Over the years there has been some stigma with wearing hearing aids as people have only seen one particular type on people’s ears. The days when hearing aids constantly whistled or were huge, have thankfully now gone. Professional hearing aid fitting and hearing aid technology has advanced so far that now you can even do things that normal hearing people can’t!
Hearing aids will not give you new ears BUT they will give you life changing opportunities and improve your every day quality of life in an incredible amount of ways.
Some of the features available on today’s hearing aids can make a huge difference to the way you communicate with others and the way you view the world.
When human connection over a distance is so important, it is vital to make sure that you make the right decision when selecting your hearing care professional and also the hearing devices you want to help you here better.
We have worked on some questions to ask yourself before you go ahead and buy hearing aids, this will help you understand a little more about what you expect from them and what you would like the outcome to be when wearing them. This in turn will then help your hearing care professional understand more about you and your lifestyle needs which ultimately will give you the best and most educated outcome overall, meaning you can enjoy every moment of your life again being fully connected to your world.
Questions to ask yourself
What environments do I need to hear best in?
This is important because you may not always need the most sophisticated technology or there may be a particular feature which would be very well suited to you and your lifestyle. Your hearing care professional will help you with all of this so you do not need to worry but it is very important that you are aware of environments when you really want to hear at your best.
For example, you may want to hear the television or radio better at home so it doesn’t affect other people in your household when you have to have the volume turned up or the subtitles on.
You may want to hear better on the phone so you don’t have to keep saying pardon or have the loudspeaker on the handset switched on. Conversations over the phone can be very difficult with hearing loss so it is important to choose a hearing device that can support your hearing in this manner. You may attend some meetings where you need to hear other people when they are talking over each other or there is competing background noise and there are features available in some hearing aids that can help focus on speech and reduce background noise to.
You may specifically decide that you would like to hear better in very noisy situations and this will involve a good speech enhancer and also a flexible background noise cancelling as well. If you choose a private hearing care professional (like Neil here at Beckenham Hearing), they will take the time to understand your needs and explain which devices you need to best suit your lifestyle.
How well do I hear soft sounds?
Hearing soft sounds when you have a hearing loss can be tricky, you may have found this with the telephone or with children’s voices in particular. Female and children’s voices are higher in pitch than males and the consonants at the beginnings and ends of words can often lose energy, especially if there is a competing background noise. This can be very difficult for people experiencing issues with their hearing. This is simply because they just cannot hear the conversation like they used to. Hearing aids are now designed to recognise soft sounds and certain environments themselves, so your ability to hear soft sounds can be managed with the correct selection of hearing device and the accurate professional fitting of that too.
Do not underestimate the importance of having an exceptional hearing care professional to fit hearing aids for you.
An excellent hearing device is useless without the perfect fit and professional advice
What do I want it to look like?
Cosmetics can be very important to some people, particularly if you would like the hearing aids to match your skin or hair colour. Your hearing loss will dictate how discreet your hearing aid can be but at all technology levels, there are generally all of the different types available. Some people like to opt for the behind the ear devices which means they can be neatly tucked behind the Pinna (your external ear) and then hidden against your skin or in your hair if you have it! Others will opt for an ‘in the ear’ option which again can be very discreet and allows for an easier use of a mask or a pair of glasses. For both types there are lots of different options and benefits to each so it is very important to select one that is comfortable, correctly fitted and a device that where possible you like the look of.
There are so many other questions that are useful to ask your chosen hearing care professional about before you choose a hearing device that suits you. If you would like advice on these please get in touch with us here at Beckenham Hearing. We would be happy to help and we would also be honoured if you chose us, to look after your hearing care journey.
It is important that you like and trust your hearing care professional and that they also offer you regular reviews and aftercare to support your hearing journey. We look forward to welcoming you into our hearing family.
