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- Learning to Hear Again
When you purchase a hearing instrument from L.A.C. you are placing your trust in us to care for all your hearing needs. We are proud to be your partner. When you take this first step, you are committing to improving your quality of life with better hearing. Our goal is to help you through this transition of learning to hear with your new hearing aids. Remember, better hearing cannot just be purchased, it must also be learned.
Here are some helpful tips for Learning to Hear Again:
Step 1. Wear Your Hearing Aids.
Make a commitment to wear your hearing aids everyday, even if it is for a short while. At first, you may be aware of them and your own voice may sound different, but the more you wear them, the quicker you adjust. Please note there is a difference between being aware of your hearing aids and being uncomfortable. If you have any discomfort don’t “put up with it.” Contact our office for an appointment immediately.
Step 2: Give Yourself Time to Discover.
When fitted with new hearing aids, initially people often find things “tinny”, “noisy, “too loud” or “ unnatural”. Your brain is learning to recognize sounds you have been missing. These sounds will help to improve your speech comprehension, but only if you wear your hearing aids consistently. Understanding occurs in your brain, not in your ears. It can take from several weeks to several months for your brain to recognize and use these new sounds.This learning curve can be challenging but success will come with patience, practise and commitment.
Step 3: Practise Being an Effective Listener.
When wearing your hearing aids it will be easier to hear in both quiet and noisy situations but there will be times you still have difficulty. Be patient with yourself. Inform people of your hearing loss. Pay attention to people’s faces and gestures. Ask people to come closer and look directly at you when speaking. Rephrase what you have heard to verify the topic.
Step 4: Living With the Noise Around Us.
The world is full of sounds. These sounds have meaning and help us with awareness and communication. Sometimes we interpret these sounds as noise and are unwanted as they interfere with what we want to hear. Unfortunately, we cannot eliminate these sounds. When you first start wearing hearing aids, you may hear environmental sounds that you don’t recognize and find bothersome. Identify these sounds so when you hear them again, you can chose to listen to them or ignore them. When listening in noise, move as far away from the noise as possible. Turn off the TV, radio or anything else that might be interfering with your ability to hear. Decrease the distance between you and who you want to hear.
Step 5: Taking Part in Discussions.
Even people with good hearing have difficulty understanding speech if several people speak at once. Be open, tell people you have trouble hearing. Don’t be reluctant to ask people to look at you when they are speaking. Focus on the speaker and ask for repeats if you don’t hear it the first time, or ask them to repeat it in a different way. Turn off as much background sound as you can and ask family and friends to do the same.
