GP vs Boots/Specsavers for hearing test?

[iPreferBooks]

I'm on the fence of whether to trying to book a GP app. or just paying to do a Boots/Specsvers hearing test. Never liked social situations but always assumed it was because of autism (diagnosed). I've pinpointed I can never ever hear people when music is playing loudly in the background in places like pubs/bars/restaurants, and because I don't like those environments from a sensory/anxiety perspective I tend to avoid them anyway. When I've been with other people in loud places recently they all yell/talk loudly and they all seem to be able to follow the conversation as they're nodding their heads, but I can't at all. I had to use my phone to type what I wanted to order at the bar because the music was so loud. Can people seriously hear in those environments, or are they faking?However, I was recently in a restaurant with some uni friends with no music playing, but I still had to concentrate really really hard to hear them, and that was just with usual background noise of lots of people talking.Saying that I can't hear when train announcements are made on the tannoy, my laptop is is at a reasonable volume when I watch TV/films although I do prefer subtitles because I can't understand accents very well :/

Oh and locally, Specsavers suggested I went via the GP first so no hard sell.

Go to your gp. I got a referal to a specialist ENT at the local private hospital.
Have since had an operation on each ear and no longer need hearing aids.
Has been truly life changing, appreciate i might have just got extremely lucky with the original referral, but you never know until you try. I'd been struggling for years but thought I wouldn't be taken seriously as I was young to get hearing loss.

@Thereisnoname that is a great success story! I’m happy for you, thank goodness you got checked out.

The pp who said the local NHS hearing aids might not be right has a great point. Most trusts have only one manufacturer available to them and it won’t be for everyone. There is nothing that can be done about this unless the contract with the supplier gets changed (a rare and big event).

Private places do not actually do a hard sell if you might benefit from NHS aids. When I worked privately, I often told people to try the NHS and then try us if they didn’t have success. NHS aids are adequate if you only have a straightforward mild-moderate loss and you don’t have a challenging ‘listening lifestyle’.

Op, how old are you? That makes a difference too as usually spencer’s only hold bus contracts over a certain age. However if you are younger you can get a free hearing test with specsavers who will then refer you to the nhs.

NHS ha’s for adults and quality are trust dependent and prescribed based on your severity of hearing loss. Mine were small and bluetooth but I’ve recently saved and gone private as there such a long wait for adult appointment times and my hearing is deteriorating and I can’t get appointments for months to have my aids adjusted. I’ve paid out for private RIC hearing aids so that I can get follow up care whenever I need. Agree with pp about it being a disability tax. On the plus side I can swim in these ones and wear them in very inclement weather etc, which is fantastic.