Hearing Loss: Come introduce yourself and connect with others

Posted by Colleen Young, Connect Director @colleenyoung, Feb 5, 2019

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.

davekoh | @davekoh | Aug 9, 2020

In reply to @imallears "@davekoh Hi, I rely heavily on Live Transcribe especially in these masked times. There are some..." + (show)

So is there an external Mic available that would amplify the phone sensitivity for better transcription results?

arrowshooter | @arrowshooter | Aug 9, 2020

In reply to @davekoh "So is there an external Mic available that would amplify the phone sensitivity for better transcription..." + (show)

Are you asking if you can use an external mic to improve the accuracy of a speech-to-text app like Ava or Otter? Or are seeking to improve on Live Transcribe?

arrowshooter | @arrowshooter | Aug 9, 2020

In reply to @julieo4 "Costco varies all over the board. I have heard both positives and negatives. A few locations..." + (show)

@julieo4

Costco varies all over the board. I have heard both positives and negatives. A few locations have audiologists, but many have only hearing instrument specialists. Fully agree that the price is right in most cases. It is true that some of the hearing aids sold by Costco are 'locked'. That means that ONLY Costco can make adjustments. If you move or travel and have an issue with a hearing aid, you cannot get it adjusted or fixed unless you go to Costco. Not always possible.

In most cases with a poor fitting, it's not the hearing aid, but the fitter that can be the difference between a well fit device and a poorly fit one. Regardless of where you buy a hearing aid, you are a 'customer' of a product. If you do your research in advance you will likely learn that you should get manually operated telecoils and volume control, and also BlueTooth. But don't expect the provider to tell you that. Sometimes they'll tell you telecoils are 'old technology'. They are, but they still connect you to many audio devices and events. And, they do not add cost to hearing aids. Those of you who are on Connect are all computer users. Have you ever used your hearing aid's telecoils to hear audio messages on your computer?

Manual controls are important because you want to control what you're hearing. Automatic sounds good until you're in a setting where everything is too soft or too loud and your stuck with automatic controls. BT adds cost to hearing aids, but it's worth having if you use it to hear on the phone. It will also connect you to other hearing assistive technology. Again, there is a learning curve on all these extra devices. Worth time time to learn if you want to hear as best you can.

Question: Has anyone who has had a bad experience with hearing aids had a problem returning them whether to Costco or any other provider. Trial times vary, but what happens when one decides to return them?

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In regard to returning hearing aids, my answer is no problem. I have returned hearing aids I got from VA and it was well beyond the trial period. The VA audiologist tried repeatedly to adjust them and finally gave up but that was after the trial period ended. No problem. They were replaced by a different brand. AND I returned that pair because they did not have t-coils and received yet another pair of new hearing aids. I got 3 new pair inside of 6 months.

tonyinmi | @tonyinmi | Aug 10, 2020

In reply to @davekoh "So is there an external Mic available that would amplify the phone sensitivity for better transcription..." + (show)

@davekoh, I can't speak for all phones, but you should be able to buy an external mic for your phone. It may improve the transcriptions. The mic will make it more convenient to allow you to read the transcript while you position the mic as close to the speaker as possible. If the mic is more than about 8 inches from the speakers mouth, it may not help much. You may want to purchase the mic from a place that has a good return policy in the event the expectations are not met.
Tony in Michigan

rosemh | @rosemh | Aug 10, 2020

In reply to @salledell "Hi. This is Sylvia. I experienced hearing loss in my left ear in my 50’s. Shortly..." + (show)

Hello. My name is Rose and I’ve been wearing hearing aids for 32 years. I’m a young 75 now. Ha! For the last 10 years I’ve been purchasing my hearing aids from Costco. I love their great customer service. For the past6 months, I’ve noticed that my right ear goes “deaf”, which is so annoying. If I open and close the battery door, my hearing comes back but then dies again. Has anyone had any experience with this issue? I’ve had that h/a replaced to no avail. If anyone has any suggestions, I’d love to hear them.

Thanks.

Julie, Volunteer Mentor | @julieo4 | Aug 10, 2020

In reply to @arrowshooter "In regard to returning hearing aids, my answer is no problem. I have returned hearing aids..." + (show)

Arrowshooter, In most cases, returning a hearing aid must be done within a trial period that is explained in fine print in the contract. The VA may have a different policy, which is wonderful. Most states mandate a minimum of 30 days trial; some may be longer. It's up to you to ask about this when you try/buy a hearing aid. You'll likely still have to pay the cost of the testing/audiogram, but that may be covered by insurance. Regardless, that document belongs to you. Be sure to ask for a copy. If you end up going to a different provider for any reason, and your audiogram is current, you may not have to pay for another one.

barbb | @barbb | Aug 10, 2020

In reply to @rosemh "Hello. My name is Rose and I’ve been wearing hearing aids for 32 years. I’m a..." + (show)

@rosemh Hello Rose, Sorry I don't know enough to have a suggestion. I only have a question! I'm always interested to hear about people's experiences with Costco. Could you say what range of hearing loss you have? Mild, moderate, severe?

arrowshooter | @arrowshooter | Aug 10, 2020

In reply to @julieo4 "Arrowshooter, In most cases, returning a hearing aid must be done within a trial period that..." + (show)

Yes, Julie, I understand that VA is different - in many ways. But I guess my point is that I was very happy with what I ended up with even though it took almost forever. The other point I make applies to ALL audiology patients and that is YOU MUST BE YOUR OWN ADVOCATE.

Julie, Volunteer Mentor | @julieo4 | Aug 10, 2020

In reply to @arrowshooter "Yes, Julie, I understand that VA is different - in many ways. But I guess my..." + (show)

That's an extremely important point! Self Advocacy. Hearing aids sell like commercial products rather than like medical devices. Thus, we are consumers. Caveat Emptor!

FYI: I tried 5 different hearing aids last time around before I found the right one. My audiologist is great. She knows I know what I'm talking about. I tried the first 4 for about 3 weeks each, so didn't overstay the 30 day trial period. Far too many people get fitted, find them frustrating, and don't keep them on during that trial period, so they don't know how well they work.

It's difficult adjusting to hearing aids. Providers need to do a better job of explaining that to people. It's not a magic bullet like the advertisements lead people to believe.

The most recent retired president of HLAA was military. He initiated a lot of programs for veterans during his two year term. Are you a member of the HLAA Virtual Veteran's Chapter?

joyces | @joyces | Aug 10, 2020

In reply to @julieo4 "That's an extremely important point! Self Advocacy. Hearing aids sell like commercial products rather than like..." + (show)

In response to a couple of recent posts that have mentioned experiences at Costco:
Keep in mind that, unlike most hearing centers with audis, Costco charges absolutely nothing for tests, adjustments, information. Their policy about returning aids is very liberal; ditto for add-ons. I realize that not all techs who work for Costco are as caring and interested in learning about types of hearing loss as mine is, so, if you go to Costco and don't feel the tech (probably not an audi) there is really trying to improve your situation, I'd suggest trying a different Costco store if there's one within a reasonable distance. I go to the nearest Costco, which is a little over an hour away, but I'd certainly be willing to go even further if the tech at the Costco I use didn't seem satisfactory to me. I've spent less than $1,500 at Costco, and have had multiple hearing tests, adjustments, different ear pieces, etc. to make the aid work as well as possible. Offhand, I'd say that I've gone back at least six times--not because the initial fitting wasn't good, but because Meniere's went bilateral, which totally changed my hearing. Now that I've gotten Meniere's into remission and my hearing has returned to about where it was before I went bilateral (without any distortion or recruitment), I need to go back for yet another adjustment. I'm also thinking about trying an aid in my long-useless ear to see if that helps, although now I can understand much of what goes on around me--for a change!
While I was essentially deaf, I went to a hearing center that does CI surgery. The two visits there, one for a test and one to talk with someone about how to live without hearing, cost almost $700, which was covered by my medical ins. However, I felt that I got virtually no useful information, as neither the doc or the audis knew zip about Meniere's, couldn't answer questions about how a CI would work for someone with Meniere's, or how to function with little hearing. None of three had even heard of Live Transcribe.
Regardless of where you buy aids, if you're already a member, Costco sells packs of 48 batteries (6 small packs of 8 on a card) for less than $10--far, far less than at pharmacies! I seldom do any shopping at Costco...the annual membership fee is a small price to pay for the help I get from the person I see.