Health

The Right Hearing Aid...and a Whole Lot More

By Virginia Olson

For Dawn Anderson, learning that she needed a hearing aid seemed like more bad news. The 54-yearold Bridgewater mother and former nurse had been pushing through life with MS. The disease of her central nervous system had affected her walk and balance. She was forced to quit her job because she needed a brace.

A few years ago, Dawn started suffering from a form of seasonal hearing loss similar to swimmer’s ear.

“My doctor told me my ‘full ear’ was ‘an allergy thing,’ ‘just some fluid,’ and to ‘give it time,’” she recalls. “Eventually, my right ear would pop, and my hearing would return.” return. Her balance also seemed to be impacted as she noticed her gait growing worse.

“I felt my quality of life growing narrow, and I knew I had to address my hearing loss, so I sought out a specialist at Midwest ENT & Allergy. I was diagnosed with a serious hearing loss related to the hearing nerve. I would need a hearing aid.”

At first, it was tough news, but once Dawn made her brand choice and was properly fitted, she says her new hearing aid has been a game changer!

Dawn’s audiologist, Dr. Holly Ralston, AuD, presented Dawn with a variety of hearing aid options. Hearing aid

technology is evolving, and given Dawn’s medical history, one hearing aid had a combination of features that aligned with Dawn’s needs.

“I was fitted with a Starkey Livio Edge Hearing Aid with a fall detection feature,” she says. “With my bad balance, I always deal with the worry of falling.”

“The feature unique to Dawn’s hearing aid is that it can detect the three phases of a fall,” says Dr. Ralston. “If a fall is detected, the hearing aid sends a text message to contacts alerting them of the fall and shares the location of the user. If Dawn is OK, she can cancel the fall alert. Another feature Dawn enjoys is streaming phone calls and media to her hearing aid.”

With the special features her hearing aid provided, Dawn says she so appreciated Midwest ENT & Allergy’s customer service.

“They have been great with helping me set up the GPS and the Bluetooth option.”

“Dawn’s hearing loss is unique,” says Dr. Ralston. “It is gratifying to offer her a hearing aid that can do more than just improve her hearing abilities. The fall detection feature provides peace of mind for Dawn and her family.”

“Choosing a hearing aid that best fit my lifestyle and situation has made a big difference. I hear well now. What’s even better, my ambulation has improved, and I can walk better,” Dawn says.

“I was thrilled to see how quickly Dawn adapted to her hearing aid,” says Dr. Ralston. “New technology can be overwhelming or intimidating, but the more she was educated on how a hearing aid could improve her quality of life, the more eager Dawn became to utilize it. One of the most rewarding aspects of my job is listening to patients and improving their quality of life through a treatment plan specific to their needs.”

And for Dawn, “It seems like I have gotten my life back.” n

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