Please help, today I got my first hearing aid for mild high frequency hearing loss. Naively, I thought the hearing aid would naturally compensate for my loss and I would hear everything like a healthy person. I know I am stupid, naive, but maybe using a hearing aid is useless in my case. The effect it does is only like talking to a microphone. It makes most sounds (not the deeper sounds ) louder, but that is not what I wanted at all. Please help.
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Welcome.
Do you have the audiogram results of your hearing test you can share? There are many different types of hearing loss.
Hearing aids take an adjustment period to get used to them, when I first got mine I was horrified at how weird my families voices sounded and hated it but now it’s normal and all I know. Things sound horrible to start with but then it become “normal” to you.
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Unfortunately, I gave all audiograms to my audiologist and also the one she had done she kept. I only remember as I looked at the audiograms several times, that I have like 30 dB loss in frequencies between 6000 and 8 000 Hz, in real life it means I cannot hear sounds like crickets or running water in my left ear as clearly as in my right ear where the sound seems fine, but still has some loss even in right ear according to the audiogram. I thought the hearing aid would boost these frequencies and I would hear these sounds clearly, but instead I got an effect of talking to a microphone. I wonder if there are any hearing aids available where you don´t get the microphone sound effect at all.
Hearing aids help to enhance the sounds you cannot hear but will not restore it or make you hear like someone with a “normal” audiogram. Please persevere. It takes time, I read somewhere it can take up to 4 months for your brain to adjust and at least 6 audiology visits to get your hearing aids right. I am one of those that was stubborn and refused to wear my hearing aids for 20 years. I am certainly suffering now. I wear my hearing aids all the time, been nearly 2 months now with no problem comfort wise but I still have to book to see the audiologist to get them adjusted.
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I know what you mean, but then it is better for me not to use the hearing aid at all if it makes things worse. I am sure I would hear mumbling people better but basically for a price like using a mic and a speaker to communicate with them. I understand for regular people with hearing problems hearing aids must be amazing, but unless I really have a problem understanding speech I cannot see the point. I am suffering from mild tinnitus - very high frequency - the frequency of my hearing loss, somewhere about 8000 Hz, so I thought if I hear these frequencies again, I won´t hear tinnitus so loud. But instead I get the microphone effect, which is about as annoying as the tinnitus. So there is no such technology as boosting certain frequencies without adding the microphone effect?
The reason why you have a microphone effect is well… because you are listening through a microphone. Just keep going with them it will become normal and you will look back won’t be able to imagine hearing any other way.
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Different brands of hearing aids tend to sound different. The care and skill of the hearing professional is even more important.
Since I could not find a good professional in my locality, I started going to Costco 10 years ago. They sell top technology level aids at a half to a third of prices elsewhere
Currently I decided to travel farther away and believe I have found a good audiologist. I am paying more money but I really need the improvement in word recognition.
Yes, but my adiologist warned me not to use the microphones on when in the street, public transport, noisy places, as that would be too loud for me and unpleasant. Then I would only turn on the microphones when teaching class, to hear thestudents who sit at the back better, and in nature when alone. That switching on and off all day long would make things difficult to get used to unlike someone who has the microphones on all day long, no?
Maybe I am a bit unusual type for hearing aids as I can hear everyone well except if a student at the back of the classroom mumbles and I am not sure - did she say I’ve or I’d? That is the only case in which I cannot hear clearly - like one syllable at the end of the word. Had vs have or listens vs listened, etc… but that must be someone speaking quietly 10 feet away from me. On the other hand, when listening to music on my stereo, I always turn treble all the way up otherwise the music sounds a bit muffled. So that’s how I am hearing impaired, very subtle details only. That tinnitus is about 100 times more annoying, but I hoped boosting trebles would help mask it.
Just go with it but do provide feedback to your audiologist so they can take that into account and make any necessary adjustments.
Everything will sound louder. Opening a bag of chips, appliances, etc.
The best way to know if your hearing aids are helping you is by asking those you communicate with if they feel you are doing better in conversations.
I would trust others judgements over mine because I am hearing impaired.
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Thank you. Well, everything will sound louder, that is what the hearing aids are doing to me now. I only needed a narrow strip somewhere between 6 and 8 000 Hz but I saw the assistent today setting that and the limit was 6000 Hz.
Hi there, you should post your audiogram which will help others to give further advice.
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Hearing aids don’t fix anything. They try to help. Your audiologist should have explained everything to you which he unfortunately didn’t. Also you need to wear your aids at least a couple of weeks before your brain gets used to the aids. Then you go back to the audiologist for further adjustments. If none of this was explained to you, I would consider returning the aids and finding a new audiologist.
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@user38: Please heed @hass5744 sage advice. He knows what he’s talking about, and he’s giving you sound guidance (pun was not intended 
).
Hearing aids are just one link in a long chain of things that have to happen for us to be able to hear and to understand what’s being said.
Try the Forum Search function, too - you’ll learn a lot.
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Thank you for the kind words Spud.
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me, Your audiologist should be happy to give you the test results from the testing he did. No questions asked.
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You need for ask for the return of your audiograms (the hearing charts) you left with the audiologist. They are YOUR property.
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It sounds like you’re a young person. Your hearing loss won’t get better over time! The hearing aids should help slow down the loss. It’s hard at first to get used to the HA’s but they will definitely help in most situations when you get accustomed to them. There are certain words that you will never hear correctly again because recognition of some letters is lost and HA’s cannot correct it fully. I’m sorry for you hearing loss at a young age but you need to think of it as any other disability and correct for it.
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