Just whistle while you work. While it’s good advice to boost your mood while at work, it isn’t a good sign when your hearing aids are at work! This is because whistling, a type of feedback, is a sign that something’s wrong with your hearing aids and you have to resolve it.
There’s also the fact that sudden whistling sounds, especially when heard for more than a minute, can be annoying and frustrating. You’re more likely to focus on the whistling sound than on the voice of the persons you’re in conversation with.
Fortunately, it’s fairly easy to determine the reason behind the whistling sound! Here are a few that we think are the common feedback-related issues.
Earwax Blockage in Your Ears
At their core, hearing aids work by sending sound waves into the ear canal. But when the sound waves encounter a physical blockage, these will bounce back into the hearing aids resulting in the whistling sound.
The common physical blockage is a build-up of earwax in the ear canal. Ear wax build-up isn’t just an icky thing but it can also cause earaches and worsen your hearing loss.
But never ever remove them on your own, much less use a Q-tip! You should have your ears cleaned by a professional and your hearing aids checked and cleaned for clogged vents.
Hearing Aids Aren’t Fitted Well
There are many ways that your hearing aids aren’t properly fitted and, thus, causing the whistling feedback.
First, these don’t fit your ears well. It may be that the hearing aids weren’t fitted well in the first place or your ears have changed in shape over the years.
The ear molds are the losing their seal around your ears resulting in sounds leaking out, thus, the whistling. In this case, you have to ask a hearing care professional for new and better-fitting ear molds.
Second, the tubes in the hearing aids are already damaged, usually through wear and tear. These require replacement, especially when these are already shrivelled up.
Third, the hearing aids aren’t properly placed in your ears. Don’t worry too much about it as it happens to everybody, especially during physical activities.
When you wear your hearing aids too loosely, the air also comes into your ear canal. You will then hear a whistling sound, as is the case when your ear molds aren’t well-fitted into your ears.
While you’re checking the proper placement of your hearing aids, you should also check that the volume is just right. When the volume’s too high, the sound waves are forced back into the hearing aids and the whistling sound happens.
You should also ask yourself whether your head covering, such as hat or scarf, is affecting the performance of your hearing aids. You may want to remove your head covering and adjust the hearing aids’ volume.
If the whistling feedback persists despite these measures, you should consult with your audiologist ASAP.
Source:
HK Hearing & Speech Centre
Specialist of Hearing test & assessment,
and Hearing Aid Prescription
http://www.hkhearingspeech.com