TravelingChris Posted December 12, 2011 Share Posted December 12, 2011 Okay about 10 years ago I thought I had some hearing impairment. I was seen at a VA hospital (we are a military family and in that city, the VA hospital was where we were sent) and they determined I had very mild hearing loss and didn't need a hearing aid at that time. Here is my situation now- I can hear things in person normally fine. I do have issues with noisy situations-like I can't usually converse well at a party where multiple people are talking- especially if it is a large room. I have a very hard time talking on the phone, or I should say hearing what is said on phones. I love listening to music on headphones but everyone else thinks I have it on too loud so when I ask them to listen I have to turn it down but it isn't too loud for me- just right. Does this sound like I would maybe benefit from hearing aids or the new surgical procedure? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Veritaserum Posted December 12, 2011 Share Posted December 12, 2011 10 years is a long time. I'd get an updated audiogram and go from there. I have a mild loss that makes it difficult in noisy situations, but otherwise I don't notice it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bensmom Posted December 12, 2011 Share Posted December 12, 2011 Sounds like you need to be retested. Best of luck to you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tranquility7 Posted December 12, 2011 Share Posted December 12, 2011 I was an audiologist years ago... IMO, sounds like you definitely need a retest. I would definitely expect hearing instruments to help you (I'm not up on the technology of the surgery, so I can't speak about that). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gingersmom Posted December 12, 2011 Share Posted December 12, 2011 You sound a lot like my mother. She got the tiniest hearing aids I have ever seen and can hear almost perfectly now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fhjmom Posted December 12, 2011 Share Posted December 12, 2011 I would recommend a visit to an audiologist for a full evaluation. Your description does sound like indicators of hearing loss. You may benefit from hearing aids although know that listening in noisy situations is still difficult, even with the best amplification. (I have a moderate-to-profound loss and have worn hearing aids for about 7 years.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
La Condessa Posted December 12, 2011 Share Posted December 12, 2011 Do you think there's a chance you could be compensating with partial lipreading when speaking with someone in person? Do you have a hard time if someone speaks near you, but is not directly facing you? I was not aware for a long time how heavily I was relying on the visual cues from seeing people's mouths moving to interpret what sounds I was catching, because I learned it so gradually. I've tried on hearing aids, and I couldn't stand them because of the slight delay in sound through the aids; it didn't match what I was seeing. ETA: I definitely agree, on going for the testing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QuirkyKidAcademy Posted December 12, 2011 Share Posted December 12, 2011 Two weeks ago I got the most wonderful hearing aids. I can converse in almost any situation. I can *understand* the conversations of those around me (that's the biggie for me!). My life has changed so much in just two weeks. Until a month ago, I'd have recommended an audiologist over an audioprosthologist (hearing aid guy), but I love my hearing aid guy! He's been soooo much more informative than my former audiologist ever was. He's even "counseled" my husband about being the SO of a hearing-impaired person, which helped our relationship, believe it or not. My audioprosthologist sells Nu Ear products - if they are all as well-trained as he is, I highly recommend them! Definitely get a test! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravelingChris Posted December 12, 2011 Author Share Posted December 12, 2011 Tammy and others with hearing aids- do they help you with phone conversations? Dh is always saying I am not listening but I have such a hard time understanding what is being said on the phone as opposed to in person. I have told my kids who live away to text or IM me instead because I can't understand them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milovany Posted December 12, 2011 Share Posted December 12, 2011 (edited) I just thought I'd put a plug in for what I do for work -- if you have a hearing loss and if there are situations where hearing aids don't help (lectures in large rooms, meetings where the conversation is either moving fast or several people are talking, etc.), one option is speech-to-text transcription. I know that, for example, my father stopped going to meetings for a particular activity he was very involved in because he could no longer hear well enough to follow what was going on, and in that situation I could have helped him stay involved. More recently (his hearing loss has become even more profound), I transcribed the toasts at his and my mom's 50th anniversary party and he was SO thankful. STT hearing transcription can do so much more than voice recognition software (which serves its own purpose, just not this one). If anyone would like more information, PM me and I can try to find a transcriber in your area -- or I could show you how it works via Skype. It's really very cool and I'm so thankful for my new "career" in this field. (My job is to transcribe university and high school classes via Skype.) Edited December 12, 2011 by milovaný Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pamela H in Texas Posted December 12, 2011 Share Posted December 12, 2011 (edited) I have mild hearing loss, very mild. I outlined my "issues" and everyone agreed I should be checked. I was. I have been wearing my hearing aids for exactly two weeks. They are set pretty low, no one can see that I have them in (they are super tiny - Oticon Intiga), and I *love* them for watching tv (I can have tv muted but hear through "my ears"), phone calls (blue toothed into BOTH ears), etc. So though it is nice that I'm not constantly telling my littles to speak up, my main thing is the technology. Oh, another benefit is that I learned that the people around me enunciate a lot more than I thought they did :) Nice to know the whole world isn't nearly as lazy as I've judged them to be :) Anyway, if you have any questions, I'd be glad to try to answer based on my new experience. Edited December 12, 2011 by 2J5M9K Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QuirkyKidAcademy Posted December 13, 2011 Share Posted December 13, 2011 Tammy and others with hearing aids- do they help you with phone conversations? Dh is always saying I am not listening but I have such a hard time understanding what is being said on the phone as opposed to in person. I have told my kids who live away to text or IM me instead because I can't understand them. Christina, they have helped me with phone conversations, but it isn't perfect. I still prefer texting, but I don't make a big effort to avoid the phone like I did before. Pamela, I want blue tooth! THAT is amazing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosie_0801 Posted December 13, 2011 Share Posted December 13, 2011 Does this sound like I would maybe benefit from hearing aids or the new surgical procedure? My hearing is fine, but dh is half deaf. No surgery. If you have a mild to moderate loss, a cochlear implant is more likely to make your hearing worse. A hearing aid? You'd have to try to know. My dh has a bilateral loss (so both ears) but only wears one hearing aid so he can have enhanced hearing in one ear but retain the natural rather than technological sound in the other. Or no hearing aids at all if he wants peace and quiet, lol. For example, in the car the hearing aid overemphasises the car noise, so he can hear better without. On the train, we sign. Of course different brands of hearing aid enhance hearing in different ways. Look into deaf technology. Captions on the telly, amplifier on the phone, setting the computer up as a tty and using the relay service (assuming you have one. It sounds like what Milovany is talking about) etc. The behind the ear hearing aids are easier to repair than the in the ear ones. Some people like in the ear because they aren't as obvious, some like behind the ear because they are more obvious :) Rosie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zaichiki Posted December 13, 2011 Share Posted December 13, 2011 No surgery. If you have a mild to moderate loss, a cochlear implant is more likely to make your hearing worse. Yeah... actually, the surgery for a cochlear implant destroys all residual hearing in that ear as they must drill into the cochlea. It is then "restored" with the technology... which is *not* "just like" regular hearing. I've been told by those who got them as adults (with less brain plasticity to adapt) that hearing a person speaking while using a cochlear implant is akin to hearing Charlie Brown's teacher speaking "whomp whomp whomp whomp." Of course the technology is constantly changing... so I'm sure it's not like that for everyone anymore. Usually, cochlear implants are recommended for those who have a severe to profound loss... and for young children whose brains adapt to the signals better and learn to understand them more like the way we understand natural hearing/sound. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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