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First hearing aids, is it ideal to put up with excruciating loudness to retrain brain?

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In reply to @Bimodal_user

Few points:

  1. Maybe receivers are faulty? Try with another sets. This is less probable if loudness is a problem in both ears.

  2. The same applies with hearing aids, but it is unlikely.

3 Years. Have you ever had ? Perhaps there are strange resonances, which make some sounds much louder? Or, like in rare cases, you have low volume of ear canal, making sounds louder that predicted without REM?

4 Weeks. Another solution. Ask your audiologist to measure your Loudness Discomfort Level () less than 7- Grade Cox Contour Anchors.

which leads to asking your audiologist for a 5.0 (also to delight @Neville :laughing::maple_leaf::canada:, because DSL in a Canadian product) fitting algorithms where LDLs can be taken into account.

Nevertheless, LDLs can also be tested in REM with another fitting algorithms, such as , NAL-NL3, etc., using 90 non-speech stimulus level. IIRC, DSL seems to take LDLs into account calculating G50, G65 and G80 curves.

The question is also: does peaks of the sounds are excruciatingly loud or all the sound around you?

If the former - modifying the based on LDLs could help. If the problem is the latter - that all normal sound you stay in - there is more to modify G50, G65 or (more probably) G80 curves starting maybe from 80% of REM-based target.

@Bimodal_user

1/ I went from tulip domes to , and now to vented silicone molds with skeleton locks. Yes, the loudness is in both ears.

3/ I had REM when I first got my aids on August 26th.

4/ I think my fitter did that, because I asked him what the line of “u”s was, and he said uncomfortable levels. I’m not sure how he assessed that. He lowered the gain to 80% for now; I assume that it had been 90%.

“The question is also: does peaks of the sounds are excruciatingly loud or all the sound around you?”

I think so, or it is just the varying levels of loudness. But it’s not all the same.

Thank you! I am amazed at the intricacies of , and am awed by the knowledge of so many of you. I’m so grateful for everyone’s help; I don’t know what I’d do without the forum. I was on a great HA forum years ago, but it seems to be gone, so I was glad to find HT.

In reply to @Blue_Pearl1

@Blue_Pearl1 said:

The sounds that bother me, I don’t think are low sounds. They are clanking dishes, a really loud kitchen faucet (objectively loud), crinkling cellophane, grinding salt (sounds innocuous enough!), very loud city fire and police sirens, city construction, etc. Oh, and the floor boards. Also, loud building sounds! Subway noise.Some of these are worse than others.

Thanks for this very helpful information. That paragraph is a textbook example of a new hearing aid user learning to deal with typical loud sounds around them, very normal. With what you described is a huge part of acclimating to all the new sounds of the world. This tells me there is probably nothing wrong with the aids. If anything is wrong it’s the domes/molds not sealing properly causing feedback.

Are the molds difficult to put all the way into your ears? Skeleton molds, correct? I always liked canal lock molds. New molds can be tuff to get all the way in sometimes. A tiny bit of baby oil on them should help. Your molds or domes need to be consistently put in their proper place in your ears,. You can get feedback if not. Maybe your husband can help you get them in or at least look at them to verify they are in properly. Pulling up and back on your upper ear while putting the molds in might help too. When they are all the way in the wire from the aids should lay flat on the side of you head.

I hope you hang in there and figure this out. The 80% of your prescription setting is a good place to start. You will find that within a month or two you will be able to increase that 80% to 85 or 90 percent.

I am bilateral CI. They have been life changing for me.

In reply to @Blue_Pearl1

@Blue_Pearl1

The fitting software was changed by my Audiologist at my request

There is a significant % of people opting for NAL / NAL2 instead of Widex - I don’t know the position with your make

My first set of ear moulds were silicone but they were sore. I think there was internal friction between the moulds and my ear, made worse by not being a perfect fit. The next 2 were acrylic and the 2nd of those was made by Starkey rather than Widex. That last change was the audiologists choice.

My preference may not be your best solution though!

In reply to @wiclifmcc

@wiclifmcc

Is that normal to have to have the molds made 3 times? I guess it is sometimes hard to get it right. I would have thought that if the fitter/audiologist were experienced enough, that wouldn’t happen. Perhaps, I’m wrong. It’s good that you finally got it right! I am astonished at how difficult that can be—not just the molds, but all aspects of .

@Blue_Pearl1 said:

Is that normal to have to have the molds made 3 times? I guess it is sometimes hard to get it right.

There are some advices:

Advices before purchasing titanium cShells / titanium earmolds
EDIT: This is continuation of my topic about my experiences with titanium cShells: END OF EDIT DISCLAIMER: Titanium cShells are not a cure for anything. Please have mercy on your HCPs and don’t insist on titanium if you don’t have experience with acrylic earmolds/cShells (you used domes only) and you don’t have an allergy or a narrow ear canal, because in case of discomfort the waiting period for remake will be too long. Make sure you’re comfortable with acrylic/silicone ones previously. I…

Perhaps you need deep impression, reaching 5mm past 2nd bend of ear canal?

In reply to @Blue_Pearl1

@Blue_Pearl1

Is 3 mould attempts excessive? I don’t think so. The silicone ones seemed to sandpaper my ear so then we have one failure followed by a successful attempt by a different manufacturer.

If you look through this forum you will see discussions on whether you should move your jaw while the putty they use hardens. There must also be a user difference on the pressure of putting the putty into your ear. I find that part uncomfortable.

Perhaps this is one of the reasons why there is a trend away from the “conventional” hearing aid style? Easier and quicker to lift standard components off the shelf

@Blue_Pearl1 said:

Is this a less than ideal approach? In a post I was reading tonight, it said that one should bear up with the loudness, harshness, etc. so that one’s brain can get used to it. It’s definitely slow the way I’m doing it, but it’s hard to imagine doing the opposite. I’m not sure that the post was referring to first HAs though.

From my POV, yes.

I’m also a first time user (since 5 years ago). My is almost identical to yours, btw.

In my first audiologist meeting, I told them to put the HAs (Phonak Marvel 90) at 100% because I wanted to adapt to them as quickly as possible. They programmed the HAs as requested by refused to do . I put up with the perceived loudness and had a headache for the next 3 months, but after a year I was fully adapted.

Then I gave my HAs to my son and I bought a new pair of Phonak Paradise 90 (just because I wasn’t satisfied with the bluetooth capabilities of the Marvel ones) at a new audiologist which performed REM and changed me to molds. Now this setup is as close to perfect as possible.

@maac said:

Then I gave my HAs to my son and I bought a new pair of Phonak Paradise 90 (just because I wasn’t satisfied with the bluetooth capabilities of the Marvel ones)

What was dissatisfying? Only one active Bluetooth connection with Marvel compared to 2 with Paradise?

In reply to @Raudrive

@Raudrive said:

our low frequency hearing loss puts you into either power domes or molds. If your molds fell out they do not fit you

@Raudrive

“Your low frequency hearing loss puts you into either power domes or molds. If your molds fell out they do not fit you”

Wow, I didn’t realize that I have low frequency hearing loss! I have to look at my with fresh eyes. Plus, I am due for a new hearing test sometime in February.

And, yes, I realized that the molds probably don’t fit me well. This was in trying to take a mask off very carefullyI! They didn’t come all of the way out, but largely.

Yes, I am also thinking of returning the Jabras and trying another model. I am also thinking of letting go of Costco, but first I am trying to get a referral of a more experienced fitter at Costco, or a good audiologist in my area. Of course the are out there, but I don’t know where else to find out who they are.

About asking for a possibly more experienced fitter at that Costco, they have recently done away with the front desk person, as the fitters are now supposed to fulfill that vacancy, too! So, I’d be asking my fitter for this, which I don’t relish, as I like him, and he’s tried hard. And the other fitter (don’t know who it is) has just started there!

In reply to @wiclifmcc

@wiclifmcc

“Is 3 mould attempts excessive? I don’t think so. The silicone ones seemed to sandpaper my ear so then we have one failure followed by a successful attempt by a different manufacturer.

If you look through this forum you will see discussions on whether you should move your jaw while the putty they use hardens. There must also be a user difference on the pressure of putting the putty into your ear. I find that part uncomfortable.

Perhaps this is one of the reasons why there is a trend away from the “conventional” hearing aid style? Easier and quicker to lift standard components off the shelf”I

I didn’t know before that making the molds several times can be normal.

I don’t think I remember him saying to move my jaw while the putty was hardening. And my fitter said that they don’t really do molds much at that Costco, which was disconcerting, as it told me that he probably wasn’t that experienced with it. I asked him if he mostly learned on the job, and he said, “yes.” Arghh!

What do you mean by “Perhaps this is one of the reasons why there is a trend away from the “conventional” BTE hearing aid style? Easier and quicker to lift standard components off the shelf”I?

What other models are you speaking about?

Thank you!

In reply to @OcramSagev

@OcramSagev

“If you’ve been using these aids for four months and are still having trouble, it mi”ght be worth looking into Costco’s 180-day return policy. Different brands have their own sound profiles, and everyone has unique preferences. I’ve come across comments from others saying that the Jabra/Resounds have a harsh and “tiring” sound..

For instance, I tried the Rexton and really didn’t like how they sounded, though many people here seem to love them. Personally, I prefer Phonak and Widex.

In other words, don’t get stuck with something you won’t enjoy after a few months of use.”

Yes, I am thinking of returning them, but am still not sure that’s the way I want to go. I chose the Jabras from the beginning, and didn’t try any others, because I felt that they had the best technology of the models that Costco was offering.

And, although the sound was harsh and difficult from the start, I have felt that a large part of that comes down to my going without aids for so darned long.

They may have a harsher sound than others, which I don’t particularly like, but I also know that I shouldn’t pick a model simply by what is most pleasing to me, as the most pleasing to me now is down to the fact that it’s a huge push to get used to the sounds that I haven’t heard for so long, so I don’t want to back down on pushing the envelope on that.

There are competing factors to take into consideration! My husband tried the Jabras and the Rextons, and chose the Rextons, because they sounded better to him. But he, also, hadn’t heard these sounds in a long time, so who knows what is best for him? He doesn’t want to push it. But he has been a musician his whole life, so that is another consideration.

In reply to @Blue_Pearl1

@Blue_Pearl1 said:

So, I’d be asking my fitter for this, which I don’t relish, as I like him, and he’s tried hard. And the other fitter (don’t know who it is) has just started there!

Be friendly, he will understand and be helpful is my bet. This conversation might also open the door for him to start thinking outside his box and try new and better things for you.

Good luck and hang in there.

Yes, there’s variability. Some people have thresholds at -10. But blue pearl is at 30 and I suppose I’m saying that it shouldn’t be contrasted to 20.

Edited

When I got my first ’s a few years ago I asked the audiologist to lower the volume so that when they were set in the middle of the volume range the sound level was comfortable as well as clear. After a couple of weeks later I had to go back and ask her to increase the volume as once my brain was getting used to them it, for want of a better word, ‘normalised’ the sound and was again too quiet. She reinstated the initial programming and all was good again.

In reply to @storemanuk

@storemanuk

From the beginning, I started off with Sound In Noise with the noise filter on and the sound turned down, because that was all I could handle!! And my fitter didn’t say that I should leave it all up. I don’t think that I could have handled it!!

Now I am using All Around, mostly without the noise filter, and with the sound turned up. But still, when the noise is bad (to me), I often turn it down for a bit. But I’m trying to push it up.

I havent seen this mentioned in the replys. Pardon me if it was mentioned. when programmed , the audiologist can set the program to increase the gain gradually over time. So that at first, the volume is less than your prescription. Over time (weeks) the volume will automatically increase to eventually arrive at your prescription level. i have seen this feature in the programming software. I have not used this feature. has anyone else. It might help during your acclimation period.

@jeffre

Thank you. My fitter has done this. It has taken me a lot of time to get used to all of the sounds that I haven’t heard in so long! It’s still a work in progress, but I have progressed quite a bit.

I cannot believe how loud our creaky floorboards are!! Not to mention all of the rest.

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