Ever ask yourself “what would it actually be like to use hearing aids”? What would your good friend say if you asked candid questions about what it sounds like, what it feels like, and how they actually feel about wearing one? If you truly want to know what hearing aids are like, you need to come in for a demo, but for now, keep reading for an outline of what you can expect.
1. Hearing Aids Sometimes Get Feedback
This isn’t the type of feedback that you get when somebody tells you how they feel about your results. When a microphone and a speaker detect each other’s signal, they interfere with each other resulting in a high-pitched screeching sound. It creates a sound loop that even modern speakers like those in hearing aids don’t know what to do with.
They may squeal like a speaker in the school auditorium right before the principal starts talking.
While this might sound terrible, and it is unpleasant, it is rare when a hearing aid is properly tuned. You might need to re-fit or replace the earmolds if this continues happening.
Some state-of-the-art hearing aids have a feedback cancellation system that identifies feedback and stops it in its tracks.
2. Conversations Are Easier to Follow in a Loud Setting
Going to a restaurant with the family can seem like eating dinner by yourself if you have untreated hearing loss. It’s nearly impossible to keep up with the conversations. You may find yourself sitting there, nodding and smiling most of the night.
But hearing aids today have some pretty advanced technology that can cancel out background noise. They bring the voices of your family and the wait staff into crystal clearness.
3. It Gets a Bit Sticky Sometimes
Your body has a way of telling you when something shouldn’t be there. Your body will produce saliva if you eat something too spicy. You will make tears if something gets into your eye. Your ears have their own way of removing a nuisance.
They make extra wax.
So it’s no surprise that people who wear hearing aids frequently get to deal with wax buildup. It’s just wax, fortunately, so cleaning it isn’t an issue. (We’ll teach you how.)
Once you’re done the cleaning you’re quickly back to good hearing.
4. There Are Advantages For Your Brain
This one may surprise you. When a person develops hearing loss, it very gradually starts to affect cognitive function if they don’t get it treated as soon as possible.
Fully understanding what people are saying is one of the first things to go. Then memory, learning new things, and solving problems become challenging.
Getting hearing aids sooner than later helps slow this brain atrophy. They re-train your brain. Research shows that they can slow down mental decline and even reverse it. In fact, 80% of people had improved cognitive function, according to research carried out by the AARP, after wearing hearing aids to manage their hearing loss.
5. The Batteries Need to be Replaced
Those tiny button batteries can be a bit challenging to deal with. And they seem to die at the worst times, like when you’re about to hear “whodunnit” in a mystery movie, or just as your friend is telling you the juicy particulars of a story.
But simple solutions exist to reduce much of this perceived battery hassle. You can significantly increase battery life by using the correct strategies. The batteries are small and inexpensive, so it’s easy to carry an extra set in your wallet.
Or, currently you can buy rechargeable hearing aids. Just place it on the charger when you go to bed. Put it back on in the morning. There are also solar-powered hearing aid docks so you can even recharge your hearing aid while out fishing. camping, or hiking.
6. You Will Experience a Learning Curve
Nowadays, hearing aids have sophisticated technology. It’s a lot easier than learning to use a computer for the first time. But it certainly takes a little time for your brain to adapt to new hearing aids and to get the settings right.
The longer and more regularly you use hearing aids the better it gets. During this adjustment period, try to be patient with yourself and your new hearing aids.
People who have stayed the course and used their hearing aids for six months or more usually will say it’s all worth it.
This is what it’s actually like to use hearing aids. Isn’t it time to find out for yourself?
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References
https://www.aarp.org/health/brain-health/info-07-2013/hearing-loss-linked-to-dementia.html