Hearing Aid Awareness
 

I wear hearing aids that are controlled by my iPhone. This control includes settings for various environments such as restaurants, church, outdoors and watching TV. In addition to these settings I control the volume and bass/treble to maximize speech understanding.

My husband and I went to a movie on Saturday and I needed to make bass/treble adjustments to understand the dialog. There is no beeping, ringing or tinging when making these adjustments.

The “gentleman” behind me saw that I had my phone on and he rapped (harder than tapped) my shoulder and said rudely “put that away”. I didn’t say anything since the movie had begun and I didn’t want to disrupt the patrons around me. I did continue to adjust the settings but was nervous considering the other movie/phone incident that occurred in Florida last year.

After the movie I said to the “gentleman” - “Sir, you need to be aware that cell phones are used for more that talking and texting. I was adjusting my hearing aids”. He did not respond but hopefully will be aware in the future that if someone is using their phone it may be for reasons other than entertainment.

Respectfully:

I wear Hearing Aids too. However, by having your cell phone on you are disturbing patrons all around you. It's a catch 22 situation. My recommendation is to keep the cell phone off and use an alternate remote control device in this situation.

Well done!

LorasBetty: Intellectually handled. Good for you

I think the problem is the light given off by the phone. However I think it is reasonable that you adjust your hearing aids when necessary. Good that you mentioned the use to him and the rest of us.

Plenty of time to make that adjustment during the half hour of previews. Don't blind people behind you once the movie starts. Everybody happy...

I was not aware that hearing aids could be adjusted via your phone. Thank you for this information.

The previews are not always the same as the movie sound level. Unless you had to wear hearing aids you would not understand. Thay are not like glasses that you just put on and then everything is 20 20.

Thank you bobbym for saying exactly what I was going to say - the aids were adjusted during preview time but when the movie started they needed further adjusting. The entire process was no more than 30 seconds and my brightness control was turned low. I believe this incident was due to the fact that a phone was visible to him.

No I believe the incident was due to him being a jerk who looks for any opportunity to bully someone....

So...the ONLY way to adjust your aids is with a cell phone? :shrug:
Really?
I also wear HA's and can adjust them manually or with a small remote when needed.

Actually you are wrong, but entitled to an opinion.

He, like me has been trined by our society of ignorant, impolite, continuous use of cell phones and in theatres. One cannot go ANYPLACE where folks do not have their faces buried in their phones.

So the person in question picked on one who had a legitimate reason. Does not make him a jerk or what ever else he is called. Merely a victim of circumstance. The jerks are the others in theatres, restaurants, buses, doctors office, church et al.

If he "picked on one who had a legitimate reason", the fact that he said anything at all makes him a jerk. "picked on" is self explanatory!

:BigApplause:

Too bad there are so many self appointed monitors living in the Villages who think it is up to them to control others and have no clue themselves.

Not to add fuel to the fire, but I wear hearing aids and I go to the movies. I do not have iPhone adjustments, but I am glad to know that is available and maybe I will consider this when I get new hearing aids in the future.

I see both sides of this situation (not the jerk part), but since it might be sensitive, even a threatening possibility, maybe you as the movie patron could have gently eased yourself out of your seat and gone to the back of the theater to adjust your hearing aids by the phone and disturbed few, if any, people while standing in the back (or off to the side, or in the aisle leading into the theater. Just go somewhere that the actual movie is being heard but away from other patrons.

Just an idea. Perhaps the standing up and moving out of your seat would be less threatening and annoying to others than taking the chance of being harmed or bullied by a nearby jerk. I am thinking this is what I would have done.

nancymenn has a good point, but I'm afraid it isn't that simple. As any good audio engineer will tell you, the volume and quality of sound varies depending on your location and the source of the sound. Therefore, if you leave your seat and go to the back of the theater to adjust your hearing aids, the adjustment will only be correct for that location at the back of the theater. It won't be the correct adjustment when you return to your seat.

every hearing aid that can be adjusted from a cell phone can also be adjusted from the hearing aid itself.
I wear hearing aids in both ears. When an adjustment is made it is usually one tap of one or the other of the aids and adjusts both at the same time. I can have mine adjusted while some are still reaching for their phone.

Keep your seat. Keep your phone in your pocket. Adjust in the same time it takes to snap your fingers. Done!!!!

:eclipsee_gold_cup: Exactly right! And, as I recall, the theater reminds you 3 times to turn off your phone...please.

I'm going to have to disagree with those who say everything can be adjusted by means of the the remote or a tap on the aid itself. I know environmental and volume changes can be made but these alone do not give me what I need.

There are many types of hearing aids and many types of hearing disabilities. My disability requires bass and treble adjustments especially in large public environments. The remote cannot make this adjustment. It requires the use of the Smart app on my phone to give me this functionality.

I am not going to quit going to movies because I have a hearing disability that you do not approve of. And the suggestion of leaving my seat to go elsewhere and make the adjustment will not work either - adjustments vary from each location. Additionally I would think that easing out of the seat to go make an adjustment and then easing back in after the movie begins would disrupt more people than making a 30-second low brightness adjustment on my phone.

The use of cell phones can be abused but there are many legitimate and necessary uses for them as well. I was hoping my original post would bring awareness to the fact that cell phones are used for more than chit-chat and texting.

That was true 5 five years ago and is that way on the cheeper aids yet today but with the new high end aids you have a lot more control then button pushing can do.

Actually it is todays technology. I can use my iphone and take more time to make the same adjustments I can on the hearing aid itself.

Got all the bells and whistles including bluetooth allowing phone access and television audio to the hearing aids.

I use the hearing aid control most of the time....much quicker for the same result.

A change for theatre environment....still just a click of one hearing aid....finger snap quick!!