Ever ask yourself “what would it actually be like to wear hearing aids”? What would your good friend say if you asked honest questions about what hearing aids sound like, what it feels like, and how they actually feel about wearing one? If you truly want to know what hearing aids are like, you need to come in for a demonstration, but for now, continue reading for an explanation of what you can expect.
1. Occasionally You Get Feedback
This isn’t the kind of feedback that you get when somebody tells you how they feel about your results. When a microphone and a speaker pick up each other’s signal, they interfere with each other creating a high-pitched screeching sound. It produces a sound loop that even modern speakers like the ones in hearing aids don’t know what to do with.
They might squeal like a speaker in the school auditorium right before the principal starts talking.
Though this can be unpleasant, when hearing aids are correctly tuned, it’s rare. You may need to re-fit or replace the earmolds if this continues happening.
Feedback can be removed, in some more sophisticated hearing aids, by a built-in feedback suppression system.
2. Conversations Are Easier to Hear in a Noisy Setting
If you suffer from untreated hearing loss, having dinner with your family or friends in a noisy restaurant can seem like you’re eating by yourself. It’s almost impossible to follow the conversations. Most of the evening, you might find yourself just nodding and smiling.
But hearing aids nowadays have some really sophisticated technology that can cancel out background noise. They bring the voices of your children and the wait staff into crystal clarity.
3. Sometimes it Gets a Little Sticky
When something is not right, your body has a way of responding to it. Your body will create saliva if you eat something too spicy. If you get an eyelash in your eye, you produce tears to flush your eye. Your ears have their own way of getting rid of a nuisance.
They create extra wax.
Due to this, earwax buildup can sometimes be an issue for people who use hearing aids. It’s only wax, fortunately, so cleaning it isn’t a problem. (We’ll show you how.)
Then you’ll simply put that hearing aid back in and start relishing your hearing again.
4. Your Brain Will Also Get The Benefit
This one may surprise you. If somebody begins developing hearing loss it will slowly impact brain function as it progresses.
One of the first things to go is the ability to understand the spoken language. Then memory, learning new things, and problem-solving become a challenge.
Getting hearing aids as soon as possible helps slow this brain atrophy. Your brain gets re-trained. They can decrease and even reverse mental decline according to many studies. In fact, one study reported by AARP revealed that 80% of individuals had increased cognitive function after managing their hearing loss.
5. The Batteries Need to be Replaced
Many individuals simply hate dealing with those little button batteries. And they seem to run out of juice at the worst times, like when you’re about to hear “whodunnit” in a mystery movie, or just as your friend is telling you the juicy particulars of a story.
But simple solutions exist to alleviate much of this perceived battery trouble. There are methods you can use to significantly extend battery life. The batteries are small and inexpensive, so it’s easy to carry an extra set in your wallet.
Or, currently you can purchase rechargeable hearing aids. Just place it on the charger at night. Put it back on in the morning. You can even get some hearing aids that have solar-powered charging docs so you can charge them even if you are hiking or camping.
6. You Will Experience a Learning Curve
Today, hearing aids have advanced technology. It’s a lot easier than learning to use a computer for the first time. But it certainly takes a little time for your brain to get used to new hearing aids and to get the configurations right.
The longer and more consistently you use hearing aids the better it gets. Try to be patient with yourself and the hearing aids throughout this transition.
Individuals who have stayed the course and used their hearing aids for six months or more usually will say it’s all worth it.
Only actually using hearing aids can give you the experiencing of what they’re really like. If you want to find out, give us a call.
References
https://www.aarp.org/health/brain-health/info-07-2013/hearing-loss-linked-to-dementia.html
