Help for Hearing Impairment

brook2jack

Just in case this is useful has a full list http://www.supplychain.nhs.uk/product-news/publications/brochures/~/media/Files/publications/1173%20Audiology%20Catalogue%202012%20low%20res.ashx of nhs available hearing aids and technical specifications along with supply numbers. We have printed off relevant data for fitting on 23rd .

naf123

Hi,

Having spoken to a few profoundly deaf friends, it appears they are on middle rate DLA.

I am thinking of applying again/appealing against my lower rate DLA?

What do you guys think?

thanks

Savvy_Sue

naf123 wrote: »

Hi,

Having spoken to a few profoundly deaf friends, it appears they are on middle rate DLA.

I am thinking of applying again/appealing against my lower rate DLA?

What do you guys think?

thanks

I think I'd take advice / get help. You run the risk of losing even the lower rate, and I think you have to be able to demonstrate how many things you can't do unassisted - unless you've also got serious balance issues then you probably wouldn't get any 'points' for needing help with cooking, dressing, personal care etc.

naf123

Savvy_Sue wrote: »

I think I'd take advice / get help. You run the risk of losing even the lower rate, and I think you have to be able to demonstrate how many things you can't do unassisted - unless you've also got serious balance issues then you probably wouldn't get any 'points' for needing help with cooking, dressing, personal care etc.

you are correct.

But I am worried with forthcoming PIP changes i will lose it all together...so maybe its worth appealing to get middle rate before PIP comes along?

Savvy_Sue

Ah, can't give any help with PIP, I'm afraid. Could be worth posing as a separate question on this board, thinking about what was on your last application / renewal, and whether anything has changed.

brook2jack

My daughter had a pair of spirit zest minis fitted today with thin tube fittings. The audiologist had never programmed for a music setting before but got advice and spent quite some time setting up programmes.

They have just had introduced the zest communicate models and although she hasn't dispensed any yet is going to try to get a pair to swap to as will facilitate mp3 , mobile etc.when we buy the streaming box.

In the end she went with a silver colour on the aids and we're going with the loud and proud look.

The audiologist was very upfront that normally they programme just the basics and they don't normally have people asking about bluetooth connectivity etc so thanks to hear hear for the heads up.

Today my daughter is absolutely shattered, the sudden input of sound has been almost overwhelming as she didn't realise how much she was missing, and she has been sitting listening to music, following the score and hearing the harmonies etc she was missing before.

many thanks to all for advice

Hear-Hear

brook2jack wrote: »

Today my daughter is absolutely shattered, the sudden input of sound has been almost overwhelming as she didn't realise how much she was missing, and she has been sitting listening to music, following the score and hearing the harmonies etc she was missing before.

many thanks to all for advice

Reading and re-reading that comment. It's just wonderful!

How I wish there was some way of getting it in front of the estimated 4,000,000 people in this country who have normal hearing loss, but choose to do nothing about it or blame everyone else for mumbling etc etc etc. There really is no big deal to having hearings aids that are correctly prescribed. And, if the right aids are prescribed, they make an AMAZING difference to people's lives.

So now we have another smart 18-year-old girl who has changed her own life, and hopefully will contribute to deflating the silly 'stigma' that used to be associated with hearing aids.

Best wishes to her .......

brook2jack

Thank you hear hear. We discussed it alot and she announced on Facebook she was getting hearing aids so all her friends etc knew. We thought it better than obsessing over whether her hair covered the aids or not and it's put everything out in the open.

bluedog

brook2jack and Hear-Hear,

This has really touched me and I'm so pleased for your daughter that I can't find the words to express this as I know first hand how it can be if left. I hope by giving you my story brook2jack, it does this and backs up exactly what you are saying Hear-Hear.

I was first diagnosed with hearing loss when I was 18 years old too, but chose not to have the recommended aid as it was the box type as well as the stigmas. During my teen years, I was deemed as the classic obnoxious teenager in most people's eyes - not listening, being deliberately awkward, ignorant and having selective hearing putting the stereo, tv etc on too loud etc, yet could never fathom why family had it on so quiet that "we" couldn't hear it. I think an element of "its my fault" crept in with the years of being berated for it, as it was never accepted I genuinely couldn't hear.

I realised something was definitely not right and had to do something about it when my children were small. They'd ask me what a sound was and I'd have to make a game of it to get them to copy the sound so I could tell them. I got my first aid in my late 20's, couldn't adjust to it so hardly wore them except for meetings and one-on-one type of situations as everything was so loud as well as how the world sounded when wearing it. (I only had one for my "better ear").

When I lost it, I was partly relieved and didn't ask for a replacement for a few years. By then, things had changed a lot and I was amongst the first in the county to be given digital aids and for both ears too. I thought they were just being very nice to me although looking back, I now see it was down to the type and level of hearing loss I have!

Fast forward 7 years and by reading this thread, realised I hadn't had a re-test since then. It was posts by you Hear-Hear about the effects of not having/wearing aids thats helped me far more than you can know to understand why I found wearing aids so difficult to adjust to - the closest I can get to it is its like putting stereo speakers at full blast on each shoulder and listening to the world. I can't cope with it for long. I am slowly wearing them more and more often and its also helped me realise how this has affected me in all areas of my life and coming to terms with it. I can't thank you enough for this. I was given an up-grade and was also referred to the hearing clinic for tinnitus. It was a chance comment by the therapist that I've found out my hearing loss is classified as severe as well as "unusual" which obviously shocked me. I hadn't got a clue it is that bad as this and it's never been explained to me properly by the people I've seen until then. She was shocked too that I didn't know.

Now I've been able to explain it to others, I've found they are somewhat more tolerant towards me too and changed their thinking generally about hearing impairments I like to think!

Yes, things could have been very different for me over the last 25+ years if I understood it like I do now, but no amount of wishing or regretting will change it. However, if by sharing this, it helps even one person in anyway, then that's great.

The stigmas are still there and hearing loss is still an area for ridicule in general sadly, but is improving slowly for the better. I stopped being bothered by theses things years ago and with the deeper understanding learned through the experience, now use it to encourage others to look after their hearing and ears.

I can fully understand how over-whelmed your daughter has been at being able to hear all the sounds she's been missing brook2jack and wish her every success in everything she's doing. I love music too and this has inspired me to see it my aids can have the bluetooth activated too so thanks very much for this.

brook2jack

Thank you so much bluedog, it's very helpful as the early days are truely overwhelming with the input of sound from everywhere.

With my daughters permission I've quoted her posting telling all she'd had hearing aids, the amazing thing being the support she's had. She had adapted to restricted hearing so well most people didn't know she had a problem unless she was in a crowded room.

"Huge thanks to all for all of the good luck wishes this morning, the world can now know I am now fully fitted with two hearing aids, and busy trying to get over the shock of how loud the world has become while my ears were away, and how needlessly raucous the rustling of my hair and clothes/my breathing/footsteps/traffic actually are.......hurrah."