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Sudden drop in hearing and what next

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Hi everyone. I have had a drastic loss in hearing according to my newest audiology assessment. I wear Costco’s Resounds and Jabras. They were both reprogrammed to support my new assessment. No matter which pair I use, I am struggling to hear. I was in a casual group setting last week and could not understand most of what was discussed. It was so depressing. I returned home earlier than intended. I am now turning down activity requests because it is too tiring to figure out what people are saying. I am not convinced that I am getting the proper care. I see an and I get assessments done at Costco and at the ENT office. The Costco tech is the one who set the alarm on my loss over last year. My question is, -= Are there places you’d recommend to get top notch assessment and to check my ears? Do I need to move to a more advance ? Costco is reasonable but for my severe loss, maybe they just cannot give me the support I need. The tech adjusted them so that what I hear is very loud, very tin like and irritating, but I cannot distinguish words. TV sounds awful as well as my streams. More and more, I have to give myself a stress break and turn off the HAs to at least enjoy natural mellow sounds.

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Ruthie, do NOT panic here! Look at my compared to yours. Yeah. Flat as cat on a hot tin roof. Granted, I have never gone the Costco route cuz I look at my audiologist as a partner for life (until I move or they retire).

I’ve had HUGE success with the Phonak Lumity Life aids, and am now wearing their 312-battery , with the behind-the-ear bean in PRECIOUS PINK!!! They rock! Like a fashion statement. I brag about them all the time.

Well, back to YOU. Sorry for that diversion. You don’t mention your age or if hearing loss runs in the family, but for many folks, hearing loss can take stair-step changes if it runs in the family or if you’ve had some health or environmental issue at play here.

The BIGGER decision you have to wrestle with is: where to go. I honestly think that if you could find a patient, competent audiologist you could be fit with aids for your audiogram. You SHOULD have some crispness and clarity for better speech comprehension, but it should NOT be hard, harsh or painful. If it is, the aids are not adjusted right. Since few of us are DIYers here, we depend on the fitter. That tells me your current Costco tech is not an option going forward.

Mainly do not give up. Persevere like a pitbull. If you can articulate what you don’t like about the aids, someone competent can adjust frequencies or even set up dedicated programs for various environments. I don’t think you have an issue so much as a FITTING issue for a pair of decent aids. Yes, Costco sells these! But if the fitter can’t hit the sweet spot for you, go elsewhere.

Bluejay,
Your thoughtout response feels like one giant hug. It is so calming. And yes I did check out your . I believe that hearing loss runs in my family; however no one wore because of the stigma in those days. I have suffered with ear aches all of my life. Then about a year ago maybe, I was at a very loud event and suffered permanent hearing loss. So here I am. So, I hear you saying that the fitting is more key to supporting loss, than maybe the brand of HA. That is helpful.

@Aster said:

So, I hear you saying that the fitting is more key to supporting loss, than maybe the brand of HA.

That is mostly correct, but I DO feel that brand is extremely important. The challenge is to find what make/model deliver the kind of hearing experience that’s optimum for you. I’ve tried Widex, Oticon, AGX (no longer around), Starkey, and Phonak to arrive at the aid that delivers the most natural hearing for me.

I hope you can explore other brands, but also find a fitter or audiologist who is patient and wants to deliver the best aid for YOU (not what he/she/the would dictate).

GOOD LUCK and persevere!

How are you able to try out hearing aids? Are you paying for them and being given a trial period to return them? How does this work?

Looking at your , we have losses that are similar, so I know how you feel. Since December 2018 I’ve had two “over night” drops in hearing. In both cases I received intratympanic steroid injections at Otolaryngology of Chicago’s Northwestern Memorial Hospital. The injections did not help and the surgeon and I discussed cochlear implant. We also discussed the possibility I have meniere’s disease, which is incurable. I was wearing Phonak Lumity, had difficulty in crowds and noisy restaurants. I discussed Phonak Infinio Sphere and was told even with the new technology, there might be situations where I would still need to use my Roger On microphone.

I bought the Infinio 90-Sphere and while they aren’t the game changer some have claimed, they have helped. When the environment gets 75db-77db that is about the limit that the Spheres help me, beyond that I use my Roger On.

Dr. Cliff Olson of YouTube fame has put together his list of recommended audiologists across the country. The list is at hearingup.com2

Good Luck

Edited

Hi Ruthie,
For peace-of-mind, perhaps a visit to an otologist/neurotologist would be worth considering.

This person is an otolaryngologist who performed an additional 2+ year long fellowship (after the otolaryngology residency) focusing on difficult to diagnose and treat hearing troubles, as well as a host of other related maladies. They have extensive knowledge in the neurological aspects of hearing loss as well. At minimum, that physician can rule out any neurological or concerning pathological cause for your sudden step down in speech comprehension.

For example: Much of my hearing trouble has nothing to do with the ears. It is nerves in the brain, thus the neurotologist’s expertise is quite beneficial.

As a bonus, quite often, the practice will have on staff who will have access to the physician and her/his report. For example- If the loss is due to neurological problems in the brain, the physician and AuD can work together to select and program instruments which train the brain to set up new neuropathways.

This team effort can not only reassure you that nothing critical is happening, but can also provide the devices &/or programming to once again give you clear and beautiful hearing!

I wish you the best of success!
Paul

In reply to @1Bluejay

Well said, 1Bluejay! I hope that someone along the line didn’t forget fresh , too! If @Aster can find a different Costco, a different fitter, or an audiologist to sort out her programming, I suspect she’ll have an easier time of it. Although this thread and your comment are not particularly new, I believe good advice tends to hold its value over time. She may need new of a type that can handle her updated needs, but either way, programming HAs poorly is unlikely to be helpful.

In reply to @AttilaDaPun

Yes, ear wax is a real factor!!! I build wax quickly and go every 3 months to get my ears cleaned out. Costco gave me a supply of filters, so that is helpful. Thanks!

In reply to @Aster

Sometimes a refundable payment/deposit, sometimes a contract that specifies how much is due, and when, if you haven’t returned the hearing aids before the trial period expires. This would specify your instrument of payment - mine specified my credit card for my responsible portion of the cost. My supplemental Medicare Advantage policy covers a certain amount per ear, every 3 years, so that part was deducted from the total. If you return the trial pair because they weren’t meeting your needs, you can usually get a different trial pair and the trial period clock starts over again.

In reply to @Aster

Different clinics have different policies. I have only bought my aids through an audiological clinic - never a “fitter” or Costco. (Not knocking those alternatives, but just realizing that my kind of nuanced hearing is a challenge to FIT to my liking.)

I convinced my previous audi to let me trial more than one maker’s aids, cuz after all, this is how we buy cars, right? We test drive 2-3 and then sign on the dotted line. He used to joke with me: “I know where you live!” So he’d just fit me with aids and give me a 60-day trial. I’d usually know by Day 2 if they’d work out for me or not. NO deposit or any payment until I signed the invoice.

My present audi does not own her own practice - she works for one of those (now trending) hearing health organizations. She has no flexibility when it comes to trials. So I pay a $1,000 deposit for the aids and get my trial. When they don’t work out (which happened when I tried the Oticon Intent), I just turn them in and go to the next maker.

I think one reason I have always favored a dedicated audi is that I form a relationship with them over the YEARS, so they know my issues and goals. I get their direct email addy and make app’ts that way - not through the nameless, faceless robo-phone attendant.

And that is how it has worked for me when I trial a pair of aids! These audis also know that once I buy a pair of aids, I always buy an identical pair to use as backups. So there is some money to be made here, too.

In reply to @Aster

Both of those are crummy terms, and I doubt that I’m the only one who thinks so. I suspect that everyone on this forum would urge you to take your business elsewhere. Many offer 15 days minimum, others 30, and still others 60 or 90 days. “No trial period” is ridiculous, and a weekend trial is a rush job by someone who only sees dollar signs when someone walks in. They don’t work for free, of course, but only seeing someone as a commission rather than a client coming for professional help is horrible.

In reply to @Aster

@Aster said:

I am asking because one provider offered no trial period, and the other gave me a weekend trial.

Um. WHERE are you shopping for these aids? Those terms are ludicrous. So much so that I hope you walked out and have NOTHING more to do with either outlet. There is something underhanded about selling a person an expensive medical device with NO trial, NO way to get one’s money back if it isn’t working. They are done with you before the purchase has even been made.

Your local Costco would be inifinitely better - like 90-day trial or more?

In reply to @AttilaDaPun

See it right above! LUDICROUS. Makes me mad to see folks here in need of hearing help treated that way. For all we know these enterprises are buying used aids on eBay and simply selling them with no service or any follow-on appt. I’d love to report them to the BBB.

In reply to @1Bluejay

1Bluejay, and others, my shopping experience has been very frustrating. I suspected that my experience was not nationally the norm. I live in Alabama where access to appropriate health care in general leaves much to be desired. I have two pairs of from Costco; the Resounds and Jabras. Costco has of course a generous warranty and post sale support. They have been awesome. However, I believe I need a hearing solution at this point that they cannot provide. They are the ones who were alarmed at my sudden hearing loss; my was meh and offered the most unreasonable solutions. The good thing is that my retirement package provides a $2K annual hearing allowance. I did not use it last year; so I have $4k available to use this year that I can use anywhere in the country. I am clarifying what shopping experience is reasonable and where I might find the help that I need. My hearing loss is impacting my activities now to where I am beginning to decline invitations. I sit on a Board. I can’t understand what people are saying who are sitting at my elbow. I offered to resign. As you probably know, struggling to hear is exhausting.This HT forum has given me a path forward and I appreciate you all so much.

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