Help for Hearing Impairment

chewynut

Thank you for the advice. I'm writing it down or I'll forget half of it before I go in. Could it be the ear mould that is causing me problems? My mould was replaced at the same time because it was getting tatty.

I've had to Google an image because I don't know what the technical terms are:


1 goes a lot further into my ear now. I think it's touching my ear drum which my old one didn't do. 2 is also a lot bigger. It tucks under the flappy bit of my ear whereas the other one sat in my ear. It's a strange coincidence that the mould fills my ear up and now everything's muffled.

Hear-Hear

chewynut

It could indeed be one of a number of things, which is why any advice on here will always have to be 'general' rather than 'specific'.

Certainly, the audiologist should check the earmould. Be as specific as you can be with regard to any discomfort (but don't bother mentioning "touching the eardrum"; you can rest assured it's not really that close). The tip of the earmould should be at the 'second bend' of your ear canal.

Point out as best you can the area that you feel any discomfort. The audiologist should check the venting too - a separate hole just below the sound outlet, but not shown on the diagram above.

Savvy_Sue

Hear-Hear wrote: »

The audiologist should check the venting too - a separate hole just below the sound outlet, but not shown on the diagram above.

Is there always a vent? I don't think my first earmould did, and I hated it, felt as if there was forever a vacuum suction situation going on, and very muffled if ever the battery ran out for example. Then they did drill a hole in a later earmould, which helped slightly.

I'm now on the Open Fit moulds, which I know don't suit everyone (particularly those with a severe loss), but at least for me my hearing doesn't immediately reduce when I put my hearing aid in!

Although apparently I have a cyst or polyps at the end of my ear canal, GP is hoping it will have gone next time he looks but I can't help feeling that if it hadn't gone in the few weeks between audiology seeing it and him seeing it for the first time, he might be disappointed!

Hear-Hear

Not always a vent present, Sue, but highly recommended for most types of earmould, except for profound loss (below 95dBHL). Occlusion is the problem with non-vented earmoulds, and venting can relieve this significantly as you described in your post.

With the sophisticated feedback management software on aids like Siemens Impact and Oticon Zest, and pretty much all privately-supplied aids in recent years, venting does not automatically trigger feedback like it used to do.

brook2jack

My daughter had her follow up appointment and although she had the mute setting enabled for orchestral playing the audiologist said that a certain amount of feedback was inevitable when something is close to her ears. She has an oticon zest mini with open fit tubes. Can the software be tweaked any more to compensate?

As to university she has applied for the DSA component of student loans and has an assessment for needs at her university. Apparently the oticon will pick up the fm which the uni uses.

The hospital is happy to order and set up a communicate model if it turns out she would benefit from the streamer box which the nhs won't fund but DSA or uni might if she would benefit.

The audiologist was very interested at how well she has adjusted to listening to music , much better than normal. She has a flat line loss at around 50db and that may be a factor along with we don't know how ling she has had hearing loss so she may never have "heard" music properly.

All in all it has been a very positive experience having the aids fitted but certainly the advice here has greatly helped getting as much out of them as possible.

Hear-Hear

Great to read of an audiologist taking such interest. There is a manual over-ride available on the feedback manager, just as it is possible to adjust most software features manually. I suspect your audiologist may well have pushed the feedback manager to its maximum capacity, but probably worth asking at the next appointment.

damperman

Hi, i've had my hearing test ect, i use to have the small aids with a thin tube, with the reciever in the ear canal.

The audiologist said that due to my hearing loss i must now go onto the earmold and larger aid, the Seimens Impact Pro. These are now fitted and hearing good again, but i do feel that these are rather large and clumsy.

Can anyone tell me if these hearing aids are ok, or would it be better to go to, say, Specsavers and pay for smaller aids.

Thanks

Hear-Hear

There are various reasons why people choose to go private:
- easier access, usually being in a town centre
- quicker access, normally can be seen for regular routine visits and aftercare within a day or two, sometimes the same day
- cosmetic appeal, smaller aids that can fit all in the ear
- custom-built to your prescription, and ( important to you) restoring the receiver position back into your canal, so less distortions as the modified output doesn't have to travel as far
- the latest technology normally offered through the private sector, about 3/5 years ahead of the NHS

By all means go along to Specsavers to find out what would be recommended for you, but give some thought to what you want to achieve with your hearing as well as the cosmetic aspects.

damperman

Thanks, i may well book an appointment with them, just to find what is available.

Thanks

Tehya

Hi I hope you don't mind me joining you on this thread. I'm slowly reading through pages of posts a few at a time to catch up.

I was born with mild hearing loss in my right ear but after primary school I was never tested again until now.

Five years ago I had a massive vertigo attack with loss of hearing, tinnitus etc. I've since been having these attacks weekly. I was put on SERC witch helped a little so my dose doubled but now I'm struggling.

I was sent to an ENT at Manchester CATS (private company using mobile assessment units under contract to the NHS) The consultant said it was Meniere's Disease but did an MRI to rule out other things. Going back for the results I saw a different Dr who insists it's not Meniere's because my hearing loss is the wrong type? He tried to blame me for listening to music using headphones, going to live bands, working in a school & also my age (I'm 40) & told me I'd broken the hairs in my inner ears & that they do not grow back. I've always been noise sensitive so never listen to loud music, don't use earphones because they make my ears itch, my school was not a noisy hellhole & I've never been to a concert or anywhere else I could go to be deafened. He said my vertigo is something to do with my thyroid because he thinks it's slightly swollen, this has been mentioned before BUT all blood tests are normal including the ones that were done when I saw his colleague. When I explained how I get different tinnitus in each ear i.e. sometimes have a whistle in one & clicks in the other he said he'd never heard of tinnitus clicking so it's not tinnitus as it is always a high pitched whistle or a hum.

All in all he treated me like I was lying at first he even told me I didn't have hearing loss (the tests conclude I do) then he looked at his laptop with my graphs on screen & said 'oh, yes you do, sorry about that'. So I know he hadn't even read my notes. I came out close to tears but also really angry. He then discharged me from their service without any kind of explanation for my symptoms but gave me 15 pages of What is Tinnitus that he printed from the NHS Choices Site. As I was sent there for a diagnosis Care Uk have not done the job so I rang them to complain & they are now sending me back to see the first Dr for an explanation.

The only good thing from the whole of the appointment was he's referred me to my hospital's audiology for hearing aid assessment & also recommending to my GP that I should have an ultrasound on my thyroid.

After that lengthy post (sorry) and thanks for still reading if you've got here I actually do have a few questions.

Do the NHS offer hearing aids to folks with mild hearing loss in both ears? I hear most things fairy okay unless in a busy place. I do though struggle with certain peoples speech & don't watch TV without subtitles / can't hear talk on the radio / avoid the phone at all costs unless I know the person. I have several health problems but I'm also a full time carer (my hubby is my caree) meaning I attend lots of medical appointments & miss quite a lot of information.

Can hearing aids be useful for me or will they make other sounds louder too?

Does anyone know what he was on about with the kind of hearing loss I have? I'm really puzzled about Meneire's & types of loss. He also mentioned my family because my mum went deaf as did her sister & my nana (their mum) all from age 50ish onward.

He said aids called open fit might help, these sound good because they don't have the large mould my mum has, but are they provided on the NHS too?

Thank you & again sorry for the mammoth post.