So here I am, getting fitted for a top of the line set of hearing aids, that will hopefully allow me to inconspiciously hear better, without shouting to the world look what I have on!!!!!
In today's market place there are lots of styles to choose from: ITC = In the Canal; ITE= In the Ear; BTE = Behind the Ear. Then there are the options: Analog or Digital, not to mention all of the additional features available on certain models. There are directional microphones to enable you to focus on the speaker in front of you and block out sounds from behind or vice versa. They also have different settings such as telephone settings, music settings, noise suppression settings and more. Some even come with bluetooth so you can hear the phone caller directly into your aide; it even allows you to listen to television that way. There are alot of good choices for active high functioning adults who still need to interact with the world on a day to day basis. I know for me, these options have made me more inclined to upgrade.
I admit I am somewhat vain, and though I have gradually begun admitting to hearing loss, I still don't want to be so obvious about it. I totally admire people who are not self-conscious - wish that was me LOL!!! But alas, it is not, at least for now, so I decided I didn't want a bulky hearing aid, I want something discrete - but powerful - after all I need to hear! And because in my case, one of my ears is as I put it my "dead" ear, I am forced to compensate by wearing a hearing aide on the other side as well. However, the good news is that not everyone has this type of hearing loss so many folks will be suited to the in the canal or in the ear hearing aide and those are pretty much invisible.
Regardless, you want to be able to hear and thats whats important. I recently met two handsome men with hearing loss - one of them refused to wear a hearing aide, seems it didn't go with his image of self, thus he was constantly mistaking what others said, to the point it created problems in his personal life and ultimately, affected his relationship to his partner. His partner was constantly suggesting he go for the aides, but he refused, vanity how fickle art thou????? The other man, was someone who impressed me with his ability to honestly share that of himself. I had an opportunity to mention my situation and he sought me out to tell me how grateful he was to his particular audiologist and how the hearing aides had saved him. He unlike the other, is still very much in a stable relationship with his partner. I can only imagine its because he can hear her, women like to be heard!!!
That's something I miss, being able to hear pretty much everything, but I am glad I live in a time where I can be helped by technology and the advances in product development, enabling me to pick up sound, when in the past I might not have been able to do so. Hearing loss, or any other "disability" can make us feel less than, but realizing it doesn't have to be so is half the battle, the other half is doing something about it.
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