The Role of Audiologists in Managing Ear Health
Audiologists specialize in understanding how your ears work and what
When You Need to Get New Hearing Aids
Do I Need to Get New Hearing Aids?
Is it time to get new hearing aids or do you maybe just need to take them in for a professional cleaning or repairs?
Hearing aids are an investment and it’s important to consider the following before upgrading to a new devices. This is especially true for anyone nervous about costs or whose insurance may not provide full coverage.
Signs it’s time to get new hearing aids
To know when to get new hearing aids, it’s important to consider a few factors. This includes how old your current devices are, your hearing loss, and your lifestyle.
Below are the six big signs it’s time to upgrade to new hearing aids:
1. Your hearing loss has gotten worse
Unlike broken bones, hearing loss doesn’t heal. Once it’s gone, it’s gone. Changes in hearing are a sign it may be time to get new hearing aids that offer more power or are more technologically advanced (improvements in sound and speech quality, microphone control, phone control, etc.)
2. You’re struggling to understand sounds or frequencies you didn’t have problems with before
This kind of goes hand-in-hand with hearing loss changes, but if you’re struggling with sounds and words you didn’t have issues with before, it may be time to upgrade. A good first step is to always work with your audiologist to adjust your hearing aid programs first, especially making sure it’s set to your prescription using Real-Ear Measure., If doing that doesn’t help, it may be time to retire your current devices.
Another sign under this theme is higher frequency sounds (female voices, whistles, birds, sirens). Hearing aids that are smaller tend to not be quite as powerful as the larger RIC and BTE devices, so if you’re also having trouble with sounds at certain frequencies now, it’s possibly time to also consider a different style of hearing aid.
3. Your lifestyle has changed
Maybe you got a new job that requires you to be in more meetings or take more calls. Maybe you’re retiring and traveling the world. Or maybe you’ve become a parent or grandparent, and clear speech is now even more important than ever. When your life changes, what you need your hearing aids to do can change too.
4. You want to do more with your hearing aids
Not even eight years ago, rechargeable hearing aids were the brand-new and exciting advancement in the hearing aid world. Now, most modern-day hearing aids are rechargeable! They also most all are paired with smartphones, offer health functionality such as fall detection or heart rate monitoring, and other cool features like streamling calls and music, and even translating languages. If you’ve been feeling like your hearing aids can’t do everything you want (or need), it’s time to explore newer options.
5. Noisy environments are becoming harder to hear in
Many newer hearing aids are designed with active, noisy environments in mind. Humans are social, so many of today’s modern devices come with advanced speech and sound clarity, noise reduction features, as well as a more controlled, accurate microphone range you can adjust. If loud environments are getting harder to hear in, contact us today to discuss what new devices we may recommend and the features they offer that could help.
6. Your hearing aids are broken or constantly having feedback and other issues
This is straightforward. If your hearing aids are damaged, broken, not working like they should, or are constantly giving you painful feedback. It’s time to trade up. Continuing to use a broken hearing aid doesn’t help you enjoy your life, and it will make your brain work harder to hear and communicate.
Explore the Newest Hearing Aid Technology
Want to explore the latest technology and see what new features and functionality today’s advanced hearing aids offer? We offer hearing aid evaluations and consultations to help you find the right hearing aid for you and your hearing loss.
Which Hearing Aid is Right for You?
Not ready to come in but want to start researching? Download our free hearing aid educational guide to learn more about the different type of hearing aids available today, and go here to explore the different hearing aid brands and manufactures we offer at Journey Audiology and Hearing Care.
