Is getting a hearing aid worth it to hear whispers?

Hearing Aids
#1

I am 53 and have a hard time hearing when people whisper to me. That is really the only thing that is troublesome right now. I can either turn up the TV or watch with subtitles, can hear conversations, etc.

The audiologist said it was up to me if I wanted hearing aids. He thought they would be helpful but acknowledged that most people with my high frequency hearing loss wait to get aids. He said he thought aids would help but if I wasn’t ready to come back in a year for a new hearing test and he could discuss options again.

#2

Ask your audiologist if you can trial a pair of aids. But my experience has been that when people whisper they usually don’t want you hearing what they’re saying.

#3

If I had your Audiogram I would give OTC a try, you could always return them after the trial period,

#4

People are whispering to me because they want me to hear but not others people. I work at a school so a teacher whispered something to me and another teacher they didn’t want some students nearby to hear. I couldn’t catch what was being said.

#5

I should have added that surprisingly my insurance pays 80% for hearing aids and I pay 20%, which makes me think l should take advantage of this benefit now because who knows of it will still be a benefit in 2-3 years.,

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#6

I agree you should, a online hearing place that uses local audiologist to do the fitting quoted me $4.7K for top of the line Widex plus one year of visits that would be less that a thousand with your insurance.

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#7

Do you bother other people if you turn up the TV? If you’re not asking other people to repeat (unless they whisper) and you’re not bothered or bothering other people, I guess there is no “need” for hearing aids.
However, they’d probably be easier to get used to now then when you really “need” them. If you’re amenable to the idea, I think it would be a good idea to try them. You’ll likely find the differences subtle, but that’s a lot easier to get used to then when your hearing has gotten worse.

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#8

What are whispers? I do have a vague memory of them but that was from long ago. Agree that you should probably take advantage of the insurance while you have it, benefits change and often not to our advantage.

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#9

Can you hear whispers with hearing aids? Or you still can’t even wearing hearing aids?

#10

As a former instructor I feel the need to ask if you can hear student questions and answers from the far end of the classroom? If you can, then it will probably be easier to tell people you can’t hear them, but as you say, you have such a great benefit place, it might be worth getting a hearing test* and maybe trying some hearing aids.

I think everyone should get a hearing test in midlife and after to establish a baseline and hearing trends over the years.

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#11

You’re missing about 33% of speech sounds at a regular conversational level with that hearing loss. Try them. I think you’ll be surprised.

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#12

33%? I had no idea. I have been researching hearing aids but there are so many choices and it seems overwhelming. It’s amazing how many resources this site has but it’s information overload right now.

My audiologist seems good and I don’t feel pressured by him at all to get hearing aids. He recommends a behind the ear aid that allows sound in so low frequency sounds aren’t blocked. I said I wanted to research a bit then return in a month to discuss getting hearing aids.

#13

Just take it a day at a time. Unless you had a strong desire for a different style of hearing aid, any audiologist would recommend that style to you; it’s a good fit for your loss. Differences between major manufacturers are very small, it’s hard to go wrong. Just see what your options are re: return periods and dive in. You’ll learn the most from trying it out.

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#14

Have you a recent iPhone? If so, get a pair of Apple Airpods Pro 2. Apple has a very impressive hearing assistance algorithm that may give you great benefits at a relatively low cost.

If you are wedded to the Android ecosystem, you don’t really have the same options. Google’s accessibility assistance is improving but is still some way behind Apple.

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#15

I think it would be worth it for you to trial hearing aids. But don’t get your hopes up about hearing whispers. I don’t understand or hear whispering with hearing aids, they are an aid not a complete fix.

#16

With my hearing loss, no, I generally cannot hear whispers even with hearing aids, unless the person whispering is near me, facing me, whispering loudly, and it’s a quiet environment, and even then, not always. Cupping my hand behind my ear might make it work better. I can set my hearing aids in just a couple of seconds using a phone app to hear whispering better, but then ordinary speech would be too loud, unless I changed it back.

Now your loss, user460, is fairly mild compared to mine, so your mileage may vary. In fact you might be a candidate for the new over-the-counter aids (which I am not), but I doubt insurance covers those.

Only way to find out how they work for you is to try a pair.

#17

Your audiogram is worse than mine was when I first tried aids. They said I was borderline for needing them, but they made a big difference, so I think it’s worth trying them.

It’s worth mentioning that where hearing aids struggle is in noise, so don’t be surprised if they don’t help as much when it’s noisy.

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#18

My comment is, your hearing is not going to get any better by waiting.

Get them. Learn how to use them. Enjoy the sounds of life.

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#19

When I saw the thread title, my first thought was: What if you’re just imagining they are whispering, but they’re not? :joy: But then I read what you meant. :grin:

I imagined my wife was mumbling all the time. Turned out it was me! :blush:

I don’t know how much difference they might make to you in every day life. Maybe a lot, maybe only a little. Only way to know is to trial a pair for 3-4 weeks and see… er, hear for yourself.

If you decide against having them right now, maybe you could handle those (fairly rare, right?) whisper situations by some means or other. Perhaps having a basic sound amplification device like Walker’s Game Ear or an OTC unit that you can pop into one ear for a little while? Or do they still sell those vintage-style ear horns? The kids might get a kick of out of seeing you whip that bugle to your ear! :smile:

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#20

I can’t hear my grandaughter when she whispering to me,so she can’t,I hate that,