Best Hearing Aids ?

[Bryant]

Hoping to narrow my search for a good hearing aid by getting some feedback from folks who already have them. Good and bad reports will be appreciated (both manufacturer and locations to purchase them.) Thank you.

[pwdasher]

Hi, I wore hearing aids for a few years, I don't know if we're to name names on here. But they were made by Bell****. But anyway..my hearing was too far gone for them to help and I ended up having a cochlear implant done. Which I have to say, is the best thing I have ever done. It was done as an out patient surgery, took about 6 weeks to recover. It's been 6 years and I can hear most anything I want to now. And as you know, if you've worn a hearing aid, you hear alot of things you don't care to hear too. But, I would go through that surgery again tomorrrow if need be, to be able to hear again. Was worth it all..
Good luck finding something to help you..It's sad and lonely to be unable to hear..God Bless!

Pam

[graciegirl]

Pam.

I have always wondered about having Cochlear implants. My hearing loss is genetic and it began in my forties, just like my dad. I have loss in both ears. Did you have both done? Did you have it done in your home state or in Florida? I would like to know more about it.

I just had my hearing aids recased. They were fitted so they have longer extension down into the ear canal. It is a marked improvement. I go to an audiologist and she is very good. I got my first pair which were analog through her and I like them the best. I got the second pair which are digital when she was on maternity leave. I didn't like them. They shut down due to wind noise in car and just everything seemed muffled. I fooled around for long time getting new ones again. They are SO expensive, right around two thousand dollars each and you really don't know what you are getting until you have them, and then...you have to wear them for awhile. It isn't like glasses where you can't see well and then you can. It is hard to explain.

Anyway the audiologist that I like and trust took my first ones and had them recased so they reach further into the canal and it cost about $500 for the pair and I hear better than I have in years.

But Please tell us all more about the implants. How they do it. How you feel after, the cost if you don't mind. Anything that comes to mind.

Thank you for sharing your experience. This is what I love about living among people of a "certain" age.

[Mikitv]

I just got my hearing aid January this year. It is a Phonak Savia Art and is digital. I have more than 65% hearing loss so it made a difference for me. the audiologist programs it with a computer and my actual hearing test. Since my hearing loss fluctuates due to Meniere's I can have it adjusted via computer or I can click on a few buttons on the actual hearing aid. The only thing it will not change or fix is the hearing loss that affects how I hear words. Once you loose that no hearing aid changes that. What I mean is that to me I hear one word like bike and I might think you said hike. I was astonished when I first started wearing it how much I wasn't hearing. If I am in a very noisy situation I can adjust the background noise so it isn't blasting me. It's not perfect but it certainly is better than before the hearing aid. I do have the one that fits in the ear with the piece over the ear. That was my ENT's recommendation. I did research hearing aids on line also before I made my decision to finally get one. I hope this helps and I didn't ramble on too much.

Mikark

[graciegirl]

Mikark.

This is very interesting. First you go to an Ear Nose and Throat specialist. I have not thought to go to an ENT. Would you mind sharing who and where? Then...is Menieres an inner ear difficulty that causes dizziness? Would you mind telling us more? I hope I am not being too personal. Thank you for your most wonderful information, all of you!!:2excited:

I never dreamed of asking here. This is wonderful!

[pwdasher]

I began losing my hearing in my mid 30"s..and was 46 when I had the surgery. I had the surgery done at Baptist Hospital in Jacksonville, Fl. I am only an hour north of there, here at my other home in GA. I had about 10% hearing left in my left ear and have 3 or 4% in my right. When you have the surgery, you will lose what hearing you have, because the implant bypasses you ear and sends the sound directly to your brain. So, I had only my left ear done, becuse I didn't want to be totally deaf. Part of the "appliance" is actually a magnet, that "sticks" to your head, the implant is under your scalp. The magnet is strong enough to stay attached through your skin. And then you have an earpiece, that looks like a hearing aid, but you wear it behind your ear, instead of inside like a hearing aid. That's where the microphone is, it sends the sound waves up through the magnetic piece through your scalp to the computer placed under your scalp. Really amazing. There is actually no part of it in my ear. Hope that makes sense. I'm confusing me..lol..I go in every six months to have the program updated, because as you loose your hearing, your brain actually forgets those sounds, and you have to learn them all over again. Which takes time.It would be overwhelming to have it all at once, if you, like me..hadn't heard birds singing for about 8 years. Wow, small things like that, and grandchildren speaking to you, and you can hear them..make it all worthwhile!
The surgery at that time, in 2002 was something like 80,000. But Thank God for insurance, which paid for it all except about $2000, or I wouldn't have been able to have it done. It is covered by insurance, where a hearing aid isn't. And has rechargeable batteries, which last about 18 hours they say, I don't last that long..so I'll take thier word for it. www.advancedbionics.com
will tell you all about it..
Hope you find something to help you, and sorry I have rambled forever..
I look forward to meeting you..I enjoy reading your posts and laughing with you!

Pam

[zcaveman]

I had my hearing tested at the Lake County Hearing Clinic next to the Publix in SS. Based on my hearing loss they recommended the Unitron element series. I finally decided on the element 16. They were $4000.

I like them but I do not wear them all of the time. They pick up everything and I am kind of used to the quiet now. When I do wear them, I do hear all of the conversation and don't have to ask people to repeat the comments. When it is windy, they do tend to pick up the wind noise. They automatically adjust for sounds but you can also manually lower the sensitivity. I still have a hard time with a telephone. I went down and got a free hearing assisted telephone in Leesburg.

BTW: If you are VA eligible, try them first. I heard that they were cheaper there. Even Lake County Hearing Clinic told me that.

Z

[Mikitv]

Gracie Girl,

Yes Meniere's is an inner ear problem. I first went to The Michigan Ear Institute for my diagnosis. Since moving South I have had to deal with ENT specialist for my treatment. Meniere's causes you to have vertigo, dizziness and nausea. You never know when it will hit you or how severe it will be. They really don't know a lot about it or how to really treat it other than using diuretics, Valium or meclazine. I had horrible episode last year that caused me to lose my hearing and a another one this year where I lost more of my hearing. The hearing aid does help compared to without it. Mine does have a wind muffler type of thing. Not sure what to call it. You can check out the web site for michiganear.com and get a lot of information on hearing problems. I know that Dr. Kartush is one of the tops in the nation. Every doctor I have seen down south know who he is.

[graciegirl]

Everyone! I have learned so much from each of you and this is wonderful, because it is written. I know I don't have to explain that to any one of you. I wonder if my brain has lost the ability to absorb some spoken words. I kind of "save" wearing my "hearers" for special times and don't wear them around the house. All of you know that they are like contacts in the sense that your ears get tired toward the end of the day and they itch and like the air in them. Maybe I need to wear them all the time anyway so I don't get progressively worse! We need to have a little minigroup in TV that we can get together and have fun. My house for sure! We will be there after the 20th of this month until after Thanksgiving and then from January until...who knows? So looking forward to meeting each and all of you.

Would you all be up for that?

GG

[pwdasher]

I would love to meet you, don't really know for sure when I'll be there, but I'll let you know and maybe we can get together..And I do know what you mean about being written..email is the greatest thing to me! Next to my implant :) The phone is near impossible somedays..depends on who is on the other end..

Have a safe trip to TV!
Pam

[Mikitv]

Yes I would love to have a informal chat group whenever I get to TV. I agree it is hard to talk on the phone these days, because I do have some minor loss in my right ear also, but don't wear a hearing aid for that. Graciegirl I do usually wear mine all the time, the only problem I have is that my ear sweats at times. Never had that problem before, but that is only minor. I do have a special box to put it in at night because I sweat and the moisture in our area. It is like a dehumidifier so that you keep the moisture out of the hearing aid. Here at home my son thinks I should learn sign language. I know he was kidding but it is something I have thought about since I would probably never be able to afford a cochlear implant. I love the support and information I have obtained through this wonderful sight.

[graciegirl]

I agree with you. It is wonderful to be understood and not made to feel different. Just normal. Sometimes, actually most times when I am talking to all of you here or when I am in The Villages, I feel like a kid again. It is so NICE to be with one's age peers. NOT that I don't like younger folks. But they have other fish to fry. They aren't like us. Thank God. There is a beauty to each age of our lives. This IS the best. So what, I don't hear well. I have friends who don't hear well either, but we can DANCE!:a040:

[Time for Tee]

:agree::agree: I have been wearing the aids for three years now---one is in the ear digital and my new one is behind the ear. Maybe that is why I am off balance! Very expensive so I am waiting for the in the ear one to stop functioning. I have been testing out both styles and really like the one that is behind the ear for hearing ability and just the comfort level.
My worst time is dining out with a soft spoken female server. My husband knows the look of panic in my eyes when I cannot understand what she is asking me about the order. I try to fake it and then really fail! Usually I am trying to cope with the noisy background level and all of the talk and laughter. I can regulate the volume on the behind the ear with a small remote control and it usually does well as far as movies, concerts, etc. One to one I am fine but out in a crowd I can have a problem. They were both over $2000 and I check in with my Dr. once a year or when necessary for a computer adjustment.
Fun to get together --maybe we could learn to sign!:coolsmiley:I have the bad genes because my husband is a Dentist and with all of that drilling and noise he does not have any sign of hearing loss. For TV watching I have something like TV ears which is great for low noise level for Hubby. Phone is not a problem. Grandchildren are hard to hear at times. I try not to complain because I am happy with all of the new high tech advances that are being made for the Boomers.:a040:

[Mikitv]

Time for Tee:

I agree with you it is hard to hear when some one is soft spoken and you are in a noisy area. I am not bashful anymore, I ask them to speak up. If some one is on my left side where hearing aid is it is harder to hear especially if they are where my side vision is gone. If I don't know they are there I hear them but not what they are saying. That is frustrating. It would be nice if my hearing loss didn't fluctuate at time because of the Meniere's. It is great to converse with other people and their experiences too. Some times it makes you feel isolated when you can't hear everything.

[pwdasher]

I agree about the isolation..I told my husband..not being able to hear is like being in a bubble, no one can get in and you can't get out..it's the worst! Thank God for all these inventions!