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Hearing loss due to wax in ears
Hearing Loss | Last Active: Oct 22, 2023 | Replies (36)Comment receiving replies
My story on using one or two hearing aids goes back several decades. I was in my 30s when I finally accepted the reality that I needed help hearing. Both ears had progressive sensorineural hearing loss and tested pretty much the same. However, I was only fit with one hearing aid. I don't recall if that was my choice or the provider's choice. I was fit with a bicross system so I was hearing from both sides, but with only one ear. I managed with that for 2 decades.
Many years later, I was considering a cochlear implant. Both ears still had similar testing results with sounds. The unaided ear did much poorer in tests with words. I had sensory deprivation in that unaided ear. I was definitely a CI candidate, but I didn't want to lose what I had by having that CI done on the ear that had been aided.
A wise HLAA comrade told me to get a hearing aid for that unaided ear and wear it for a year before going for the CI. He suggested using a neckloop with the telecoil in that aid to listen to audio books during that time. I am so thankful for that advice.
Then came the CI. My surgeon felt I would do better with it in the ear that had been aided the longest. I didn't want to lose what I had so I made the choice to have the CI in the poorer ear. It was the right choice for me as I've done very well as a bimodal user of both a CI and a hearing aid. My brain rewired itself to accept sound from both technologies. If I remove one and use only the other, I can't understand well. If I could only use one, I am quite certain that the CI ear would be the best bet. Hearing loss is interesting and we're all different.
Do you take the pains to protect the hearing that you have?
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@julieo4
Your story is so interesting to me being a hearing aid user for 40 plus years. It was only about 20 years ago that an audiologist suggested I wear 2 aids…at that time my left ear was getting worse but I wasn’t aware of that. I read an abundance of articles and papers about one hearing aid versus two hearing aids for maximum hearing.
Today I have very little hearing in that left ear. I was fitted for a BiCross last year (keeping my current Phonak Nadia for my right ear.) but I still have the left Phonak Nadia. After lot of reading I decided that I will switch on and off with the BiCross and the regular hearing aid because I still want that left ear stimulated. So what I do, is wear the left aid in addition to always wearing the right aid when I am at home. When I am out I switch to the Bicross mainly because it is more comfortable…tiny little thing that it is. I hear equally with both but am still happy to know that I do some some hearing left in that ear. I fear it would disappear altogether without any sound stimulation. If I opted for a CI it would only be in the left worse ear.
I will probably never venture into CI territory or even the Hybrid. One thing holding me back is my age (82) .
Even though I am healthy and energetic with no medications or underlying medical problems, risk factors for any sedation or anesthesia increases with age. I had a routine colonoscopy 5 or 6 years ago and regurgitated under anesthesia resulting in many ENT visits and speech therapy before my voice returned to normal. That , more than the fear of not having a successful outcome because of the many years of hearing loss, is the reason for my decision.
That’s my story and that’s what I love about the Mayo forum….the sharing of our personal experiences
FL Mary