I'm completely new to the world of hearing aids. Advice please.

Hello
My ENT doctor who I go to for cerumen removal always asks how my hearing aids are doing. His practice also includes audiology but I don’t use them so I think he may be a bit miffed about that. Anyway his practice also deals with earlens but after reading all the literature decided at 83 I wasn’t interested and told him so. He persists in bringing it up saying several of their patients have been helped a lot by it at which I said that I would like to talk to them. I got no answer from that.
I also posited to him that since my problem was not the level of sound I can hear (which the lens amplifies) but understanding the words due to an aging auditory nerve it seems. His answer to that was that any amplification helps. I hope there is someone out there who can join in this conversation. My audiologist knows nothing about earlens as of course it involves surgery. I did find a blinded study but not double blinded but how you would do one I can’t imagine.

I am new to hearing aids, too. I had a hearing test at Costco some 10 years ago and my hearing wasn't bad enough to need hearing aids. Hearing loss happens slowly over a number of years and isn't noticed. My PCP said that at my age (76) I should be tested. Hearing loss affects our ability to participate in social conversations, increasing withdrawal. AARP reports the hearing loss may contribute to dementia. https://www.aarp.org/health/conditions-treatments/info-2022/hearing-loss-dementia.html

I recently had a hearing test at Costco and concluded I needed hearing aids. The technician adjusted the aids so that they performed properly to suit me. One person's hearing correction probably won't be right for the next person. She said to walk around the store and see what I thought. I was stunned to discover how much hearing I had lost. My main problem - to me - was that I didn't hear certain words properly. The volume was OK, but I didn't understand what people were saying. I noticed at a live performance that I didn't understand much of what some of the performers were saying.

I recommend getting a free hearing test at Costco. It won't hurt and you may be very surprised. As far as your insurance covering the cost, my hearing aids will cost $1600. The aids are almost invisible unless someone looks at the back of your head, but don't think that people will think you poorly of. I compare hearing aids to glasses: the both help us to continue to live a normal life.

As you mention in your text, not all people respond the same and hearing aids all behave differently. I have the Cochlea In Bone type of hearing aid as there was little option to give back my hearing. In response to what you wrote I would say that you at least took the right step by having a hearing test, way to go. The next step is the analysis of the results and choosing a device to best fit your particular results. I chose Mayo to perform my transformation because being a musician I had a good sense of being told what really mattered. Also the device which was selected, albeit the only solution, was selected on the basis that it had programmable options to best suit the type of loss I have. I guess that what I’m trying to say is that “amplification” alone is not necessarily the only attribute required from hearing aids. I can change three frequency bands on my device which can help in those noisy environments, I also have options to add background noise, seems a strange thing to do I know, but it is a magic ingredient that can help displace some of the metallic sound and quieten a noisy room.
From my experience I know what is possible and that all hearing aids are not made equal.
Lastly, it takes a while for your brain to adjust to the output of the device. Hope this somehow helps.

Your comments could have been written by my audio tech. It gives me confidence when two disparet people say the same thing, give the same advice.

I’ll chime in to let others hear my experience with the Phonak Lyric ha. I’ve had them now for 8months. They are kind of implanted in you ear canal. You only need to change them about every 2 months (my case.. others will vary). I love mine as I can hear very clearly 100%of the time with no clumsy, for me anyway, handling of the other types of ha. Yes expensive. Mine were $3,600 for a one year subscription. All follow ups and replacements included. I hope this helps others who may be considering Lyric.

@bobsi

Hi,

EarLens doesn’t amplify sounds…it vibrates the eardrum. Your ENT is wrong when he says any amplification helps. Amplification is a small part of helping hearing loss and I don’t know why he is pushing EarLens.
I looked into them and , even though I would not be a candidate, I wouldn’t consider them. There are powerful hearing aids available that would be more beneficial but speech perception will always be a problem. Your regular Audi wouldn’t know too much about them so, if you are interested, you would have to see an Audi who specializes in CIs and Bone Conduction implants. Your regular Audi might be able to refer you someone he or she knows. For reference I wear one or two Phonak ultra power Nadia’s but I also wear a Bicros in my left bad ear which is not an aid but sends sound from that side to my Phonak. I occasionally put the Phonak aid in that ear because I would like it to receive sound and “not forget about that ear” as my old Audi said. And, my the way…I am approaching 82.

FL Mary

Fl. Mary
Thank you for your thoughts on Earlens and on hearing aids in general. I really am not interested and in any case may not even be eligible (you mention you would not be but in the literature the ENT pushed on me I didn’t see any discussion of criteria. My word recognition in one ear has plummeted such that the regular audi sent me to this ent for an auditory brain response test (to check for a tumor I think) but he said it was just an “aging” auditory nerve. So like you one ear is not much use although I do have an aid in that ear still.
From 3 years ago I have Phonak Audeos. I will look up your powerful Phonak Nadias and what a Bicros for your bad ear is! My regular audiologist seems conscientious but not too forthcoming. When I go annually for a checkup he makes some small adjustment to my phonaks and hasn’t suggested that new aids would help but the practice prides itself in not pushing aids that are not necessary and maybe go too far in that respect. My insurance is very generous so it is not a question of cost and it is not clear to me that I couldn’t get more help out of another hearing aid. (Without hearing aids I struggle to understand my husband at all right beside me). I am thinking of perhaps changing audiologists to a teaching hospital hearing center in the big city where I live to perhaps get someone more proactive. Hard for me to evaluate. When I got these new aids 3 years ago I actually could not detect much difference from the oticons I had had before! But thank you for joining the conversation- the earlens is a non starter for me but I was curious as to why the ENT was pushing it ($$$s for this high end practice I cynically wonder?). However your post has prompted me to look into whether there are better hearing aids out there now for me.

If a physician is pushing, they are making out on the deal. From what I read, I would see another ENT. Keep in mind, some physicians graduate with a C-. Wish you the best.

@barbarat

I agree with @minniemimi about perhaps switching ENTs. I also wanted to mention that hearing aids need cleaning by your Audi at least every 6 months. Those openings where the microphones are can get clogged with normal debris espically on women who use hair products. My current Audi just vacuumed out my Cros and other 2 aids and I could notice the difference. They sell vacuums on Amazon that I am considering.

I am not sure if you wear BTEs with tubing and molds .
I retube mine on a regular basis and also change the ear hooks every few months. I do this rather than having to go to my Audi when I think they need cleaning or changing. This is something your Audi should be doing on a regular basis. Also, if you wear molds, how they fit is a major priority for optimal hearing.

I question why you bought your current aids if they seemed no better than your old ones at the time. I have a very challenging hearing loss with a small area to fine tune and adjust. My old Audi ,who was the best programmer, left the ENT practice for a different area and was a superb patient women, I wanted to stay with the ENT practice and think I may have lucked out with this new Audi. She seems very energetic and proactive and even got on the phone with Phonak when I had a question about a possible new aid. I am seeing her again in 6 months because she said Phonak is coming out with something new that may be compatible with my Cros.
The Phonak Paradise is also a good update.

I would read up about Cros and BiCros receivers and some of the new aids coming out before you select a new Audi. Also get to know about Bluetooth capability and those handy speech to text apps and other assisted devices that are out there.

We have to educate ourselves and not rely solely on the Audi. I am partial to Phonak because of the power and I have trialed all the major brands. I also have been wearing aids for 40 plus years and have seen the good, the bad and the ugly in hearing loss professionals.

I think a teaching hospital is a great place to go if you have one near you. I was evaluated at one many years ago but never returned. We are overrun with Audiologists and hearing aid techs in my area in Florida and can pick from the best. Don’t be afraid to move on…it really sounds like you could be understanding a whole lot better than you are know.

Hearing loss and diet are my passions. They are related more than you think.

FL Mary

I have had my Oticon hearing aids for 1-1/2 years. The sound is loud enough but the clarity is terrible. Do you know if another brand is better?