Thread for those of us that are deaf/hard of hearing?

[flamingo40]

I've looked through the health topics and can't find any particular areas for those of us who are deaf or hard of hearing to turn to if we are after advice or just fancy a chat with people who are in the same situation?
I guess I'm asking firstly if I'm missing something or secondly if there isn't an area we can go to would this be something Mumsnet would think about adding?

Having been hard of hearing for years and now a permanent hearing aid wearer I'd love you get help and advice and talk about experiences to other people

I wish people understood more too it's so bloody obvious that saying things like 'it doesn't matter' feels shit. So obvious that if you're further away or not facing you or don't say your name first or there's background noise that it's going to be harder to hear, if at all.
Yet people who apparently know you wear hearing aids seem to not think of any of these things sometimes

Loving your stories of hearing things for the first time. I agree about education, it might also help people realise when their own hearing isn’t what it should be too. Loud noise education needs to be emphasised as well. My loss is entirely self inflicted. If I could go back I’d turn down the amp, I wouldn’t stand that close to the stack at the side of the stage, I wouldn’t stand behind that F1 car when they fire it up etc I’d wear ear plugs.

Id love to know at what point I forgot what hearing things sounded like. It’s certainly more than 4 years ago because we moved here then and I’m hearing sounds in this house I’ve never heard. Little things like the click on the radiator thermostat and the fan in the bathroom. I can’t believe I’ve gone so long without realising how bad it had become really.

Im excited to go to Paris next month now. Don’t get me wrong, my French skills are rudimentary at best, but I’ll be able to hear what I can’t understand 😂

Did have to mute them earlier though, I’m dog sitting DDs sausage dog at the moment and he had a mad five with my dog, lots of barking, tearing around the sofa and squeaking a toy Christmas tree which was absolutely piercing. DH said he was a bit jealous he couldn’t do that 😂

Now I’ve managed to take them out and open the battery back I’ll try and connect them to my iPhone via Bluetooth tomorrow @Soubriquet Be interesting to see how that works for me with Spotify etc as I probably spend half my day with music on my AirPods.
I shall report back.

Hi, I’m new to hearing aids. Three weeks to be exact
My family had been telling me my hearing was going for a while, of course I thought they were wrong and to shut them up booked an appointment at my Doctors surgery. I noticed a sign saying they were offering hearing tests when I was waiting to have routine blood tests.
I’ve got 30% hearing loss in both ears. The audiologist was very through, she showed me three types of hearing aids: NHS and two private H/A’s.
I opted for the NHS Danalogic Ambio g7 type. I’m amazed at how small and discrete they are. I was fitted with them on 7th December, I was told I’d get a supply of batteries and booklets in the post two weeks later but not had anything yet. I’ll give it until after the New Year before following it up. I’ve managed to buy batteries from Amazon in the meantime.
I’ve connected the hearing aids to an App and can change the volume etc Bluetooth on my iPhone.
To be honest I’m not sure what I’m doing with the app yet, I’ve discovered the noise filter cuts down harsh background noises though.
Wrapping Christmas presents was challenging…literally, the sound of the sellotape as it was pulled though the dispenser, that, coupled with the noise of the wrapping paper, well I had to turn my hearing aids off.

@Jyn how much were the signia please? Was it through spec savers? I was looking at signia silks but they are £2700!
I’ve got nhs ote atm which are ok but one ear doesn’t seem to hold the receiver as well as the other so I’m always popping back in.

They were NHS so free. They are Signia Contrast S+. Doers your area refer to Specsavers? Might be worth going back through your GP for another referral and ask for the Signia?

@Soubriquet I've tried repeatedly today to connect my phone and failed. Might be user error or might not be possible. Reading Google it seems to suggest I can but I'm struggling.

Hi @Daffodilsandtuplips - welcome to the thread and the amazing new world of hearing aids. They do take some getting used to. Did your audiologist recommend building up the number of hours you wear them at the start? As otherwise the onslaught of sounds can be overwhelming but it is definitely worth persevering. I found it hard at first and resisted using them. But now (many years later but it didn't take more than a week or so to build up wearing them) I put them in first thing in the morning when cleaning my teeth and take them out also when cleaning my teeth at night. Can't imagine life without them and panic if I forget to put them in somehow. Very occasionally I will take them out (if in super loud place just for a rest!)

You're doing really well to have navigated your app.

Have you found out how to get your sliders right down to vol 3 or 4? And switch between Eg 'normal', restaurant setting and T loop if you have those loaded as options?

Yes, @Jyn ! The loud noises when I first got my aids were incredible. I thought someone was following me up the stairs but it was just my trousers rustling! 🤣

@Jyn i have a 6 month check up soon with audiologist so I’ll ask them if they do in ear aids.
I went spec-savers separately to see what they offer.

Thank you for welcoming me to the group.
The noises are a little disconcerting… going for a wee the first time…sounded like Niagara Falls. I can hear my hair moving, the click of the heating when it comes on, peoples voices sound echoing, my own voice sounds echoing too.
I wear them for a few hours a day so far.
The App controls: I’m not sure what programme the audiologist has set the aids to. I think it’s no 1 as I hear one ping when I touch the programme button at the top. According to the online instructions the number of pings corresponds to the programmes shes set it at, if that makes sense.
Some settings on the app don’t seem to be available to me, I can adjust the volume sliders, choose between Speech clarity and Noise Filter without problem. I’m still finding my way round the app.
The left ear has been great until a few days ago, it’s really sore, I’m also hearing popping noises in that ear, I don’t suffer with waxy ears so not sure what’s going on, I’ve left the hearing aids out for a day or two in the Hope it clears up. If not I’ll ring my GP.
One thing I’ve noticed the hearing aids eat batteries, they are only lasting a week. DH got me a pack of 30 from Amazon so they’ll keep me going for a bit.

Hi @Daffodilsandtuplips I'm fairly new to hearing aids too j got.mine about 2 years ago so still fairly new.

I have the same aids as you 🙂 but sadly I've given up on mine I couldn't cope with the new noises it was overwhelming. That's probably not what you want to hear sorry! The noise filter on the app definitely made sounds less harsh but like you say it was all the new noises like my own footsteps, clocks ticking, it was really unsettling I kept saying to DH what's that noise?

I probably should have persevered but my brain just couldn't cope so now I'm just getting by with lipreading. I prefer my quiet bubble with no aids in compared with the onslaught of noise when I had them in.

I'm worried though about the link with hearing loss and dementia so I know I need to get my hearing sorted. I'm thinking of going private even though we can't really afford it as Ive heard private aids are better quality.

@Decafflatteplease NHS aids are the same as private ones. You just get more choice if you go private. Also it's not very likely that aids from a private source are going to make the noises any quieter, sorry! The best thing to do is to wear your aids for a bit each day to get used to them. Honestly, we've all been there with getting new aids but your brain, having gotten used to not hearing as much, needs to retrain itself to tune out the clocks and rustling and footsteps. Obviously, no aids can make our hearing "perfect" again but you do need to give it time.

@Daffodilsandtuplips Welcome! Do persevere because I promise you, you get used to the noises! I've just had my aids turned up and it took a day or so to get used to them again. Reiterating as above, you won't suddenly realise that all the sounds are back to how they were before your hearing deteriorated, but I can promise that it does all get easier! I've been wearing aids for 8 years now, so feel free to ask any questions!

@Daffodilsandtuplips the guy at Specsavers gave me a six month supply of batteries when I left and told me to call in for more when I’d run out. This surprised me as I thought I’d have to pay for them.

I was told not to build up but to wear them from the moment I get up until I go to bed. It’s getting better I admit. I’ve stopped noticing the hair rustle today and several times I’ve had to tap the, because I wasn’t sure if they were on or not. My voice is sounding a bit less robotic to me as well.
I went into town today and although it was a little overwhelming at first it became much easier as time wore on. Tonight was the big test ~ the pub. The music was extremely loud so I flicked to the background setting which made a massive difference. I felt quite proud of myself that I didn’t have to ask anyone to repeat anything or misunderstand all evening.

I was told by week 4 everything will seem perfectly normal as my brain will have gotten used to them by then and to be honest I can see that.

I also found a website today that sells stickers and coloured tubes. As a big child at heart I’m extremely taken with a pair of Woody and Buzz Toy Story covers, which would also save me from squinting to see which ear is which in a morning. I’m not 100% sure they will fit, but they are only a couple of pounds so might try them anyway and if they do I shall wear them in Disneyland at the end of the month ❤️
If I’m having these things I’m damn sure I’m making them fun!!

Hi, it’s me again. When I was tested My NHS hearing aids were supplied by a firm called Scrivens, I’ve googled them, they appear to be similar to Specsavers in that the NHS refer patients to them to cut down on waiting times, rather like it does with cataract surgery.
At my fitting appointment I was shown four types of hearing aids, the NHS Digicom Ambio and two private ones very similar to the NHS one. I’ve uploaded two pics. The hearing aid to the left is NHS, the two to the right are private, all battery operated. The one above the others is a private but rechargeable. The private Battery operated type cost £999.00 per pair, the rechargeable type £1.300 per pair. The little pink one is an in the ear type where moulds of your ears are taken to ensure they fit. As you can see the private over the ear type are slightly smaller than the NHS one but not by much.
I decided on the NHS, the pic of a pair of hearing aids are mine with the wires attached. The way the wires fit means you can’t put them into the wrong ear, they won’t go in. I’ll may change to private sometime, depending how I get on with my NHS aids.
The sore ear seems to be getting better. I wore my hearing aids for six hours yesterday, we went to the pub for New Years afternoon for two hours and managed well with the noise filter on.

So guess who’s changed their mind again about getting a replacement mould?

Thats right. Me!

Now it’s had chance to soften properly and fit a
bit more snugly, I quite like it!

It’s still difficult to put in my ear as it’s so flexible, but it’s worth it

This is so great to see that so many of you are still on my thread!
Happy new year to you all!
For those who are new to hearing aids... my advice would be take it step by step.
It will feel overwhelming, exhausting and amazing in different ways
Be kind to yourself.
I've just had therapy to help me accept my hearing loss. Im learning after so many years that it's ok to take your time and do it your own way.
I've also learnt to stop accommodating others, let them accommodate my hearing loss, let them do the work sometimes instead of trying to fit in with them

Good to see you’re getting on better with it @Soubriquet

Thank you for starting this thread @flamingo40 its been a great help to me over the last few weeks.

I’ve had another play with these Signias tonight and I’m now fairly sure that they don’t have any Bluetooth capability unfortunately. Not an issue as I very rarely use a phone to talk, mainly WhatsApp

I did discover something interesting though - there are two apps. The one the audiologist put me on was called Touch Control but on the App Store is a second app called Signia App.
I downloaded it and it copied the settings over from the touch app (it leaves that in tact so you can still use it and it keeps the settings) but the dedicated Signia one has a very clever little feature which gives an audible response to battery life! 3 beeps, full battery, 2 is half life, 1 nearly time for a new one. You can also change the direction of sound in the Automatic Section which I don’t think you can do in the Touch App.

My hearing aids aren't connected to any apps so it all seems very hi tech to me 😂

I’m a very gadgety person and I don’t like being beaten 😂 I even roped my son in law in when he called in to see if he could figure it. He could not. He does something with clouds in IT so I concluded if he couldn’t do it then it probably wasn’t able to do it.

I confess I wasn’t expecting app control on them either. It’s easier for me than pressing the button on the aid as by the time I’ve untangled my long hair from around both aid and piercings the moment has passed lol.

I find myself wearing my AirPods a lot so I was just trying to cut the faff of swapping aids for buds and then inevitably having to root around my cavernous handbag for the boxes when I needed to swap back. At the moment I have the two small cases the audiologist gave me so at some point I’ll find a bigger case that will take both aids.

You're more than welcome, I'm glad while I've been away and going through my own troubles that this thread has done what I set out to do.
Bring a place for us to get advice, compare notes and talk to others who understand.
When I've got more time I'll pop back on and explain my absence in the hope I can help others

Isn’t Google a wonderful thing! The saga of my hearing aid batteries continues, My hearing aids is draining batteries, I gone through four in less than a week. Still no supply from my audiologist so far.
Google tells me not to insert the batteries straight away, what we are supposed to do is take the protective covers off and let them acclimatise for three to five minutes and then put them in, The batteries draw in ions from the atmosphere or something…I don’t get it either but there you go. Also at night open the battery flap or turn the hearing aids off. It also recommends a little dehumidifier to dry any moisture in the hearing aids from your skin.
Happy New Year!

Mmm sounds strange. I don't have to do that with my batteries.
My batteries last about a week I reckon. Although I don't tend to open the battery flap at night so if I did that they'd last a lot longer

When I had my previous hearing aids I had to wait a few minutes before installing them... I have rechargeable ones now which have saved me so many times... my app on my phone tells me what charge I have left so no more battery dying half way through an important meeting.... because let's face it they never run out when you're alone do they? It's always when you need to be able to hear

Ive never done that and I’ve work hearing aids for nearly 30 years.

Obviously, at night, the flap is open cos that’s the way my hearing aid is switched off but I don’t let them charge before putting them in on replacement.

I wear my hearing aid, all day. So minimum 12 hours a day. Batteries last around 2 weeks for me

I've never left my batteries for 2-3 minutes either! They do have holes in the top which is why you have to peel a sticker off or them off the sticky backing, but I always then put them straight in! I do turn them off at night by opening the battery drawer (not sure why you wouldn't?) and wear them all day - 15 hours or more. Batteries last around 8 or 9 days, I reckon. Less with my old ones when I had receivers and my Roger Pen connected, but even then I was getting 7 days probably.

@Daffodilsandtuplips Are all the batteries you've been trying from the same pack/batch? Might be worth trying a different pack? Very occasionally I get a battery that just dies as soon as I put it in (guess I didn't give it enough air time) but the next one works perfectly.

I wonder if it’s because you’re not opening the backs overnight? I wasn’t told to acclimatise either but I was told to flip the back open at night.