Well, it’s been a while that I have been knowing that my left ear has some hearing loss. My right ear has some hearing loss as well, but not as much as the left ear.
For the last maybe three years I have noticed slight changes in my hearing, especially in the left ear. Imagine you are in a restaurant and your neighbor is speaking and you can’t make out what they are saying. O you are at the movie theatre and you don’t distinguish some of the words being said. How about in a crowded room, standing in front of someone and trying to read their lips, and straining to hear them. I would be sitting next to someone and would have a hard time hearing and understanding what they were saying.
Last year my hearing started to really get worse. I could not hear my family at times when they were speaking to me. I felt as though everyone was speaking softly and mumbling. I hated having to ask them to repeat what they had said, or ask what did you say? I told them that I was having a hard time hearing everything they said, and could they talk towards me, so I could hear better. Nothing changed much. They said I was turning the tv up too loud. I wasn’t hearing some that would be speaking in church, but noticed that people in the back could hear very well. People would talk to me and I have no idea what some of them said, especially in noisy places. I tried reading lips. Finally, I decided I had to do something.
Hearing aids had been approved to be sold over the counter. So, the first placed i looked was on Amazon of all places. There were many many to choose from. Some were not even hearing aids, but hearing enhancers. How was I to know what to really look for. I had to do my research on the internet to learn about hearing aids. There was still so much information to try and sift through. Then I decided that I should first find out how my hearing is really doing, and have a hearing test.
I started with getting information from my health care provider. I have Kaiser. They have a Kaiser Hearing Center, which was miles from me. I read all the info they had available on the hearing center’s website. They even provided a link to an otc hearing aid they recommend. It’s the Jabra Enhance Plus. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Jabra’s website has an online test you can take. I did not schedule an appointment with Kaiser. I actually made an appointment for a hearing test with Costco. I’m a Costco member so the test is free. I would suggest starting with your medical provider if you are in need of hearing aids.
I had a baseline hearing test. The test took about 20 to 30 minutes. I was given the test by a Hearing Instrument specialist. He reviewed my test with me and gave me a recommendation on a hearing aid. I found out that I have moderate hearing loss in both ears, with the left ear just above being severe. There is no obligation to purchase a hearing aid with Costco. They gave me my test results, and the price on the recommended hearing aid, if I was interested in purchasing.
I went home and researched the hearing aid. I watched Youtube videos. I decided that I would go with the aid that was recommended to me. It has a lot of features that liked and thought would be helpful. I love that it is Bluetooth enabled. I can use it with my IPhone and IPad. It will work with Bluetooth tv’s. There is also a TeleCoil that works at some theaters. I went back to Costco to order the hearing aid. I will pick it up next week and have a basic training. I am looking forward to picking it up and having my hearing back.
In a few days I will be starting this new journey. The hearing aid I will be getting is the Philips. I will be back to share updates of my new experiences.
Thanks for reading!!
