I picked up my new hearing aids today. These are a bit different than the old ones. The old ones fit entirely in the ear canal. The new ones kinda fit behind the ear, have a little tube that leads into the ear and a sort of stopper at the end of the tube that inserts into the ear canal. They're not like the big BTE (behind the ear) devices of a decade ago; you'd have to look quite closely to see that I'm wearing them. They're considerably more comfortable than my old ones were and I've only had them one day.
Going to BTE from CIC (completely in canal) might seem like a step backwards but I need considerably more gain now than I did 10 years ago. These devices are generating sound pressure levels of 85 to 90 dB in my earholes. In spite of the higher gain and power they have absolutely no tendency to squeal with feedback. The old ones would squall if I put *anything* within an inch of my head. That's how I checked the batteries: just casually put my hand near my ear and note squeal or not.
I was looking at the audiologist's test result charts today. What I hear without aids could be approximately simulated by putting on a good of very good shooting muffs. The best muffs I've seen offer about 30 dB of supppression, considerably more than earplugs. My hearing loss is more than 30 dB at most frequencies, considerably more in the left ear.
The sound quality of these new aids is markedly better than the old ones and there are some neat features. One very neat feature is a mode in which they suppress background noise as in a noisy restaurant. I've not yet been in a noisy restaurant with them, but it seems to work in other situations like watching TV with a fan running. Trying to participate in or follow a conversation in a noisy restaurant was about impossible with the old ones.
I think these might work with telephones. TBD on that. The old ones supposedly would but didn't because if I put a phone anywhere near them they'd squall.
There is a wireless remote control. With that I can control a number of things. I can adjust the volume of both together or either individually, and I can select one of several modes -- music, noisy, etc. I'm eager to see how they work with music. They supposedly do a fairly good job of automatically selecting modes and the remote is optional ($500) but the audiologist said people that have them say they like them a lot. I was quite impressed with this audiologist so that's all the convincing I needed.
The top models have "zoom" where directionality can be selected via the remote. Mine don't have that feature. I can see how it might be useful for someone who does a LOT of socializing or meetings and wants to zero in on one speaker to the exclusion of many others in a room. That ain't me. I think good aids might be a bit like calculators: I'll bet they all use essentially the same silicon (and in fact I've been told that by two credible sources) but some just have more "buttons connected" with attendant higher price. Mine were not cheap but a grand or three below top of the line. The additional features in the top models would be of no interest or utility to me. Wireless connectivity to gadgets I don't have or covet, suitability for a hyperactive lifestyle of someone 30 years my junior, stuff like that.
They use #312 batteries which are a bit larger than the #10's I used to use (7.9mm dia vs 5.8, both 3.6mm thick) but she said they'd typically last about 6 days with 8 hours per day of use. Man, that's way lots more than what I'd get out of a set of #10's with the old aids. I suppose digital circuitry has improved in power consumption as well as performance over the past decade. Also, the new ones beep softly half an hour or so before the battery is going to die. One beep. That could be a very nice feature for one who might wish to change batteries discretely. When they go, there's nothing gradual about it: they just quit. Hearing aids are now sophisticated digital processors. I am not the least bit vain about needing hearing aids. I'll "aid up" or change batteries right in front of God and ever'body. I see no difference between aids for hearing and eyeglasses to see better but a lot of folks don't see it that way. Ah mean, I'd rather you know I'm deaf than think I'm just stupid, right?
Went for a walk tonight with Mary and neighbors Nikki, little Wesley in his stroller and Yukon on his leash. Short route. I'd already done my 3 miles earlier and Mary'd done whatever she did today but Nikki invited us to join her for an evening stroll.
I heard bird songs. Man, I haven't heard that for a very long time! Eariler this afternoon I was carrying a bag of water softener salt down the basement steps and Mary said something from the top of the stairs. I answered. She remarked that I'd not heard anything she'd said to the back of my head for most of a decade. I said, "oh, crap, ya mean these new aids have blown my cover?" "You could ...ib ...out...attery." Man, I do NOT know how she does that! That's "you could fib about the battery" with abrupt silences interjected to simulate intermittent operation. I almost hurt myself laughing every time she does that.
I think I'm gonna like these new aids.