Author Topic: Hearing aids  (Read 7515 times)

Offline B.D.F.

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Hearing aids
« on: April 30, 2018, 02:40:09 PM »
So most of my fellow C-14 owners are 'long of tooth' as I am and therefore, I believe have some experience in an area new to me.....

I am  60 yrs. old and my hearing sucks (technical term meaning significant loss of sensitivity to both very low and mid- to- high frequency sound). I often use the CC portion of TV and just read the words. I am having all the 'usual' problems with speech from an individual, lots of 'white noise' in public areas such as restaurants, and the inability to discriminate consonants. Now while this has a distinctly humorous result, such as when the wife and kid want to watch "Doctor Sour" and I cannot find it because the real title is "Darkest hour", it also has its drawbacks such as conversing with other humans generally.

So, after having a hearing test by an audiologist (real M.D., not a hearing aid center), and getting the curve of my hearing loss, it has been presented to me that I "require" XYZ brand and type of hearing aid. Fine and well. But these hearing aids are $6,200, out of pocket, and I am currently researching how much better 'the best' is from the middle- of- the pack hearing aids, which start at $150 each and run up to $1,200 each. ??

So, here is the question: is $1,000 worth of hearing aids 90% as good as the $6,200 hearing aids? 70% as good?

??

I did test- drive a pair of Opticon One hearing aids for the weekend and I must say that 1) they really seemed to "cure" my nasty tinnitus, which is GREAT all by itself. They seemed to help my overall hearing, starting with human interaction and ending with TV watching. They are comfortable and I actually fell asleep with them installed without any discomfort or problem. But the real question remains: will $300 worth of hearing aids perform well enough by comparison? How about the $1,200 hearing aids?

So to all you half- deaf, 'old people' out there, any insight in choosing between a lesser priced but "full capability" set of hearing aids, and the 'top dog', very expensive, 'state- of- the- art' hearing aids? Is the difference worth 6 or 10 times the cost?

Any useful input appreciated,
Brian
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Offline Eupher

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Re: Hearing aids
« Reply #1 on: April 30, 2018, 03:10:25 PM »
I'm 61 and have been a performing musician for 50 years. So yeah, my hearing sucks.

I have two different types of hearing aids, and find the smaller ones that fit inside the ear canal without the over-the-ear hook to be most comfortable -- but prone to feedback, unfortunately.

I've used these guys. They're much more reasonable than the $6,200 flavor. Hearing aids, according to a friend of mine who's in the business, is a racket on par with the Crime Families out of NYC. No need to pay that kind of money for the help. They won't even make you an offer "you can't refuse."

And 75% of wearing a hearing aid is actually convincing yourself and training yourself that you need to wear them. Like false teeth (that I don't have), hearing aids is a PITA to contend with. But it is nice to hear stuff that you haven't heard in a very long time -- like a car's turn signal noise, for example. And I don't watch TV because I can't hear the dialogue -- and that is a blessing.

https://centuryhearingaids.com/?SID=e5ipqidgdqvjj7ij9himppbk93
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Offline maxtog

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Re: Hearing aids
« Reply #2 on: April 30, 2018, 04:08:42 PM »
I don't have hearing aids, but I have often thought it is a racket when I see the pricing.  Some of the higher-end ones do have some neat features, like being able to use them with Blue Tooth, so you can use them as headphones for music, or with your phone.  Others have the ability to be programmed on the fly for different listening conditions.  Some high-end also have automatic gain control and noise filtering.

Like you, I suspect that a basic aid (programmed for your exact audiogram) will give you at least 80% of what the super-expensive ones will.  The old "80/20" rule :)
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Offline FTB530

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Re: Hearing aids
« Reply #3 on: April 30, 2018, 04:41:46 PM »
I have been wearing hearing aids since I was 40, 18 years now, the in the ear Canal is what I use and I usually get a set that my insurance pays 100% of the cost, but now I am at a point the ITC aids are not big enough to have the more powerful electronics available. So I went to a audiologist and they let me borrow a set for two weeks over the ear type, they really made a difference but the cost was close to $5k, I am not eligible for a new set from my insurance until December, so I went to Costco and I will be buying a set there and the pric e is about $1800.
 If you have a Costco in Your area take your info from the audiologist there and see what a they can do for you!

Ps the over the ear hearing aids I could not wear inside my helmet!

Offline maxtog

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Re: Hearing aids
« Reply #4 on: April 30, 2018, 04:52:24 PM »
Ps the over the ear hearing aids I could not wear inside my helmet!

But would you want to?  Many of us wear earplugs (maybe most?) in an effort to reduce wind noise and prevent progressive hearing loss/damage...  I never really thought of someone WANTING to hear more while riding, unless it was really profound hearing loss, or if it involved needing to use communications (intercom).  I suppose it might be a hassle to have to re-install them in your ears each time, if you are using the bike on and off a lot.  Hmm.
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Offline jettawreck

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Re: Hearing aids
« Reply #5 on: April 30, 2018, 05:52:16 PM »
I don't need (?) them yet, but my parents have them. My dad has had them for many years and several different types.

1) Very expensive, most of them hugely overpriced and almost should be considered racketeering.
2) "Audiologist" guys always try to sell you on technology. Currently my dad has found the external "old school" behind the ear unit he is using now is superior to the fancy, tiny in the ear units he's had in the past.
Check out options and get local recommendations, lots of them.
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Online Rubber_Snake

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Re: Hearing aids
« Reply #6 on: April 30, 2018, 07:35:04 PM »
Brian, what do you mean that the Optican Ones seemed to “cure” your tinnitus?

I have mild tinnitus and it sucks.

When I ride, I wear a pair of Bose bluetooth noise cancelling earbuds.  They are incredible. They help to keep the noise down and protect my ears, albeit to a smaller degree than actual earplugs.  Plus, I can actually hear my music as opposed to my Sena, which only has average sound fidelity and does nothing for noise.
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Offline tonedeaf1

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Re: Hearing aids
« Reply #7 on: April 30, 2018, 08:18:40 PM »
My GP Physician recommends Costco. I haven't tried them but I am close to new units and I will definitely check them out:
http://hearinghealthmatters.org/blog/2017/costco-hearing-aid-review-phonak-resound-bernafon-rexton/


Important: Don't believe anything your ears tell you until you have worn them for at least 3 months. Your hearing loss is slow and putting in new hearing aids is fast, so things will sound strange.

Of all the options, the ability is adjust the volume is critical. Cell phones can be a pain so think about Blue Tooth if you spend a lot of time on the phone.

Offline maxtog

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Re: Hearing aids
« Reply #8 on: May 01, 2018, 01:40:36 AM »
I have mild tinnitus and it sucks.

So do I, and I can confirm that it does, indeed, suck, badly.  It is a far worse disorder than hearing loss because almost nothing can be done about it.  Mine came on pretty suddenly about two years and for no "reason".  It is at about 13KHz and never stops.  For now, thankfully, I can ignore it most of the day, unless it is a really quiet environment.  I pray it doesn't get worse.
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Offline FTB530

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Re: Hearing aids
« Reply #9 on: May 01, 2018, 02:54:01 AM »
So do I, and I can confirm that it does, indeed, suck, badly.  It is a far worse disorder than hearing loss because almost nothing can be done about it.  Mine came on pretty suddenly about two years and for no "reason".  It is at about 13KHz and never stops.  For now, thankfully, I can ignore it most of the day, unless it is a really quiet environment.  I pray it doesn't get worse.

I have tinnitus also and there is no cure for me it, as far as wanting to wear hearing aid in my helmet I have a Sena I would like to hear ,but I can’t anyway. I plan on buying a set of Westone ac20 to wear in my helmet so I can use the Sena!

Offline Conrad

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Re: Hearing aids
« Reply #10 on: May 01, 2018, 04:23:27 AM »
My experience is that most people don't say anything worth hearing anyways, so...    ;)
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Offline maxtog

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Re: Hearing aids
« Reply #11 on: May 01, 2018, 05:48:41 AM »
My experience is that most people don't say anything worth hearing anyways, so...    ;)


What??  I can't hear you.....
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Offline Conrad

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Re: Hearing aids
« Reply #12 on: May 01, 2018, 07:59:52 AM »

What??  I can't hear you.....

I'll talk a little louder for you.


Wait, maybe it's glasses that you need Max?
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Offline B.D.F.

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Re: Hearing aids
« Reply #13 on: May 01, 2018, 09:26:25 AM »
The Dr. stuck them in (Boys!) and later, on the ride home, I noticed my tinnitus was simply gone. Mine is a solid hiss, like pure white noise, quite 'loud' in the left ear and it is annoying. But while wearing the hearing aids, it simply did not exist.

Doctor told me that tinnitus was not in the ear but rather in the brain, and occurs because the brain is expecting input from the ear, and so 1) begins to scan for that input harder and 2) will make up <something> to simulate input coming from the ear. Immediately upon installing the hearing aids, I began to hear a lot of little noises, virtually continuously, that I had not been hearing before, so perhaps with real input, the brain relaxes and returns to normal (OK, closer to normal) behavior. ?? Whatever the actual cause and action, it just went away. The funny thing is that I actual fell asleep with them in and 'on', and again, did not hear the usual loud hiss in the left ear at all.

Who knows, maybe it is psychosomatic. Normally I do not go in for anything that cannot be drawn, predicted or explained without using any words that are similar to 'magic' but the sub- conscious..... maybe that can be tricked. I only had the aids for 2 days and 3 nights (hey, like a vacation!) but they were very effective for my tinnitus. And helping me hear. And really helping me understand the words people actually say rather than the ones my brain makes up because they are close to what was said (though my words are always much funnier IMO). So the kids really did not want to watch a movie called Doctor Sour (which frankly sounded lousy just going by the title) but instead wanted to watch Darkest Hour.

Qualtiy of life is improved, seemingly greatly improved, with hearing aids in my case. Now the question is how much improvement and at what price? If I could get 92% effectiveness for a grand, or 96% effectiveness for six grand, I would go for the 92%. Hence this thread: where is that 'knee' in the cost / performance curve?

BTW- I found the same $6,200 hearing aids available on- line for just over $4,000 so that adds to the choices too. I would never 'go around' a full V.A.R. and buy on-line w/out letting them know and seeing if we could cut a deal. I would pay more for a local source that offered other advantages (loaner aids, local repair, etc.) but not 50% more, so somewhere in- between there may be the makings of a workable deal. ??

Brian

Brian, what do you mean that the Optican Ones seemed to “cure” your tinnitus?

I have mild tinnitus and it sucks.

When I ride, I wear a pair of Bose bluetooth noise cancelling earbuds.  They are incredible. They help to keep the noise down and protect my ears, albeit to a smaller degree than actual earplugs.  Plus, I can actually hear my music as opposed to my Sena, which only has average sound fidelity and does nothing for noise.
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Offline B.D.F.

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Re: Hearing aids
« Reply #14 on: May 01, 2018, 09:35:02 AM »
That is what I am looking at as an alternative. Best case would be those programmable by me so I can flatten the hearing response curve (drops on bass, falls into a well at higher freqs). With a simple home- hearing test, I think they could be an excellent alternative to the existing infrastructure where so many have to clip so much profit in the chain that brings hearing aids to the public.

Thanks for the link and the feedback (sorry, I could not resist).

Brian

I'm 61 and have been a performing musician for 50 years. So yeah, my hearing sucks.

I have two different types of hearing aids, and find the smaller ones that fit inside the ear canal without the over-the-ear hook to be most comfortable -- but prone to feedback, unfortunately.

I've used these guys. They're much more reasonable than the $6,200 flavor. Hearing aids, according to a friend of mine who's in the business, is a racket on par with the Crime Families out of NYC. No need to pay that kind of money for the help. They won't even make you an offer "you can't refuse."

And 75% of wearing a hearing aid is actually convincing yourself and training yourself that you need to wear them. Like false teeth (that I don't have), hearing aids is a PITA to contend with. But it is nice to hear stuff that you haven't heard in a very long time -- like a car's turn signal noise, for example. And I don't watch TV because I can't hear the dialogue -- and that is a blessing.

https://centuryhearingaids.com/?SID=e5ipqidgdqvjj7ij9himppbk93
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Offline maxtog

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Re: Hearing aids
« Reply #15 on: May 01, 2018, 04:14:54 PM »

I'll talk a little louder for you.


Wait, maybe it's glasses that you need Max?

Don't rub it in... now I am nearly blind at anything less than about 2.5 feet.  Freaking glasses.
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Offline maxtog

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Re: Hearing aids
« Reply #16 on: May 01, 2018, 04:24:05 PM »
Doctor told me that tinnitus was not in the ear but rather in the brain, and occurs because the brain is expecting input from the ear, and so 1) begins to scan for that input harder and 2) will make up <something> to simulate input coming from the ear.

There are different kinds/types and causes of tinnitus, but it is generally not a solid science quite yet.  In many cases, they are related to hearing loss.  In my case, I am not so sure, I seem to have very sensitive hearing and have always protected my hearing.  Yet, I have never had a hearing test.  Perhaps I should.

Last night I tried one of those "listen to this tone for 5 minutes" on YouTube.  To my horror, when it was done, instead of improvement my tinnitus was at least twice as loud and took several hours to return to the "normal" amount of tone/annoyance.

Quote
Who knows, maybe it is psychosomatic.

That, I don't go for, at all.  It has a lot of brain involvement, but in my case, I know it isn't something that can just be wished away.  The only thing that helps is to have background noise, especially white noise (like a fan, which I use at night), which just kinda masks it so it can be "tuned out", but it is always there.

Quote
Normally I do not go in for anything that cannot be drawn, predicted or explained without using any words that are similar to 'magic' but the sub- conscious..... maybe that can be tricked. I only had the aids for 2 days and 3 nights (hey, like a vacation!) but they were very effective for my tinnitus.

In your case, I bet it really is just your brain in a feedback loop from the hearing loss of certain frequencies.  So getting aids sounds like a double-win.  Now, if you can just do it affordably.  It isn't just the initial price either.  Expect them to be like a smart phone- wearing out, breaking, needing updates, service, batteries, etc.  Blah.
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Offline O.C.

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Re: Hearing aids
« Reply #17 on: May 02, 2018, 01:03:33 AM »
There are different kinds/types and causes of tinnitus, but it is generally not a solid science quite yet.  In many cases, they are related to hearing loss.  In my case, I am not so sure, I seem to have very sensitive hearing and have always protected my hearing.  Yet, I have never had a hearing test.  Perhaps I should.

Last night I tried one of those "listen to this tone for 5 minutes" on YouTube.  To my horror, when it was done, instead of improvement my tinnitus was at least twice as loud and took several hours to return to the "normal" amount of tone/annoyance.

That, I don't go for, at all.  It has a lot of brain involvement, but in my case, I know it isn't something that can just be wished away.  The only thing that helps is to have background noise, especially white noise (like a fan, which I use at night), which just kinda masks it so it can be "tuned out", but it is always there.

In your case, I bet it really is just your brain in a feedback loop from the hearing loss of certain frequencies.  So getting aids sounds like a double-win.  Now, if you can just do it affordably.  It isn't just the initial price either.  Expect them to be like a smart phone- wearing out, breaking, needing updates, service, batteries, etc.  Blah.


Is that a common side effect ? 
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Offline VirginiaJim

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Re: Hearing aids
« Reply #18 on: May 02, 2018, 04:20:55 AM »
I hope not.
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Offline gPink

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Re: Hearing aids
« Reply #19 on: May 02, 2018, 05:29:16 AM »
Will your ears fall off?