Tag: life

How Long Do Hearing Aids Last?

How Long Do Hearing Aids Last?

How Long Do Hearing Aids Last?

The Answer Hinges on a Few Variables

A: It depends! Cleaning or replacing parts like tubes and filters keeps your technology in good shape for several years. Same for coming to see us for regular clean and checks.

But that’s not the whole story. Your hearing aids do a lot for you — you might be surprised just how much. And each task needs to meet your unique listening lifestyle.

 

Directional Microphones

These help you focus on sounds in front of you, so you more easily understand speech in background noise. For example, this feature keeps you focused on Aunt Gretchen’s voice amid the other conversations at the family dinner table.

 

Noise Reduction

This technology analyzes the sound input and decreases unwanted noise. For example, if you work at a farmer’s market, this feature dampens environmental noises so you can maintain awareness of customers seeking your attention. Some models even have a specialized wind-reduction feature for those who love the outdoors.

 

Feedback Management

When the microphone and amplifier in your hearing aid are too close, it can result in feedback. Yes, just like the feedback at a rock concert — but right in your ear canal. This feature combats that feedback, so even if it does happen, it’s canceled out before you hear it.

 

Artificial Intelligence

Many hearing aids can learn your preferences and adjust automatically based on environmental cues. For example, your hearing aid learns about the voices you speak with most often. When you encounter those people, the hearing aid recognizes their voices and adjusts settings accordingly to prioritize them.

 

Bluetooth Compatibility

Today’s hearing aids can connect wirelessly to your smartphone or any other devices that use Bluetooth. For example, you can listen to the TV at your preferred volume (streamed directly to your hearing aids) while everyone else in the room listens to the TV at a different volume.

 

Do They Meet Your Needs?

Manufacturers constantly innovate to make these features even better. And they’re always inventing new features to meet demand. A better question would be, “How long will my hearing aids meet my needs?”

It’s a lot like how you might approach your car. If your second child is about to arrive, you probably need to swap your perfectly good sedan for a minivan.

Similarly, with hearing aids, if your quiet office job now requires you to walk the shop floor twice a day, you’ll need better noise reduction. And odds are, if your hearing aids are four years old, the models available right now have far better noise reduction.

That’s why I say, “It depends.” Well-maintained devices last a long time — but as your needs change, the technology you need might change, too.

Has it been a while since your last clean and check? Call now to get one on the books so we can ensure you’re hearing your best!

Breaking Hearing Loss Stigmas One Conversation At A Time

Those affected by hearing loss may have dif culty explaining how their life changed when they began to lose their hearing. Though it can be di cult to articulate what it’s like to live with hearing loss, speaking up can be very empowering. This guide can help you through those conversations.

Educating others empowers them and yourself to change hearing loss stigmas. How you respond to your hearing loss can in uence how others do as well.

Research tells us that concealing your hearing loss can create tension in your social or professional life that could negatively a ect your health and well-being. On the other hand, talking about it alleviates the strain of trying to hide the condition. Plus, it increases your chances of nding a support network with others who understand.

To be a successful advocate, the most essential trait you can have is openness. As an advocate, it’s important to communicate fully and have the con dence to request this openness from others. Good advocates are tenacious, patient, and gracious toward those who help their cause.

It’s also a good idea to talk to your physician. Oftentimes they do not screen for hearing loss during a physical. Remind them that screening for hearing loss is important because it can be a window into your overall health. By bringing this to their attention, who knows who else you’ll be helping?

5 Ways Better Hearing Can Improve Your Life

To many people, hearing loss is a topical problem with a topical solution: You can’t hear as well as you used to? Get hearing aids and you’ll be fine. But the reality is that hearing loss has far-reaching effects on all aspects of life — and better hearing can do wonders to reverse or mitigate those effects, whether it’s through using your hearing system more consistently or upgrading your current technology to improve your range of sound. Below are five ways that hearing your best can help you live the life you want to live:

1. Keep Your Brain Sharp.
Studies over the past few years by Johns Hopkins researchers have detailed a number of associations between hearing loss and decreased brain function. Individuals with untreated hearing loss face a greater likelihood of developing dementia and a much greater incidence of balance issues. Because hearing loss affects the auditory cortex of the brain — an area also associated with memory — lack of stimulation to that area can lead to atrophy. Researchers have found that even a mild hearing loss contributes to an additional square inch per year of brain shrinkage in seniors. Keeping the auditory cortex strong through stimulation, which is aided by hearing instruments, can help prevent cognitive troubles.

2. Increase Your Income Potential.
Being able to properly hear your co-workers, bosses, and clients is an important aspect of employment, but you may not have considered the benefit of better hearing in relation to your income potential. According to a 1999 survey by the National Council on Aging (NCOA), the net income difference reported among 51- to 61-year-olds is a difference of nearly $40,000 per year. Investing in better hearing can truly pay off.

3. Experience a Higher Overall Quality of Life.
Individuals with untreated hearing loss report greater dissatisfaction with their relationships, friendships, family life, health, and finances. The benefits of hearing aid treatment are found to be significant in study after study, with NCOA’s 1999 research revealing that those who received treatment saw vast improvements in relations at home, with children and grandchildren, and at work, as well as a greater sense of safety in general.

4. Improve Your Confidence.
One confounding aspect of hearing loss is that the very technology that makes lives better holds a certain stigma for the user, be it real or imagined. About one in five users admits to being embarrassed about wearing a hearing aid, but most users experience a breakthrough in self-image and self-confidence after experiencing what better hearing does for their lives. The NCOA survey states that hearing aids improve user self-image by about 50 percent on average, and self-confidence by about 39 percent on average.

5. See — and Hear — the Bright Side of Life.
Depression is more common in those with hearing loss, potentially because of a tendency to withdraw from social situations. Anxiety and paranoia are also more common, as is the perception of anger toward the individual with hearing loss. Hearing aids allow the user to experience more of what the world has to offer through better communication.

And if you’d like to upgrade your current system to something that allows you to better connect to the world around you, ask us how you can receive $500 off an upgrade, and we’ll show you what the latest technology can do to improve your life even more.

Take advantage of this offer now — the holidays are a great time to make sure you’re hearing your best!

Sincerely,

Dr. Stephanie R. Moore
Audiologist