managing hearing loss
hearing health foundat i o n
help with
hearing aids
Out of the Box The hunt for a successful hearing solution leads to greater self-knowledge and empathy. By Michelle Pitts
Michelle Pitts with her husband Adam and their sons Elijah and Jack.
12
hearing health
hhf.org
I have been struggling with my hearing for quite some time, but finally made the decision to do something about it now, in my early 40s. Even though I work with individuals with disabilities, starting the process of treating my hearing loss feels like I’ve been thrown into a new world about which I know so little. After my hearing test and official diagnosis, I was shown a few hearing aid models to choose a pair. Simple, right? So I thought. Over the course of a few minutes, my audiologist tried to explain the different technological features, colors, and brands available. I knew that agreeing to one of her suggestions would also be an agreement to thousands of dollars of my family’s healthcare savings. I felt guilty and sick to my stomach about spending this money if, God forbid, a bigger health emergency came up. Making such a big purchase felt like rolling the dice. I still knew almost nothing about the hearing aid options and I felt like I wasn’t given enough clarity on the matter. With every hearing aid brand making similar claims about their technology, it’s difficult to be sure you’re making the right choice for your hearing loss. Testing pairs of hearing aids wasn’t easy for me, either. “How’s that sound?” my audiologist would ask after putting them in my ears. And I’d just think, I have no idea! Only a few seconds have passed, and this is a quiet room with only one other person in it. Then I’d leave the office and everything sounded harsh, giving me a headache, and then I’d be at home having a difficult time understanding my kids. I tell myself, So maybe this will be harder than I expected, with trial and error adjustments. And maybe I need to do some of my own research to find the best technology for my ears. I dug into the technology offerings from each brand using their data sheets, only to find that often the features I desired were not available for my preferred style of hearing aid. And back to square one I’d go. Eventually I discovered an exceptionally helpful internet forum. It contains users’ personal experiences with various aids, technology information, links to data sheets, and definitions of technical terms. One of the terms I came across on the forum was a “cookie bite.” Someone wrote in a comment to another user, “Since you have a cookie bite, it’s more difficult to fit you with hearing aids. You need to find a very well-trained audiologist to handle your type of hearing loss.” What’s a cookie bite? I wondered. Down the internet rabbit hole I
