Wow. Thanks everyone. I am overwhelmed by the responses and the advice from you all. It’s a lot of info and it certainly is appreciated.
Just from your replies I have so many things to check out. Like I mentioned earlier, I did go to two different ENT places and the first place just set me up to move towards a CI for my left ear and left it at that. I went to see the CI surgeon, and he basically just wanted me to go through the tests and get the thing done. I tried to ask both about alternatives and they did not seem to want to offer any.
I went to a different ‘group’ to get another opinion, and they spent most of the time trashing Costco (I had earlier Jabra’s that I got 3+ years ago) and did not seem to be helpful at all. It was not a good session and I decided not to deal with them because they did not seem to care what I did.
The only place that treated me well was Costco, so after trying the mail order Phonaks and reading about the newer Jabra 30’s, I went back to the audiologist there who did the whole test again, with the in the ear and then ‘on the head’ type of test. That’s where my posted audiogram data came from. She was the only one who seemed to actually care about what I did.
So, I have another appointment with her next week to see how that works out. In the mean time I will see if I can connect with the VA, and again, I have an honorable discharge of course, but I am not a combat veteran or a retired veteran so I don’t expect much help there. I also intend to check out the real BTE stuff and the other suggestions you all have posted.
Deaf_piper: Wow, that’s quite a lot you’ve been through. Thanks so much for taking the time to relate all of that. It’s very thoughtful of you to do that and I take it very seriously. I will see how things go. At 72, I know my remaining time is short, although I am currently in good shape, you just never know once you get into your ‘70s how long you are going to last. Could be 10 years, could be 10 days!
Again, thanks to you all. This place is awesome and honestly, I really do appreciate all of your opinions and guidance. I know more now about this stuff than I ever did.
Being a Veteran with a 70% disability due to Agent Orange related ailments (relatively minor, but they qualified me) I can tel you that the VA is quite good with their audiologists and help. I had HA’s I had originally purchased outright that were getting wonky. I decided it was time to let Uncle pay the way. I went to the VA and got a brand new set for no cost to me. When I was having problems with that set they gave me a new set a new brand and things are working nicely.
When I got back from Nam I was sure I had hearing loss but the VA tested me back in the early 70’s and decided I didn’t. However, my disability is not hearing related but Agent Orange correlated. It put me in the 70% category and that qualified me for the hearing aids. My deterioration is as much age related as anything but the VA gives the disability and doesn’t qualify what it is “good for”.
I strongly suggest you check them out. You can apply online even though you’ll need to see someone once the ball gets rolling.
I got VA coverage for hearing loss (50%) and tinnitus (10%) three years ago at age 77. My hearing was damaged by simulated land mines during military police training in 1968 and my hearing slowly deteriorated over the ensuing years. The VA’s audiological services have been very good. While my hearing loss ranges from severe to profound, my experience with sounds and voices is similar to your description. I rejected my first VA hearing aids because the improvement was disappointing. A new pair of Phonak Audeo hearing aids provided by the VA are very good with digital sound (tv and phone) but so so with voices and seem gradually worsening thus past year. Last month my VA audiologist retested me and my audiogram shows further loss stemming from my service related damage. It has been suggested by a few audiologists that I am eligible for a cochlear implant, but like you I rejected that option. Instead, I have submitted a claim this week to raise my disability rating to 70%.
In all truth @Neville At one time, I would have absolutely loved a cochlear implant, but times change, life happens, I retired, and I have become more accepting of my loss…On paper, I am never going to get much, by way of contextual information from my left ear, but, I notice big time, if I am unaided on my left side, for that reason alone, I have never considered a “Cros Aid”… It may well be a very subtle difference, when aided on the left, but I am acutely aware of those subtleties… Having said that, I do often wonder, if a “Cros Aid” might give me some directionality, I have no idea whatsoever were the direction of any specific sound is coming from, for me, sound doesn’t have any direction, my location of it, is absolute zero, and that has been my normal experience since SSNHL… In your professional opinion, can a “Cros Aid” slightly enhance any directionality? Cheers Kev
I used a cros for many years, since I had poor WRS on my left side. It was ok, but not wonderful. I found that my balance was better without my aids than with them in very precarious situations, like rocky hiking trails. When I switched to the digital version, the cros function didn’t work with any of the special programs, like the music program. This was a nuisance, since I could only use these programs with one ear.
A couple years ago, my audiologist noticed that the WRS score on my left ear had improved significantly, so he suggested amplifying that ear. It took about a year to get fully used to it, but it is a lot better than the cros.
Costco only sells BTE hearing aids that I’ve seen (unless I’m just ignorinng the inside the ear (yuk). His Jabra are one of 3 or 4 models which are priced well for the ones They carry.
I have the Jabra 20 from Costco. I can attest it takes months to reprogram your brain but these are for moderate loss.
I second the suggestion for poster to get connected with VA –they have HA for greater loss and I think he would be better suited for professionals there to retest, reassess and look at models they have.
Severe Profound loss requires a willing competent audiologist who knows how to how to properly make custom RIC power molds or BTE silicon earmolds. Frequency lowering and a remote microphone may help you to comprehend speech better.
You are in good company. I’m 70 years old and a CI candidate with very poor word recognition. My right ear is a bit better, but the distorted left still helps me with speech in quiet situations, Bluetooth streaming and helps to locate environmental sounds. In my opinion CI is an option only you can determine if and when you are ready. For hearing aids if you’re frequently in noise Phonak, if not Oticon.
This was me. When I was looking for hearing aids after the initial diagnosis and the warning from the audiologist in the ENT office that the hearing aids would cost “about what you’d pay for a good used car,” I asked friends and a couple referred me to their clinic. I must have talked on the phone with this lady for an hour, and she ended the interview by asking me if I was a vet, and if there was any chance my loss was caused or exacerbated by my service. I told her I thought so. She filled me in, and said not to call her back unless the VA said “no.” “You owe it to yourself to find out.” She also told me about all the major brands and all top of the line. So I did. Now you owe it to yourself as well!
