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Hearing Aids for Sailing

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Hi guys, I asked on AllDeaf a month or two ago, and I haven’t gotten a reasonable response, so I thought I’d ask here.

@sailerboy said:

Hi, so as told by my name, I sail. I mostly sail dinghys such as CFJs, C420s and Finns, and since sailing is a sport that requires a ton of communication as well as being able to hear the start signals, I generally leave my hearing aids in. Unfortunately, these boats are highly unstable and capsize easily, and even if they don’t capsize, pitch-poling (where the bow goes underwater) is common. Thus, there is the potential to get very wet.

Fortunately, when you capsize, it usually happens rather slowly, so getting your head wet is fairly rare. So far, I haven’t gotten my hearing aids wet (Knock on wood), but the hearing aids are somewhat of a handicap, since I can’t sail on skiffs and I can’t be as aggressive in hiking or rolling.

I have a severe-profound hearing loss in my left ear and a profound hearing loss in my other, and I currently use the Phonak Savia 311 dSZ. Are there any hearing aids that have the same amount of power and are waterproof? If there are, this would be great as it would open up a new world of sailing for me (29ers, 49ers, Moths, etc…) that I ordinarily wouldn’t be able to sail in due to hearing aids.

Taking hearing aids off is not an option, I need to be able to hear. Visual contact alone would require a significant modification, since I have to be worried about other boats coming from my blind spot, which I may only hear them hailing “STARBOARD,” or Protest situations where I need to take in a lot of information very quickly. This can’t be done visually alone. Also, it is unfair for all of my competitors to have to learn sign language just for me.

Thanks for your time :slight_smile:

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sailerboy,
I’m not sure of its power but Siemens makes the Aquaris which is marketed as a waterproof and shockproof . Hope this helps.
Scott

Another lineup for water resistant is the Phonak Naidas. I also do some sailing and Kayaking and do fine if take it easy and get an occasional dousing of water. No problems with sweating either.

@seb, unfortunately I don’t think that has enough power :frowning:

@rweigle, I’ve heard horror stories about the Nadia being shortest after an accidental stepping in the shower. I’ll ask my Audi, but I’m liable to get sprayed by salt water a lot, to the point where my head may be under water.

[FONT=Times New Roman][SIZE=3]sailerboy

I ran across this "
The new Aquaris waterproof hearing aids from Siemens Hearing Instruments have taken the recent industry trend toward more durable, water-resistant hearing aids to a whole new level. Siemens says the Aquaris hearing aids are fully waterproof to depths of three feet for up to 30 minutes.
The new hearing aids promise to eliminate the repair problems associated with sweat, dirt and humidity, in addition to expanding their functionality: Siemens has even developed a sound-processing program that can be switched on while swimming to help the hearing aids adapt to the sound of water splashing and other acoustic challenges.
The company describes the technology developed for the new waterproof hearing aids in its news release:
A scratchproof, rubber-like surface holds the device securely behind the ear and prevents it from slipping. The battery compartment is equipped with a waterproof but air-permeable membrane. As a result, environmentally-friendly zinc air batteries can be used, which always require “air to breathe”. The cover clip is attached to the top of the casing via ultrasound. It also protects the waterproof but acoustically transparent microphone membrane, which was specially developed for Aquaris. A nano coating and a seal protect the earpiece.
As with its other latest-generation hearing aids, Siemens equipped Aquaris with its BestSound Technology, which improves speech understanding, the wearer is able to make adjustments using Siemens “Tek” and “miniTek” remote operation, and the hearing aids link wirelessly with modern communication and entertainment electronic devices. "

Kazan

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RE…5…0…5…15…50…60…60…60…65
LE…15…0…5…20…60…65…60…70…65

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In reply to @sailerboy

In my practice I have had a lot of success with the Phonak Naida. I’d say ask your Audiologist to try it out on the water and see what happens. I think you’ll really like it and then compare it to the Aquaris - there’s no harm in trying them out and getting them wet and seeing how they respond. Just don’t lose one - they don’t float too well!

The Naida UP is designed for profound losses. It believe it goes up to -120db loss. The frequency response is not as wide as the SP version, but you can’t have everything correcting a profound loss.

I normally wear Naida IX SPs. I can’t say they are the most high fidelity aids I have used, but they are reliable and rugged.

@sichejo said:

The Naida UP is designed for profound losses. It believe it goes up to -120db loss. The frequency response is not as wide as the SP version, but you can’t have everything correcting a profound loss.

I normally wear Naida IX SPs. I can’t say they are the most high fidelity aids I have used, but they are reliable and rugged.

I agree; I wear them too - I tend to sweat a lot and have not had a problem.

Hi,

I like this forum and this topic also. The Lyric hearing aid is what I would term a “semi-implantable” hearing aid. Fitters have to have special training to implant and remove the hearing aid. The patient is not supposed to remove it (except in an emergency) and the aid is worn for a period of time (up to several months. I know many thing in this forum.

Thanks

Ahoy Sailorboy, thanks so much for asking this question.

I’m dealing with the same question myself. I’m a sailor, kayaker, etc. and about to buy new aids myself.

Thanks to you, I will now check out the Siemens Aquarius, here’s hoping that it is workable for my type of loss.

Thanks also to everyone who provided such helpful information!

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