Hearing Loss: Come introduce yourself and connect with others

Welcome to the Hearing Loss group on Mayo Clinic Connect.
This is a welcoming, safe place where you can meet people living with hearing loss, and friends and family supporters. Whether you were born deaf or hard of hearing, experienced hearing loss after birth or with aging, it helps to connect with others. Together we can learn from each other, support one another and share stories about living with hearing loss, coping with challenges and celebrating milestones.

Let’s chat. Why not start by introducing yourself? What is your hearing loss experience? Got a question, tip or story to share?

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Hearing Loss Support Group.

Hello I am new to the group, I encountered my hearing loss do to and illness 4yrs ago, I was diagnose with sepsis(bacteria in the blood) was treated with an strong antibiotic(vanamyacin)which took my hearing that was the trade off, was given 48 hrs. to live, thanks to that antibiotic but did not know I would be affected. I am so thankful that I am hear to share my story. Left ear 48 right 80 and with this tinitis, I wear HA.

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@yesindeed

Hello I am new to the group, I encountered my hearing loss do to and illness 4yrs ago, I was diagnose with sepsis(bacteria in the blood) was treated with an strong antibiotic(vanamyacin)which took my hearing that was the trade off, was given 48 hrs. to live, thanks to that antibiotic but did not know I would be affected. I am so thankful that I am hear to share my story. Left ear 48 right 80 and with this tinitis, I wear HA. My first experience with ha which i purchased through the audiologist were I feel was not what I was looking for with the money I invested and they lasted 2 1/2 yrs I vowed to myself I was going to find a place, so I was all on Amazon buying these HA items all they seemed to do was amplfy so I found a place where I could pay less and get the results I wanted, BBB rated them A+ so gave them a try bought a cheap pair think it was $400 didn't like them wasn't what I wanted returned got another pair $600 didn't like these either so I upgraded
and got the better quality I love them,$1000.00 for the pair, the clarity, channels, the volume you control were as your hubby maybe watching a show with you and to you it's loud or too low you can control it for your liking without disturbing him, I have had them for a 1yr 1/2 I just love them and the company are very caring .

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@yesindeed Hi, and welcome to Connect.
I am happy that you have been able to find something that helps you, with the bonus that it's reasonably affordable. I have fairly expensive HAs because I have a more severe loss. It's considered to be profound in one ear for high frequencies, and severe in the other ear for high frequencies. Words with the S sound in them basically come in that range so it makes understanding a lot of speech difficult. The aids I have were supposed to be the best for clarity when I got them, about 2.5 years ago.
I believe my hearing took a dive also, either from health problems or medications because although I already had a hearing disability it got significantly worse.
JK

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@contentandwell, I am currently shopping for hearing aids that will provide more clarity. Do you mind telling me what brand and model of hearing aids you have?

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@capausz

@contentandwell, I am currently shopping for hearing aids that will provide more clarity. Do you mind telling me what brand and model of hearing aids you have?

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@capausz Mine are Oticon Opn1. They have just come out with a later model, OpnS which is supposed to be significantly better for clarity -- 15%. I believe when I got them they were supposed to be around $3400 each but I paid $3000 each -- I've been with that group for a very long time.
When they test your hearing, they test the volume and frequency to determine where your loss is, and then they test your comprehension but saying words that you have to repeat (they are in a soundproof glass booth with something covering their mouth). It was there that I had a huge problem. My word understanding was terrible. I think in some frequencies it was around 40%. My hearing loss is the worst with high frequencies. Less common is loss of hearing low frequencies. That's called "reverse slope" because the graph or your hearing is reversed, going uphill rather than downhill.
JK

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@contentandwell, your hearing loss and inability to hear/understand consonants and high frequency mirrors my condition. I so appreciate your feedback.

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@capausz

@contentandwell, your hearing loss and inability to hear/understand consonants and high frequency mirrors my condition. I so appreciate your feedback.

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@capausz feel free to ask anything, either in the general forum or with PM.
JK

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@quiteachiver75 HELLO 👋 I HAVE 👂 HEARING LOSS DUE TO MY AGE I FIND IT VERY DIFFICULT TO GET USE TO WEARING HEARING AIDES MAYBE BECAUSE I CAN HEAR SOMETHINGS WITH OUT THEM CAN SOMEONE EXPLAIN TO ME HOW THEY WORE THERES EVERY DAY. THE SOUND IS NOT CLEAR CLARITY NOISY THANKS FOR YOUR HELP TERESA

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You will need to go back to your audiologist for adjustment and fit. They will help you. If these don’t fit well check another HA model.

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@quiteachiver75

@quiteachiver75 HELLO 👋 I HAVE 👂 HEARING LOSS DUE TO MY AGE I FIND IT VERY DIFFICULT TO GET USE TO WEARING HEARING AIDES MAYBE BECAUSE I CAN HEAR SOMETHINGS WITH OUT THEM CAN SOMEONE EXPLAIN TO ME HOW THEY WORE THERES EVERY DAY. THE SOUND IS NOT CLEAR CLARITY NOISY THANKS FOR YOUR HELP TERESA

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@quiteachiver75 HI TERESA. HOW LONG HAVE YOU HAD YOUR HEARING AIDS? IF THEY ARE STILL WITHIN THE INTRODUCTORY TIME YOU CAN TRY A DIFFERENT HA AND GET A CREDIT ON THESE. I SAY THAT, BUT NOTICE YOU ARE IN AUSTRALIA SO PERHAPS THINGS ARE DIFFERENT THERE THAN THEY ARE HERE.
CLARITY IS ALWAYS AN ISSUE IN NOISY SITUATIONS, IT'S JUST SOMETHING WE HAVE TO DEAL WITH. SOME HAs HANDLE IT BETTER THAN OTHERS THOUGH. WHEN I SWITCHED FROM MY PREVIOUS HAs TO THE OTICON OPN1 HEARING AIDS IT DID MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE, BUT NOISY SITUATIONS WILL ALWAYS BE A PROBLEM. I ACTUALLY DID BETTER WITH MY OLD HAs IN NOISY SITUATIONS BUT THE GENERAL CLARITY WAS NOT NEARLY AS GOOD, NOT THAT THESE ARE PERFECT, THEY ARE FAR FROM THAT.
JK

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@quiteachiver75 I LIVE IN AUSTRALIA, AM 77YEARS OLD. VERY ACTIVE, INDEPENDENT, LIVE ON MY OWN.I HAVE THYROID GRAVES DISEASE. IT IS AFFECTING MY EYES BADLEY. I AM GOING TO HAVE TO SELL MY CAR AS I CAN'T LEAVE IT NOT BEEN DRIVEN. I DON'T KNOW WHEN MY EYES WILL GET BETTER. ALONG WITH OTHER HEALTH PROBLEMS GRAVES HAS CAUSED. I ENJOY BEING ON THE COMPUTER AND LEARNING. SINCE FINDING MAYO CLINIC ITS HELPED ME UNDERSTAND AND LEARN MORE ABOUT MY HEALTH PROBLEMS, WHICH HAS BEEN A RELIEF. MANY THANKS MAYO CLINIC FOR ALLOWING ME TO UNDERSTAND. I COULD NOT GET TO THE COMPUTER YESTERDAY HOPING TODAY IS OKAY. WILL TELL MORE ABOUT MYSELF AT ANOTHER TIME. KEEP SMILING AND TAKE CARE. TERESA

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