You may have noticed that you have more difficulty hearing and taking part in conversations than you once did. Background noise may seem louder and harder to tune out. Perhaps someone close to you has pointed this out and even suggested doing something about it. Sure, you’ve thought about hearing aids. But they just don’t seem right for you. Maybe you don’t consider yourself “old enough”. Or perhaps you’re put off by the size or bulkiness of some devices you’ve seen others wearing. And of course, there’s the cost and the ordeal of sitting down with someone at one of those “typical” hearing aid centers. You know, the type of place where you feel as though you’re being pressured to buy something that you may not even want or think you need. Whatever the reason, you’ve not done anything about your hearing, and as a result, you spend more and more time feeling left out of conversations. If this sounds like you, there’s good news. The use of hearing aids is very likely more widespread than you think, and many of your concerns may not really be concerns at all.
The Six Important Questions
1. Where Can I Go to Get an Honest Assessment of Hearing?
A: The best place to start is with your doctor. Tell them about your hearing difficulties, ask them if they believe you may have a real hearing problem, and talk with them about the concerns you have over hearing aids. They will likely recommend medically supervised hearing tests that can confirm the degree of any hearing loss you may have. If hearing aids are recommended, they can suggest reputable, medically credible establishments that provide such devices.
2. What if Hearing Aids are Recommended?
A: If your tests suggest that you can be helped by hearing aids, you need to first consider the type of aids that are available and the cost of the devices. The first thing you will likely discover is that hearing aid technology and affordability has changed dramatically over the last decade.
3. What if I Don’t Want to be Seen Wearing a Hearing Aid?
A: Modern hearing aids are significantly smaller and less noticeable than models produced just a few years ago. In fact, devices are now available that fit entirely within the wearer’s ear, and are thus completely invisible from the outside.
4. Don’t Wearers Have to Constantly Change Those Tiny Batteries?
A: New technology has made hearing aid maintenance considerably less difficult. Many aids are now equipped with rechargeable batteries that enable users to avoid the notoriously unpleasant task of constantly replacing extremely tiny and hard to handle batteries. Once charged, these new batteries generally provide a full day’s worth of power, and require much less frequent changing.
5. What Else Makes New Hearing Aids Better?
A: Digital technologies have made hearing aids a more attractive alternative, particularly for users who own mobile smartphones. Digitized components allow many hearing aid wearers to instantly adjust the volume level and noise control features of their devices through their mobile phones. This allows wearers to quickly adapt to noisy environments by using simple volume or background noise changes that would have not previously been possible.
6. What About the Cost?
A: A quality hearing aid is an investment that could very well change your life and restore the everyday pleasures of healthy hearing you may have forgotten about. While new technology costs are constantly decreasing, a high-caliber, medically effective hearing aid device does cost more than inexpensive and often ineffective hearing amplifiers that are frequently advertised on television. Many hearing aid companies offer reasonable, long-term financing options that make hearing aids an affordable option well worth consideration.
So now that you’ve heard the latest about the smaller size, greater functionality, and easy maintenance of today’s hearings aids, you may think hearing aids aren’t such a bad thing after all. You may also wonder whether more people are wearing them than you might have previously thought. The answer is probably yes.
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