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Hi to everyone, advice for someone new to hearing aids

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Boots will not do , Specsavers maybe, but only at certain branches, Costco full REM.

In reply to @David1959

If they are saying is not necessary, then they are not following best practice. In layman’s terms REM gives you an assurance that the amplification being provided by your hearing aids is accurate for your prescriptive loss. If you google on youtube Dr Cliff he stresses the importance of REM and other professionals in the field do as well - Geoffery Cooling.

Hi there David

Fyi, as everyone knows because I’ve been talking about it a lot here. I got a new pair of Oticon More 1s for less than half price off eBay. I have a personal relationship with the seller so I can vouch for him. I paid 2400 USD. I’ll be glad to connect you to him, if you have any desire to connect. Take care.

Musican

Edited

A quick update, I’ve seen two audiologists in the past few days. The first should be a warning to anyone in the UK, be very careful.
The test was 5 minutes with a beat-up old machine sitting on the desk through some tatty old headphones. The test was in a noisy room, windows open, heavy footfall and voices in the corridor. I was then asked if there was any model of was interested in. I was then quoted £4600 for Oticon More 1 but he’d offer me a special discount to bring it down to £4100 with a 2-year warranty, I could pay and extra £400 for another 2 years. I thought this kind of thing was limited to double glazing salesmen!
I’ve seen Oticom More 1 advertised in many places for £3250 and £3500 with a care plan.

Today I went to one of the 2 big high Street chains here in the U. K. What a difference, so thorough and professional, a soundproof booth in an air-conditioned room, the test was nearly 20 minutes and fully computerized. The results were then explained clearly. No pressure and I was talked through the available options.
In the end, I decided to go for the Phonak Paradise P90 on a 60-day trial, should get them next week.
So, be careful people, there are cowboys out there.

Seeing all the negatives you listed with the first audiologist I’m surprised you sat down for an ear test

I had a single h aid from Specsavers which served me well for 5 yrs til I lost it when whipping off a facemask. I have one sided moderate hearing loss. I tried a fancier model to replace it. This had bluetooth and rechargeable batteries. The bluetooth was nice for listening to podcasts when out walking or taking a phone call as there is a microphone for speaking in the hearing aid. I was supposed to be able to control various features with an app on my phone but it never worked. In the end it turned out that my Samsung model phone was not compatible with the h aid model. I would have liked to be able to silence it via the phone or enhance the hearing functions. The charging station was something else to be bothered about, somewhere to have plugged in, to remember to do, not lose when travelling etc. In the end I went back to a more basic model without the bluetooth or rechargeable battery. I was used to the handiness of quick change every week or so and to keep a spare battery supplied free by Specsavers to hand. As for listening to podcasts etc, well I have a wirefree earpiece that does that if I want to be bothered and it goes in my good ear.

I am from UK and always been able to get a copy of my but have to ask. Sometimes I photo the screen with my phone.

Another point which may have been mentioned, is that whatever you get, don’t jump to instant conclusions. Your brain needs considerable time to adjust to receiving much more sound than it is used to. What sounds “comfortable” may be losing significant info.

When I first got my Resound Enzo 9s I went back for adjustments to make them more “comfortable”. After three such visits I realised my speech comprehension was worse than at the beginning, So my audio undid them them all and comprehension came back and I got used to the new sounds.

Thank Boreham, yes I’ve read that I’ll need to wear them for some time to allow my brain to re-calibrate the sounds coming in. I’m looking at it as the beginning of a journey. I’m really looking forward to it, last night my wife and I were watching a TV show, as usual, I had the subtitles on, although I could hear the main speech I struggle with the clarity, on occasion the subtitles would say “bird song” I asked my wife, can you hear bird song? She looked at me and said, “yes, can’t you hear that?”, shocking.

I was told by Specsavers that they would give me a spare charger (small price?) … so easy to leave behind when travelling. But when travelling light it is just one more thing to squeeze into a carryon bag and have adapter plug for if outside UK. I would insist you get a copy of the hearing test if only to keep for your own record. I found a great deal of variation in the expertise of the Specsaver staff, not all ‘audiologist’ some are technicians so shop around. I had three visits with adjustments for my first hearing aid. It was tuned up each time until it reached ‘prescription level’. I was also advised to wear the h aid at least 5 hours a day so the brain can get used to it. For TV and for meetings you can get a device that transmits direct into your h aid. I am happy with my basic model h aid given my lifestyle. I also got a discount on my first one for just taking one h aid for the bad ear. The next time I opted for identical h aids for the same ear so I can have a spare/backup. I keep one in the car for example as often forget to take one when heading out.

Hello and welcome, David1959. Yes, I’m in UK too and I agree with you there’s nothing home-grown to approach the quality of this Hearing Tracker forum. Real user experiences.

Music is One Huge Issue! NHS audiologists, perhaps private as well, typically receive little to no training in fitting for music. The mantra is speech-in-noise.
I took a teaching college to task about that - and got a very nice response from the senior audio professor who actually agreed, and said they’d revisit curriculum.

So… the thing is to politely check out your audiologist. Make it clear that music really matters to you - and don’t let the conversation default straight to Bluetooth etc. As a performing musician you’ll be able to judge whether the individual is supportive of live music, or would rather not go there.

The first to really address my high-end hearing loss with acceptable fidelity was the now obsolete Phonak Naida-S, a pair of them. Speech was clear, the frequency-shifting helped discriminate between essess and effs… but… that clever stuff destroyed music. Instruments sounded out of tune, and middle pitches warbled. So the audiologist agreed to turn off the clever processing. He warned I would get more frequent whistling, and I did, but I became able to enjoy music, both live (I play piano) and loudspeakered.

I’m now fitted with a slightly less old pair of NHS Phonaks, M70, by a wonderful audiologist.
She didn’t just measure using tones, she talked, listened, invited me to play a chord or two on my own little keyboard. Wonderful result - I stepped out onto Exeter high street hearing chatter, street musicians, the buses…

There can be feedback if I turn up volume to hear quiet things (how much always depends on the individual of course and earmould fit) - but I know I can, on these more recent aids, have a speech/music toggle activated. Very likely will go back and request that. Bear in mind - this option might not be offered to you unless you ask!

Mobiles can be pretty clear, Apple laptops very good indeed. As for hearing TV: most sets and even soundbars produce dreadful sound. Poor speakers, pointing downwards, and the origination less carefully miked up than it used to be. Plus too much ‘mood music’. I was trained to work in BBC-tv sound production, and now find myself shouting at the set! Best of luck in your quest.

Hi, thanks for such an informative response. I actually picked up my aids earlier this morning and have been wearing them since, so far so good, some whistling but seems to disappear once the volume is turned down a little.
I went to one of the big high street brands as they had a special offer on the Phonak Paradise P90 aids.
I don’t think they’re audiologists in the truest sense, as I had been warned they just set them to ‘new user’ and off I went, having said that I’m very impressed so far. Very comfortable and hardly know I have them on, the only give away is when, like now typing this message, the keyboard seems so loud! I just popped over to see a friend (incidentally, also ex BBC but in graphic design) and could hear every word she said which is a first for at least 5 or 6 years. I’ve also answered several phone calls, all superb and without issue.
I totally agree about the BBC ‘mood music’, I love anything David Attenborough produces but gave up several years ago as I could never hear a word he said over the accompanying music. I will see if the new aids make a difference?

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