Hearing Aids - again

[Powderpacker]

A while back there was thread about the econo/disposable hearing aids sold at Wal-mart . I just found an ad for the "Hearing Help Express" company in DeKalb, IL . Their products appear to be a step up in quality (and price). I'm wondering if any of our members have tried any of the hearing aids this company sells. They claim to be a family mail order business with 26 years of experience and 400,000 satisfied customers. Any satisfied , or dissatisfied, customers of this company among our members ?

[JudgeBAC]

As is true with most products, stick with the best. I've worn them since 1992 and I am on my second set of hearing aids. They are very expensive but in my line of work I must be able to hear what is said. Belive me, at 49 its no fun wearing them either but a necessity caused by many early years shooting groundhogs with centerfire varmint calibers with no hearing protection and several close calls with fireworks as a dumb teenager.

[Four Fingers of Death]

What????? :D

[SharpsShooter]

I cannot speak to the brand you mention, but I will mention this item. Hearing occurs across a broad frequency range and hearing aides are not a one size fits all proposition. The modern digital hearing aide must be "tuned" or configured to compensate for the specific frequency range that you have lesser hearing. Most of us guys will lose hearing in the higher frequencies as we age and that prevents hearing children's and some womens voices clearly. Also, hearing lose in specific ranges will cause speech discrimination difficulty. Once again the modern dgital aide can help, but be sure the device you select will do what you need. In short, see a qualified audiologist. Hearing aides are not going to give you back perfect hearing, but it beats the hell out of no hearing at all.


SS

[floodgate]

Sharpshooter:

AMEN!!! Get the best you can afford, and try audiologists until you find one that understands YOUR problems. And DO IT NOW! You will lose hearing skills in the "computer in your head" and some of these can't be recovered, however much the sound itself is boosted. In my case, I let it go too long, and have "processing" problems: it takes me a couple of seconds to "analyze" an unfamiliar sound, and music is now mostly "white noise" - as I am always running a measure or so behind: "What was that note? Was that a major or minor chord??" Funny, because with music I know well, I can play it in my head and hear it fine, but on a CD, it's just noise.

I preach a lot on the topic, and probably bore everyone around me; but I'll say it again: Have your hearing checked at least annually, and if there is ANY loss, get help - NOW!

floodgate

[SharpsShooter]

Floodgate,

Do not apologize for preaching. :-D It is important that folks know that once lost, hearing can never be recovered. It can be supplemented and as you indicate, it should be as soon as the problem is discovered to prevent processing or noise/speech discrimination difficulties from becoming an issue.

My own hearing was damaged back in 72 by the muzzle blast of a 4” S&W model 29 44 mag that was erroneously fired in close proximity to my left ear by a careless individual. :( The resulting nerve damage has cost me over 70% of my natural hearing. With hearing aides, I regain about 35% to give me an accumulative of 65% of whatever is considered normal these days. The point I make here is to all shooters and workers in noisy environments; Protect your hearing!!! When it is gone, there is nothing in technology that can replace it to perfection.

Loosing your hearing will cause you to miss far more than the birds singing. Music for the most part becomes gibberish. :confused: Telephone conversation becomes difficult or impossible. :confused: Conversation in public places like parties, restaurants becomes difficult etc. the list goes on and on. Also, many job opportunities require you to hear for your own safety or that of others. I could rant a lot of bandwidth up here, but most folks get the idea.



Use hearing protection. If you suspect you have a problem, see a qualified audiologist and remember that the $20 set of ear muffs is a lot cheaper than a $3000 set of hearing aides.


SS

[floodgate]

SharpsShooter:

Thanks for the backup! I thought maybe I was overdoing it, but it is REAL.

Which lets me relax and quote an incident in my grandmother's life: as a teen-ager in a small Upper Midwestern city in the late 1800's, a "glitch" in transportation planning forced her to have to walk across town, through a rather rough neighborhood, to get home from a daytime visit with a school friend. The route took her past a pool-hall in the rougher part of the community. A couple of the louts lounging outside passed a few suggestive remarks, and seemed ready to pursue the situation. Thinking quickly, she cupped her hand behind her ear and emitted a loud "EH??". "Oh; excuse us, Miss." And she made the rest of the trip in safety. Even pool-hall oafs had SOME sense of what was proper in those days....

floodgate

[dubber123]

Some seemingly inocuous noises can cause damage over time. I worked as a production welder for 3 years, and initially laughed at the labels on the welding wire that said to wear hearing protection. That little buzzing wasn't loud was it? Well, a few months in, I noticed I had a hard time hearing a certain range of sounds. I started wearing earplugs, and my hearing in that sound range came back. A lot of anything can be bad, including some not so loud noises.