Hearing aids

Hi Lisa, when I got my hearing aides in 2010 I was desperate and asked for the best, my audiologist worked with me and the digital ones will now work for low hearing loss, whereas the old hearing aides didn't so that is a plus. I was able to go without my hearing aides for about a year when everything seemed to clear up and thought I had wasted money on them, but when all the symptoms came back, including the hearing loss I was very glad I had them. When I am not in the middle of a flare up, my hearing aides help a lot, sometimes with barometer changes the hearing aides aren't the best but are better than nothing. Talking on the phone is the hardest, and I have to remind people to look at me when they are talking, and some times it is hard to hear in meetings if people aren't looking at me or are speaking softly, but like I said they are better than nothing, and enjoy I the days when everything goes well and the hearing aides work well, I think the problem is the fluctuating hearing loss, I have 3 different settings on the aides which helps somewhat. Not sure if this answer helped or not, but I would definitely be in much worse shape without my hearing aides and would not be able to work outside the home.

 

I have had my hearing aid for 4 years. It is digital and does help, some days more than others because it, at times is not just hearing loss but distortion, which i think, might be more common in mm patients. The hearing aid amplifies the distortion,too which interferes with my overall hearing especially because my right ear is normal.
however I am really glad I have it because it helps the tinnitus very much because it is bringing sound in to my left ear
hearing aids are getting better and better all the time, I would not hesitate to at least try it
try to find an audiologist who has treated mm patients
good luck!

 

My hearing in the bad ear is really impacted. Low tones are horrible. I have a basic "entry level" hearing aid from Oticon. It does not have some of the bells and whistles like remote, bluetooth etc...but it has four settings that are in place to hopefully address my primary issues. 99% of the time the HA is awesome and where I used to have certain sounds that "hurt" my head when using the hearing aid it resolved that completely. The other 1% is when this thing is very very active (meaning about to have an attack and losing all hearing) then it doesn't seem to be as effective.

The key I was told from many people here is to find a good audiologist. He/she will be critical in getting your hearing aid adjusted to maximize your hearing. It is not as simple as putting the settings where the hearing test points. There is a lot of fine tuning.

One thing to mention is that most places will give you 30 day trials so you can try out several models before finalizing decision.

I will say that i waited longer than I probably should have - denial? ego? Who know. Am very happy that I have it.

 

I second the thoughts here.
1. Hearing aids can help.
2. Find a good audiologist.
3. 30 day trials are a must.
4. BE DEMANDING. If you are not getting results then say so.

I got my aids about 3 years ago when my hearing was just awful. I spent a fortune but at the time had few options. There are many times when I go months without usng them (yay) but when they are needed I am thankful I made the investment. I am an architect and have four architects working for me. They have learned to pitch in when I have episosdes. Currently I am using the hearing aids and have trouble with speech. Music is not better and sounds like slide whistles at times.

Having said all that I do not regret getting them. Try it out, but if you are not pleased hen dont buy them.

 

I have severe hearing loss in my right ear, and have found hearing aids to be worse then not using them. Sharp sound like a cup being set down, or any noise that make a clicking sound to be amplified to a point that it is extremely annoying and distracting. Sometimes bass sounds get to be too much and it did not help much with word recognition. No matter how many times they tried to adjust the hearing aid, it never got adjusted correctly.

I recently went to my audiologist and they recommended a crossover hearing aid. My brother-in-law has one and his wife said it has maid a big difference in his hearing. I am supposed to get mine next Thursday. I guess I will find out how well it works in the following weeks. If it does not work, and I can return it.

 

Lisa,
Yes it will be digital, and I am almost completely deaf in right ear, which makes it really hard to tell where sounds are coming from. I have to turn my head or body to locate where sound is coming from most of the time (especially my cell phone). This usually is not good, as it can throw me off balance.

 

Lisa, take it from one neurotic to another: try not to anticipate what will happen to you too much. It is rarely like anyone else's experience.

 

Lisa,
I got the hearing aids (Phonak Audeo V90-312T), and they works quite well. I have to go back and have the volume adjusted up a little that is received in my good ear. My local VA hospital has lost 2 of their audiologists, so it will be about 3 weeks before I go back. These fit over the ear, and they are hardly noticeable to others. They are the most comfortable hearing aid that I have had thus far. Once the volume is at the proper level, my hearing will be very close to what it was before Meniere's disease destroyed my hearing. Right now I can hear conversations on my bad side that I would have missed be getting them.

The audiologist told me that Phonak just redesigned and released these around May of this year, so they are relatively new, and I can highly recommend them at this point, and hopefully after the volume is increased slightly, they will be almost perfect. My wife has noticed a difference, and says she does not have to repeat herself as often (provided I have them in).

 

KellyC, did your audiologist say that this Phonak audeo model was better than a Cross for you? It wa my understanding that for most single side hearing loss that most audiologists say the cross is the only ones that will work?

 

nicmger,

They are a crossover set, the only problem with them is that they have to be programmed to make any changes to them, including changing the volume. There is no off/on switch, you have to open the battery compartment to turn them off. They are really small and lightweight. I am the first one at my local VA, and the one in Pittsburgh that has normal hearing in one ear and severe hearing loss in the other to try these, so they advised starting out with no increase in volume. I wanted a little more volume, but I went with what they suggested, I wish I had went with my gut feeling.

I am happy with them, but I feel a slight increase in volume would suit me much better. Sometimes working through the VA is a little frustrating, especially when the are short staffed, as it can take up to a month or longer to get an appointment. A few years back I tore my rotator cuff and it took seven months to get it operated on through the VA. That was when some "idiot" decided to make us vets wait longer to get appointments through the VA. It was extremely painful for me... I was in tears almost every day from the pain, but now my shoulder it doing great, the operation took care of the problem, and I have full use of it.

 

Lisa,
I have no idea of the price, as the VA & my insurance picks up most of the cost, and I just pay a small deductible. This hearing aid can for work most any situation I think, as during my last visit, they said that they use them on people with some hearing loss and one ear and almost deaf in the other. I a have almost complete hearing loss in my right ear, an normal hearing on my left. It will be interesting to see if the increase in volume makes my hearing close to my norm. Like I said before " My brother-in-law has these and his wife said it has maid a big difference in his hearing." He has hearing loss in both ears, and has an older version of these. If you wish to know what the cost would be, I would call an audiologist and see what it would run you. Hopefully your insurance would pick up the bulk of it.

As far as my shoulder goes, it is back to normal, the operation did the trick.