hearing aids

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Tips for Effective Communicating with Children and Families Who Wear Hearing Aids

You might be surprised to learn that over 4 million people in America sensor hearing aids, but many don’t use them optimally. Although most adults are able to adjust and adapt to their hearing aids, it becomes a huge problem when it comes to small children.

 

Hearing aids are necessary for those who need to take steps towards hearing rehabilitation. The best way to help a family member who needs them is by giving them the confidence and resources they need to wear their hearing aids. Giving verbal reminders, showing them what alarms mean, and teaching sign language can all go a long way in creating a bridge between audiology and your loved ones.

 

Tips for teaching small children to wear hearing aid

A small child, especially one who is under three years old, will try to take out the hearing aid especially on the first few times that this gadget is attached to their ears. To avoid such problems, here’s what you need to do:

 

  1. Use hair tape to fix the hearing aid behind his ear

Kids can also have a flexible loop attached to hold their hearing aid when they do physical activities like dancing or running. This will help the hearing aids stay in place, and prevents them from bouncing off when they move their head back and forth.
 

  1. Hook a string, cord, clip, fish line or a loop to hold the hearing aid in place and attach the other end to the child’s dress.
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  3. Buy an Ear Gear
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  5. Encourage the child with hearing aids to continue wearing the devices
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  7. If he is about to rip off his hearing aid, divert his attention by using his toys. This will train your loved one that wearing the hearing aid all the time can be okay, but if too intrusive then remove it for a moment.

 

 

Four Practices To Follow To Help Adults With Hearing Aids

If a family member is struggling with hearing aids, it is important to recommend seeing an audiologist to get a hearing aids prescription. This will help ensure the individual gets just the right device, determined from an expert’s recommendation.
 

  1. Don’t expect them to use their hearing aid right after buying it. They will need time to get adjusted to the feeling of the foreign object attached to their ears.
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  3. According to Insight Hearing Aids, your family member might not be able to adjust the controls all by himself. If your family member is really old, he might not be able to access the device properly and it is helpful to help him out with adjustments.
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  5. Focus your tone and volume when speaking when you have a conversation with an audibly impaired family member.
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  7. Build the hearing aid user’s confidence with gradual changes through usage, increasing the time they listen daily until they are able to adjust.

 

 

Source:

HK Hearing & Speech Centre

Specialist of Hearing test & assessment,

and Hearing Aids Prescription

https://www.hkhearingspeech.com

Tips for a Better Hearing Experience Using Hearing Aids

One similarity between hearing aids and eyeglasses is that they work in a similar way. Eyeglasses cannot return your eyesight to normal. The same goes for hearing aids. Unless you are totally deaf, a hearing aid can:

 

1) Give sounds a louder and more significant quality

2) Transform sound into vibrations so that they can be recognized by your brain cells.

 

You might be able to hear better with your hearing aid, but you are still not hearing as well as someone with 20/20 eyesight. Although new innovations are constantly being introduced to make people’s lives easier, there are some external factors that affect its performance even if you might have a hearing aid prescribed by your audiologist. Here lists them as below:

 

  1. The severity of your hearing loss.

Hearing aids can only restore some hearing, but they cannot make us hear as well as other people can. This is what makes these devices different from eyeglasses, which may be very thick so that people can still see and read normally.

 

  1. The degree to which your hearing loss has affected the clarity of your hearing.

This is known as speech discrimination, which is an approximation of how well you understand words; it’s measured on a scale from 0-100% (0% understanding equals constructive interference). For example, if you’ve scored 50%, then you understand half of what you hear – the rest is gibberish.

 

  1. How often you wear your hearing aids.

You must wear them constantly to adjust to them and reap benefits of your devices. It can take weeks before you adjust, so wear it regularly for an optimal experience.

 

  1. How well other people communicate with you.

If you must read lips in order to understand what people are saying to you, wearing hearing aids will make it much easier. Those with hearing aids should also speak clearly and laugh out loud if necessary. People speaking to them should interact face-to-face and not mumble their words.

 

  1. The level of the background noise when you are engaged in conversation.

Noise is a common problem for those with hearing loss. In a noisy environment, you may need to increase volume to the point where the voices are jarring and hard to understand. That is because you can’t decipher what someone is saying from reading their lips alone.

 

  1. The acoustics in the room you’re in can affect how your hearing aids work.

Rooms with excellent acoustics will improve your ability to hear out conversations while various other rooms may muffle what you’re trying to hear.

 

The performance of your hearing aid is not the only thing that can affect how well it works for you. Hence, it is important to note these factors before using your hearing aid to improve your hearing in conversation.

 

Source:

HK Hearing & Speech Centre

Specialist of Hearing test & assessment,

and Hearing Aids Prescription

http://www.hkhearingspeech.com

Which Hearing Aid Features Are Needed and Vital?

When you are picking up your first pair of hearing aids, it might be difficult to understand why you should have certain features.

 

Which Hearing Aid Features Are Needed and Vital?

If you’re hesitant to buy a hearing aid because of the high pitched voice, which pierces your ear at regular intervals, consider getting a new model with user likes and dislikes in mind.

 

One of the main features of a hearing aids might be invisibility, but not every person needs it. Wideband is a must have for those listening on TV or podcasts as it boosts very high and soft sounds that can normally do not come into focus on its own.

 

As the hearing aid industry continues to evolve, they continue to introduce new and better models. Hearing aids that fit discretely on your ear or on the back of your ear and nearly disappear. Now you don’t have to sacrifice quality for a discreet design.

 

When deciding on which features are most important for your hearing devices, you need to take the following into consideration:

 

  1. Feedback Reduction

 

Modern hearing aids go beyond amplifying the sound coming your way; they filter and convert it to digital. This means you can listen to every conversation and enjoy every moment with crystal clear clarity, thus eliminating all communication problems.

 

  1. Directional Microphones

 

Luckily, new hearing aids won’t distract you in the midst of a crowded room. New features turn down external sound if you do not hear it well and hear you clearly when in close proximity with your friend. The new directional microphone feature allows you to focus on a sound and isolate it from the others. As a result, you are able to hear everything is the first go.

 

  1. Multiple Channels

 

This is perhaps one of the best features of today’s hearing aids. Multiple channels allow you to experiment with different setting according to the acoustics of the environment you are in. You might hear the speech louder in some rooms and quieter in other rooms. The memory setting will allow you to adjust the microphone frequency, which will shift the channel automatically when you are certain environment.

 

  1. Telecoil

 

Telecoil features, which connects your hearing aids to a loop,  allows you to listen clearly in various big and loud places such as sporting arenas, places of worship, musical concerts and more. The list of location is pre-installed on the device and can be routed through Bluetooth.

 

  1. Binaural Processing

 

The binaural processing feature in hearing aids synchronize the two hearing aids for full listening experience. By using this feature, delays or miscommunication can be prevented because there are no longer any differences in input.

 

  1. Automatic Programming

 

Once your hearing aid connects to your mobile device, it stores settings in your hearing preference for different environments and the programming feature will adjust automatically.

 

Which features do you need and important to you?

It depends on how severe your hearing loss is. You should carefully choose a hearing aid with the features to best serve you and your life. For more information and consulation, please contact us now.

 

 

Source:

HK Hearing & Speech Centre

Specialist of Hearing test & assessment,

and Hearing Aids Prescription

https://www.hkhearingspeech.com

When Should Consider to Replace With A New Hearing Aids?

Hearing aids can last for four to six years if you take care of them with regular maintenance and protection from moisture and earwax. However, how old is your hearing aid?

 

If it’s too outdated, it may be time for a replacement. Here are three things you need to ask yourself before making decision to replace your hearing aids:

 

  1. Is the current hearing aid serving it’s purpose?

Your hearing aids will need to be replaced over time because of environmental elements. If your hearing aids are not working well, you should first get them cleaned by an audiologist. However, if they’re still not functional after they’ve been cleaned, it may be time to purchase new ones.

 

  1. Can Your Current Hearing Needs and Prescriptions Meet?

In the article, they say priorities when considering when to replace your hearing aids. Here are their three priorities:

 

(1) Can you drive and use speaker phone?

(2) Can you hear during regular conversations or at a party?

(3) Do you hear low-pitched sounds like regular human conversation and finger snapping?

 

If you answer yes to all of these questions, then you can keep your hearing aids. However, if the problem doesn’t lie with the hearing aid, it Is possible that your hearing has deteriorated further. You may need to get a hearing test to determine if you should get the hearing aid replaced or a little readjustment.

 

  1. Should You Upgrade Your Hearing Aid With Technology Advancement?

It depends on what more you want from your hearing aids. As your needs change when it comes to hearing aids, you should consult with your provider or hearing professional on new technology. Today’s hearing aid settings include preprogrammed functions such as settings for a party so that background noise can be lowered and conversations can be had more easily. Speak with your provider about the most upgraded model that will suit your needs.

 

When should you replace your hearing aids?

You should generally replace your hearing aids when they’re no longer serving their purpose. This could be because they’ve stopped functioning or you can tell it’s impacting your hearing condition in some way. It’s important to realise that this isn’t enough though – even if your hearing aid is functional, it might not result in optimal results for you and in some cases, it will need to be replaced completely.

 

 

Source:

HK Hearing & Speech Centre

Specialist of Hearing test & assessment,

and Hearing Aids Prescription

https://www.hkhearingspeech.com

How Long Will a Hearing Aid Last?

When the decision is set to get yourself a hearing aid, think of it as a necessary investment just like a car; it gives comfort to your daily life. Proper maintenance and the correct usage of that investment is directly proportional to its life.

 

With a hearing aid, its lifespan will stretch longer than the average when proper maintenance is observed. And the average lifespan of a hearing aid is between three to seven years which is generally accepted by specialist and manufacturers.

 

To achieve a longer life for your device, perform the hearing aid maintenance below:

 

  1. Circumvent crash, drops, bumps. Hearing aids are compact in manufacture and in its purpose, but it is minute electronics inside. No electronics are indestructible. If you handled your cell phone safely for a couple of years or more, do the same with your ear device.

 

  1. Summer cautions to note. The season of sweat is a concern for hearing aids also, and it is advisable to check the battery compartment for moisture and wipe the terminals dry in any case.

 

Do not leave your aid in direct sunlight or in high temperature enclosures. Such habit will warp the plastic casing and affects severely the fitting into your ear canal.

 

  1. Take precautions at beaches. Don’t scamper with glee to the sea; not just yet. Be vigilant of a couple of things first. Beach sand is soft, but it will obstruct your microphone ports which will be difficult to remove.

 

Seawater is a rust accelerator and does not make any exception of your ear device. Remove your device and keep it safe in its casing if your prime aim is to lengthen its age.

 

  1. Chemicals to watch every day. Suntan lotion, alcohol, cosmetics are a few of the many chemical to watch out for. Always remove your device when handling chemicals and dry your hands well before fitting them back.

 

  1. Cold weather is not good. The battery of hearing aids is sensitive to cold weather as well. Coming from a cold exterior and entering into a warm interior may result in condensation that leads to rust. Clean the compartment and terminals dry before sleeping.

 

  1. Be vigilant of water in any form. Some brands of hearing aids are water-resistant, but water may still stay inside. Daily cleaning is a simple indispensable solution.

 

 

For more details of our hearing test & assessment, and hearing aid prescription, please contact HK Hearing & Speech Centre.

 

 

Source:

HK Hearing & Speech Centre

Specialist of Hearing test & assessment,

and Hearing Aid Prescription

https://www.hkhearingspeech.com

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