Hearing Loss: Come introduce yourself and connect with others

I haven’t been following the various Mayo discussion groups…I’ve been working fire relief almost every day since last September’s forest fire just outside our town. After we returned from having been evacuated, I stopped getting any notices from any of the Mayo groups and was so busy trying to get basic stuff to people that I didn’t notice for a couple of months. Good news is that some of the people who lost their homes in an area where everything had been lost banded together and started to clear their own land. The effort attracted the attention of volunteers (like me) who helped them. Eighty-six people did the work themselves, saving each family $20,000 to $50,000, and most of the 86 families who participated are back living on their own land, either in temporary travel trailers while waiting for a home to be delivered or a new manufactured home. This had never been done anywhere before and has become an example for other fire victims. Some outside the area where the effort took place followed suit, too. Cascade Relief has taken the program to other areas of Oregon hit by wildfires last fall.

Now, we’re preparing for another evacuation, which is highly likely, given drought conditions. Who would have thought that the eternally damp Oregon coast would have been on fire alert since early April?

Hello! I am 60 years old with moderate sloping hearing loss to moderately severe in high frequencies. I have been had of hearing since 23 and have worn hearing aids for 12 years.

@mrcarl Hello and welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect's discussion on hearing loss. You are in good company here with people to are willing to talk about how hearing loss affects their lives. Feel free to ask questions and/or share your experiences with hearing technology, etc. What state to you live in?

Thank you!

My single-sided hearing loss seems to run in my family, started almost 20 years sgo. If i had it to do over i would get new hearing aids every 2 years to keep up with the technology. I did have 2 sets of bicross aids that made little difference. About the time of the pandemic my hearing took a turn for the worse and I panicked, looked into the cochlear and qualified for the surgery with Medicare, had the surgery in March of this year and it was activated a few weeks later. While I am still very hard of hearing I can tell I'm making progress; am being diligent about the homework I have to do and keeping appointments with my audiologist. A factor in my decision to go ahead with cochlear was the location of the providers. My driving is limited so I need them nearby. I am relieved and happy to have gone ahead with the cochlear.

Congratulations on going the CI route. I look forward to hearing how it's working for you. I am a 'bimodal' user of both a CI and a hearing aid. It has made a wonderful difference for me. I hope you'll share more of your experiences.

Hi again, Julie. I went for my HA consult with the new audiologist today. I ended up selecting Phonak Paradise P90 HAs, in part because I can pair them with my iMac for Zoom calls (and not just pair them with my iPhone) but also because I prefer working with an app over "set it and forget it." I love how light-weight they are and I selected the chestnut color that nearly matches my hair so they will be very unobtrusive.

The audiologist said the HAs are "covered in full" by our insurance which was a shocking, but welcome, development. The trial period here is 45 days. I forgot to ask about telecoil although Google searching indicates it does have it.

I consider myself sound-sensitive so we'll see how it goes. Thank you again for your help and support!

That all sounds so positive. And you are very welcome for my support. I know you are going to do great with those new hearing aids. Isn't it amazing how far technology has advanced in the last decade?

Yes, I totally expected them to feel heavy and uncomfortable, not connecting the fact that they no longer have the weight of a battery in them! I feel fortunate indeed to be needing them at this time. I’m slightly nervous because I’m a noise-sensitive person - I couldn’t wait for our lawn mowing people to stop making a racket today - but we’ll see how I do. I feel optimistic at this point.

What insurance are you referring to? Homeowners?