Mold vs tulip

Hearing Aids
#1

I have worn my ReSound Zigas for four years. Money is a problem. The earmolds are getting ugly, and I suggested switching to open fit. My HL is borderline (molds vs open), more so in my right ear. The tulip works well in my left ear, but I get bunches of feedback on my right. She adjusted them for the tulips, so now when I switched to the earmold for the right ear, I guess I get occlusion effects. I can switch back and forth, but I do like the tulips better, except for the feedback. ??? Should I learn to tolerate the feedback?

I have a cookie bite, with I think 35 to 45 at its worst. Don’t have an audiogram available, and it is old anyway.

Maybe voc rehab can pay for a new audiogram and new earmold for the right. Until then??

#2

It’s not just you that is hearing the feedback, I’m sure if people are close to you they are hearing it too.

#3

That is a good point-- when it is irritating to others, it is a problem. Just clowning around last night, thinking about another thread, I stuck an ear plug in, and there was no problem. I am thinking that a bit of cotton above it will take care of it. :wink:

#4

You can get a new set of hearing aids with better feedback management and probably be just fine in the tulip tips.

Is the feedback all the time or just when you get your hand or something else near your ear? If it is all the time, then that isn’t a solution. But if you are only getting it at certain times that is for you to decide if it can be tolerated.

#5

Won’t know until you ask. People are often pleasantly surprised when they call and find they qualify for new hearing aids.

Ditto. New HA’s will have much better feedback control and most likely, this won’t be nearly as much of an issue.

#6

Will wait and see. I think the cotton is working. No-- feedback all the time would be intolerable. They feel so much better, a bit of feedback is just a reminder that I am wearing HA’s. :slight_smile:

Thanks.

#7

Well, I tried the tulip in left ear. Yesterday I lost my phone, and had a friend call me. She also had to find the phone for me, because I have been hearing unequally.

So I have set aside the tulips, and am now using the old molds. I will have to get new molds soon, but they aren’t that expensive. And I trimmed the earmolds so that the ugly white part is gone, and all of the mold is in the canal.

Then I realized that given how many passive-aggressive people there are, having a cookie bite combined with occlusion effects are good. I can hike them way up, and hear speech better than the average person, with no feedback, and little distracting noise. :cool: