twogeebs

Just had my hearing checked and need two hearing aids. So confusing as to what brand is the best. Dr. office recommended the brand they prefer but , expensive! How many of you all have hearing aids and are pleased with them??

nativetexan

well my post went away. i go to the Doctor tomorrow to find out about my hearing. did an MRI because my test was not good they said. so, will see and let you know.

twogeebs

nativetexan,

OK! Hope all goes well for you.

ekuw

Hearing aids are expensive. Period. I got mine at COSTCO about 6 years ago and paid about $2000. They work OK. Better than not having them, but I still miss a LOT of what is said. I need new ones, but coming up with another $2000 is challenging. That said, I don't think the brand that I got was not good, it's just that they are outdated and I cannot have them "turned up" any more. I would consider using their brand again, but would make sure at the start that I can hear to the level I want to while I can still return them. There is some adjustment period from not needing hearing aids to wearing them. You come to rely on them so make sure they are the best you can afford and you can hear everything you want to from the start, because if you don't it will not get better.

cashs_mom

I've worn hearing aids for about 15 years now. I'm on my third set. I got my first two from my doctor. The last ones I was NOT happy with. The doctor basically sold one brand and they didn't work well for me. When I needed this last pair about 3 years ago, Blue Cross Blue Shield has sent out an email thru their Blue365 service about discounted hearing aids thru Tru Hearing. I called them and they had an office in my area (about 3 miles from my house). It is not a doctor's office, but they do have certified audiologists (which is all I ever saw for my hearing aids at the doctor's office) who did a great job. I got my hearing aids for about 50% of what I had expected to pay. They were still expensive but much less so than in the past. I plan to go get another pair in a month or so. Expected life on hearing aids now is something like 6 to 8 years so I'm about half way. I've gotten to where its very hard for me to function at work without them. This way if one set has to go in for service, I still have a set.

I answer your question about brands. My first were analog made my Siemens and were excellent. I wore them for over 8 years with some repairs along the way. The second pair were Oticon. If you want to wear the ones the slip behind your ears Oticon is probably fine. I'm way to active to wear those aid and the Oticon in the ear were not that good. I never liked that pair. The pair I have now are Unitron and I've been very happy with them. Whatever you decide on, I would recommend buying the best pair you can. Also, so check with your insurance. While insurance doesn't cover hearing aids normally, they do have alliances like the one Blue Cross Blue Shield has with TruHearing that make them considerably cheaper. You might also call Tru Hearing. I don't know exactly how they work. It might be worth checking out.

sprice

Question for hearing aid users please. I know I have some hearing loss but I am also very sensitive to loud sounds. For example, I put paper in my ears in public restrooms because I can't tolerate the sound of those super-flush toilets and certainly not those horrible hand driers. Do you think I could be helped by hearing aids or would it just amplify all sounds?

Stitchnripper

I am wearing Costco brand. I think Resound makes them. I have had several hearing tests. They all are about the same. One was by our friend who is a doctor and works for the VA and specializes in hearing/hearing aids. He said for the type of hearing loss I have, the Costco ones would be fine. They are good. He and everyone who has ever given me a hearing test has told me that I will never have "normal" hearing. It is good and I can adjust volume and for places with background noise, but, still not like it was when I was much younger. I have had periodic adjustments. They don't recommend a different set just yet, based on my hearing loss. Good luck with it.

ekuw

Sprice, based on what you describe I think a hearing aid would just amplify those sounds. When I first started wearing hearing aids, I had to get accustom to sound again...like the sound of running water was REALLY loud :-)

Prism99

There are different kinds of hearing loss, so it may be that no one hearing aid is going to be best for everyone. My dh has a huge problem making out voices when there is background noise, due to a job accident years ago. He has held off on getting hearing aids because in the past most of them don't do much for the kind of problem he has. However, I read about some new technology that is being developed for hospital patients. Apparently many of them do not get good sleep quality because hospital rooms are very noisy -- lots of equipment beeping, nurses coming and going, etc. The hearing aid being developed is one that would allow voices to come through but would deaden other sounds -- exactly what my husband needs. This hearing aid would allow filtering of sounds as well as fine-tuning. It's not on the market yet, but I will see if I can link the article.

Well, I couldn't find the article I read a couple of months ago. However, I did find this one that lists three types of hearing aid that can filter out background noise:
http://phb.secondsensehearing.com/co...ckground-noise

This might be useful as a starting point for research:
https://www.hearingtracker.com/blog/...rands-in-2017/

In my husband's case, he wants to wait until the technology improves for his kind of problem.

barny

I have hearing loss and wear Beltone. I love them if I have to wear them. But DH has the same and they

are no good for his loss. We have been back to the person who does our work and they still don't work good. So
you just have to try several and hope you find one. However I think the tests are expensive too.