Hearing Aid question

[paccool]

Most of you younger guys probable don't need to read this, will be a while before you need these things.



I should have had these about 15 years ago but have put it off till now. Wife says I'm making her go deaf by having the tv turned up too loud. All the years of being around equipment and guns has taken it's toll. It's hell to get older!



How many of you guys wear one(or 2) and what are some of the good and bad points? Are there good aids and bad ones? I have been tested and need one in each ear. Am going with the CIC, don't show as much. (a little vain on my part?)



What happens out in the rain? Will getting wet ruin them? any comments appreciated.



Stan

 

[georgej]

Get digital

if you want the most natural sound. Also one with different sound settings for noisy enviroments & Directional mics. I have one setting for driving the diesel that cuts off the higher pitch noises that is nice when driving the Dodge. Good hearing aids run from $500 to $2000 bucks each so take your time and make sure you have a 30 day trial period if the ones you chose don't work out!



George J

 

[B.G. Smith]

Hearing

I wear two. Good points: You can hear better. I am able to watch a movie on tv now where I couldn't without them. I can hear people who I am talking with better. I can remove them and my CTD sounds better. I can remove them when I don't want to hear. Bad points: You will be able to hear a lot of things that you don't want to hear, like the shopping cart being pushed across the parking lot one hundred yards away, the black bird in the tree in front of the house, the cars on the freeway when in the mall parking lot, some things your wife says, the water running in the commode and wash basin, your wife playing the tv too loud, you forget to put them in when you leave the house to do someting when you want to hear and others. As far as getting them wet, they just told me to remove them when I shower, I have worn them in rain but had a hood on. Good ones and bad ones? My left one didn't work when it came in, it has gone out several times since, yes there are good ones and bad ones but I haven't had any experience with another brand. Over all they are an improvement. I have the in the ear almost invisible and they really are no bother to wear. Pretty expensive. I think if I had it to do over I would try some of the less expensive units first. Just my opinion. If you want the brand name of mine, e-mail me. bg

 

['956Wheel]

Digital is a must! Also, as one post allready said be certain you have a trial period. My left one would slip out from a perfect fit and get feedback... real annoying! I never wear mine at work as a machine shop is partly responsible for the loss of hearing in the first place. If you are still working, and your hearing loss is related to work workers compensation may pay for them.



When I got mine it was like the best gift ever, upon leaving the Dr. 's office I took the elevator and could hear the hydralic fluid! I went home and was surprised to hear the grass being crushed by my boots as I walked! I now find myself putting hearing proction near all noisy equipment... better late than never.



To any who read this post that have good ears still... TAKE CARE OF THEM! Just like glasses... hearing aids are a pain in the butt.



Mike

 

[Joe G.]

Stan,



It depends on how bad your hearing loss is. If you need a power aid, the digital type won't do it. I'm almost deaf and tried the newest digital aid. It could not handle the gain I need without feedback. The BIG problem with the digital aid was that the feedback was so high pitched that I could not hear it. Drove everybody else nuts. I talked to my hearing aid guy about it and he recommended that I wait. Since then there has been some developement with power analog aids that are controlled by digital circuitry. With these you get the programming of the digital aid with the clarity of a good analog sound system. People who have them report very good results. My old Oticon aid is still working ok so my hearing aid guy recommended that I wait until the technology is more mature. And cheaper.



Duracell zinc air are the best batteries. They bought the ActiveAir company that developed the batteries a few years ago. I have found no other battery that will drive my aid for very long. I had to buy some of the competition a few weeks ago when I ran out and had forgot to stock up. Ended up throwing them away.



I wore two aids until my right ear gave up completely.



The problem described by others here is caused by the aid fooling your brain's natural sound filtering so you hear all sorts of things that your brain would normally filter out.



WATCH OUT FOR CROOKS IN THE HEARING AID BUSINESS!!!! THERE ARE A LOT OF THEM!#@$%! #@$%!

 

[nascar]

WHAT???????????????????



My dad always had touble with loud crying babies, and restaurants without any sound proofing (like concrete floors instead of carpeting). He said it would amplify screeching sounds to a painful level.

 

[paccool]

The ones I'm getting are digital and are completly programable The guy said I may have to come in several times so he could adjust then to work the best for me. I'm afraid I will have trouble with some of the sounds like was discussed above, havn't heard them for a while and will probably drive me crazy untill I get used to hearing them again.



Joe, he said the battery life is about 9 days give or take. This is for the ones that go completely inside the ear. How long do your last? I guess some of this is hereditary as my 78 year old Dad wears them in both ears. My hearing loss is in the upper half of the frequency range and is about 60% loss in both ears at 2000 CPS( I think 2000 is right)



Stan

 

[Joe G.]

Stan,



I hope the inside the ear aids work for you. When I was using those before my hearing got too bad for them, I had a lot of feed back problems. The mic is too close to the speaker and the size of the aid does not allow the speaker system to be very big.



The over the ear aids are much better but there is a vanity problem with using them since they are much more noticable. With them you can use a soft ear mold so they are more comfortable.



Battery life is dependant on how much power you are drawing from them so what mine do is not comparable to what you might expect. I also use a lot larger battery.



The biggest problem, believe it or not, will be people talking too loud and over driving the aid causing distortion. You will hear very well as far as loudness is concerned but will not be able to understand. Hiss type consantant(sp?) sounds will be a bear. B, s, and p sounds are especially hard to distinguish. If someone yells it will be just a loud rush of noise.

 

[willyslover]

Guys. . may I suggest you check out the Costco's in your area. . many have hearing aid depts. now... I understand there is great savings to be had with quality units... don't wear them yet but will someday as I too am getting the wifes ire



and oh BTW . . I am no longer affiliated with Costco... lol. . retired