For example, we were at a wedding, and she could go into the app on her phone and "turn down" the background noise so that she could hear the conversation around the table better. She can also hook them into the TV with blue tooth as well, but rarely does that since she has the captions up on the screen. The technology available now for hearing aids is incredible, and I would highly suggest that anyone needing them by all means go to an appropriate audiologist and get the process started. Most insurances will pay some, especially if medically needed, but not all. I want to think hers were about 5k and insurance paid about half, but I'll ask her this evening to get a full confirmation on that. And like Wheel said above, worth every penny.
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That is absurd advice.