Hello, as you may be able to see from my audiogram, my hearing loss is asymmetric, and it has been since I can remember. I have now decided to get a hearing aid for the right side, a Phonak Lumity Life 90. In a previous thread, there were some discussions whether buying online is a smart move and the consensus was that it is not. Well I did it anyway and I do not regret - actually I am quite happy with the hearing aid. In the meantime I started adjusting it myself via the Phonak Target sofware, which helped a lot.
My left ear also shows hearing loss at higher frequencies, and I was wondering whether you recommend getting a second hearing aid to complete the pair?
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Hey great you made the right choice, absolutely thereâs nothing wrong at all buying online as youâve seen, and yes I would recommend you get one for your left side, hearing is so much better with two and you can also get the extra features by doing this, hard to say if youâll get âextra benefitsâ in the real world of hearing but your pushing 60dB + at 4000Hz onwards (moderate to severe) could help with speech comprehension it thatâs an issue for you?
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Well, he made âaâ choice. As has been discussed many times, the ârightâ choice varies among different folks, depending on their needs and wishes.
Programming for very mild hearing loss, with no need for custom molds or complex programs/tweakings etc,. is less complex.
Iâm glad that it worked out!
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Ha ha, he made the right choice for him I mean right?
Programming ones HAs geff is not âcomplexâ but again Iâm glad youâve made the right choice for you.
Cheers
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I have always agreed with the professional opinion thatâas hearing properly/well is a bilateral affairâwearing two hearing aids from the start is highly advisable. Direction is very important to hearing well. With only one aid, your intake of all-around sound is not natural. You wonât have the normal directional information. You are at the beginning of what will be a lifelong affair of adjusting to imperfect hearing; starting correctly (receiving sound information from both ears evenly) is critical to training your brain in this new skill.
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My hearing is also asymmetric. I recommend that you get a second hearing aid. Itâs especially beneficial having two hearing aids if you make use of connectivity to other devices.
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I had one Widex hearing aid, in one ear. It affected my balance.
DaveL
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In my opinion, if you can afford it I would. You cant go wrong with it.
-Even if the other aid does most of the work, the second aid will balance things out and can help preserve hearing by clipping really loud sounds that may not be clipped naturally.
-If the more you age the other ear fails more, youâll already have an aid and be accustomed to using it
-Streaming will be better with two
-Worst case scenario, if you never use it youâve got a backup ready to rock. Program them the same then use one as your main and experiment heavily with the other. Report back your findings!
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Thank you for sharing your sensible opinions - I am now wearing both aids and you were right: it is much better and worth it. As predicted streaming also is finally attractive. And understanding speech in complex settings is also much better as is general awareness of sourroundings. I will keep the second aid.
As to online purchase and DIY adjustment: I would speculate it is easier for me with one ear that ls still relatively ok and the bad one ok up to 2 K. My brain can still recognize how good hearing feels, which could male adjustments easier? Also, I believe some of the lacking audiologistâs experience is compensated by the hearing aidâs technology.
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Iâm glad it worked so well for you!
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