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Complete newbie, couple of questions

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Hi all,

I’m totally new to hearing aids, having suffered since a kid with perforated ear drums (worse in the left ear) audiology pic provided for reference I finally booked in at my local Specsavers and have been supplied, via the agreement they have with the NHS some Phonak Bolero M70-M’s

image

It’s all happened very fast, less than a week from my first screening to fitting and I have a few questions / observations. I’ve done a fair bit of reading on this forum and found some really useful info, so apologies if some of this is a repeat of what’s here but just writing it all down in one place as it’s all a little overwhelming.

The experience with Specsavers was a little hit and miss, started off great but on the actual fitting they had a new Audiologist and she wasn’t very helpful at all, just popped them in, pressed a few things on the laptop and sent me on my way. (interestingly she also said I don’t need to wear them every day, despite the original audiologist saying I need to)

  • The Bolero’s seem decent from what I’ve read, but I was a little disappointed I didn’t get the rechargeable version as that’s what my local NHS hospital issue. The audiologist advised not to bother enabling Bluetooth or any connectivity (she didn’t even tell me about the app) as I’ll just drain the battery’s. This was really disappointing as I work in IT, so spend most of my days on teams calls or on the phone and would usually wear air pods on the train to work most mornings. I have connected them all up (finding the occasional music listening a little ‘tinny’ sounding) but longer term, for regular Bluetooth use, would anyone really recommend rechargeable over battery if I’m a regular Bluetooth wearer?

  • My left ear is worse than my right, there’s a pretty constant hissing sound coming from the left, as well as the occasional feedback. I’ve turned the volume down a couple of times but it keeps defaulting back, so I’ll mention this on my first check in with them. I have nothing to compare to so not sure if this is normal, but it’s as if the volume is too loud

  • I was out and about yesterday, walking down a busy street having a conversation with someone, and I found the ability to pick up speech a little disappointing. Everything around me was loud and clear, but it was almost overpowering, like I could hear the noise from the busy street, the sound of my clothes rustling, yet I was struggling to hear the person next to me talking! Is this normal? Something you get used to? Or something I need to feed back? I’ve found this a couple of times in the office, it’s like the sounds of the environment around me are overpowering people talking to me if that makes sense, I expected voices to be picked out and made louder.

  • Finally, the itching… Wow… the constant itching… How do people cope?! I’m finding the domes really uncomfortable in my ears, This seems to settle for most people so hoping it will, but I keep having to pull them out and give my ears a proper itch!

I’m only a few days in, and having absolutely nothing to compare to, so all of the above my be totally normal for all I know. I’m loving the extra sounds (I never realised how many birds were singing, and the noise of grass crunching under my feet is new).

As I work in IT, I’m pretty up on the latest tech. I use multiple devices every day (and note you can only connect the Bolero’s to a single device) is the technology in the later devices really that much of a step up? As I may look medium term to purchase some privately if that’s the case

9 people in this conversation8 min readJump to latest
Edited

Welcome!
1)If you wear the hearing aids for full days and use a lot of bluetooth, you’re probably better of with disposable batteries. With rechargeables you’d likely need to recharge for a boost during the day.
2) You really shouldn’t be having feedback. I’d mention that. Things being on the loud side is something you’ll likely get used to.
3)You have a pretty mild loss and are best suited to an “.” Although this lets you take advantage of near normal hearing at certain frequencies and gives a more natural sound, it’s very limited in what it can do to emphasize speech over extraneous noise. Still mention it, but moderate expectations.
4)Itching You’ll likely get used to it, but if it’s really bothersome don’t try to tough it out. You might have a sensitivity and toughing it out could make things worse.
5) You have the M generation Phonaks. The P and L generations have the ability to pair to up to 8 devices and connect to 2. (The Ms can pair to 2 but only connect to 1) Bluetooth is really in a state of transition. Read up on and AuraCast and think about it if these would make your life better. They’re not fully available yet, but might be worth waiting for.
In short, keep reading and give things a little time to get used to.

Some of your issues like the sound of your clothes may just take time to get use to.

Other issues like the traffic noise and over all loudness should be able to get fixed by adjusting the hearing aid gain.

I don’t have much of a problem with itching. There are medications that can help, but talk to your hearing aid provider.

I’m not any help with Bluetooth as I currently wear open domes, and the low frequencies just don’t make it to my ear drum very well. Plus traffic noise makes it pretty much useless when walking outdoors. So I normally just turn off Bluetooth.

As far as feedback, I get feedback when running my hands over the hearing aid and when wearing a hooded raincoat. Other then that, feedback hasn’t been an issue.

I’m in a similar situation as you in that I am anew user, three weeks today. My high frequency hearing loss is much worse than yours however. But so far I am very pleased with the results. I purchased the Phonak L90-RL’s which are rechargeable. I am averaging 15-16 hours a day wearing time. I also purchased a TV connector (Bluetooth) and use that probably 4 hours a day. I don’t get a lot of phone calls but I really like being able to answer, talk, and hang up without even having to take my phone out of my pocket. Plus it will connect to two devices simultaneously. So far I have not run out of battery power. I haven’t even gotten the low battery beep that occurs when they get to 10% or so. With the “L (life)” model you also get a case with a battery that’s supposedly good for 3 recharges. But so far I haven’t seen the need to take the case with me anywhere. Luckily I did not experience the itching ear issue. I fully expected that to be the case since I wear earbuds when mowing the yard and they do bother me. I suppose it’s attributed to the dome size being a better fit. Since I’m only 3 weeks and counting, things may change, but so far I’m very pleased.

There might be domes made of a different substance, if by chance your itching is an allergic response. Just a thought.

Thanks all for those who have replied. All taken on board.

It’s been a manic few weeks with work etc so only been back in touch with Specsavers this week.

Im comfortable now with the sound, getting used to it as well as being able to tweak in the app.

I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the battery life so no issues there and Bluetooth has been pretty flawless

The only thing I need to get over now is this constant itching :joy:. Honestly. It’s driving me crazy. I’ve tried most things suggested on here including ordering some eargene but nothings worked. And it’s completely random. Sometimes the second I put them it I can’t bear how uncomfortable they are. Others days I can wear them for hours then have this sudden urge to rip them out!

I’ve had a couple of visits back to Specsavers but they’ve been pretty useless tbf. Just saying other than changing dome size there’s nothing they can do about it and it’s tough.

I’ve been in this morning and picked up a small per of domes and these so far are the comfiest I’ve had so will persevere for a bit and see how they go.

What has worked well for itchy, dry, and sore ears, for me, is ProEar by Miracell on Amazon. The small bottle. A small drop rubbed on each dome, before putting the in my ears, in the morning does the trick. My gave me a brochure about it when I first got my hearing aids. I waited till my ears were itchy, dry and sore before I ordered it. I am a happy customer now with no issues even with my double domed power domes.

Good luck. It is a bothersome issue.

Edited

I use ProEar on my ear molds a few times a week, and EarGene in my ear canals also a few times a week. I find that EarGene helps keep ear wax under control.

In reply to @Colin_P

I couldn’t tolerate the itching so my audiologist suggested that I try Phonak’s slim tips, when they came back from the lab, however, they had made me c-shells as my ear canals are too narrow. This solved the itching problem as they are snug in the ear. It’s a balance between the itching vs some occlusion (mine have large vents so that’s acceptable to me), but for me it was a no brainer.

Everything is adjustable, like speech in noise settings. I prefer a stronger “noise block” than the default (sometimes called “first fit”).

You have the M, Marvel. The latest, Lumity, can pair to several devices, and connect to two at the same time, which is VERY convenient!

I’m connected all day and add the tv connector at night while im also using a tablet or laptop. If im watching a video on the tablet, and get a notification, or a call, the video pauses and the call can be answered.

This is by far the best hearing aid connection ive had, and no extra devises needed to carry around.

I get about 17-18 hours on a charge.

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