Hearing aids take time and patience to use successfully. Wearing your aids regularly will help you
adjust to them.
Become familiar with your hearing aid’s features. With your hearing instrument specialist present,
practice putting in and taking out the aid, cleaning it, identifying right and left aids, and replacing the
batteries. Ask how to test it in listening environments where you have problems with hearing. Learn to
adjust the aid’s volume and to program it for sounds that are too loud or too soft. Work with your
hearing instrument specialist until you are comfortable and satisfied. You may experience some of the
following problems as you adjust to wearing your new aid.
• My hearing aid feels uncomfortable. Some individuals may find a hearing aid to be slightly
uncomfortable at first. Many people when getting new hearing aids will wear the aid in increasing
amounts of time the first couple of days. The goal is to be able to wear your aids eight to twelve or
more hours a day. If the aid/mold is uncomfortable, then in office modifications can typically be
performed.
• My voice sounds too loud. The “plugged-up” sensation that causes a hearing aid user’s voice to
sound louder inside the head is called the occlusion effect, and it is very common for new hearing aid
users. Most individuals get used to this effect over time but a programming adjustment may need to be
done.
• I get feedback from my hearing aid. A whistling sound can be caused by a hearing aid that does not
fit or work well or is clogged by earwax or fluid. Many digital hearing instruments have feedback
managers that can be utilized to minimize feedback.
• I hear background noise. A hearing aid does not completely separate the sounds you want to hear
from the ones you do not want to hear. Sometimes, however, the hearing aid may need to be adjusted.
Many hearing aids have different strengths of noise suppression systems that can easily be adjusted
on the computer by the hearing specialist.
• I hear a buzzing sound when I use my cell phone. Some people who wear hearing aids or have
implanted hearing devices experience problems with the radio frequency interference caused by digital
cell phones. Both hearing aids and cell phones are improving so these problems are occurring less
often. When you are being fitted for a new hearing aid, take your cell phone with you to see if it will
work well with the aid. Some hearing aids with manual override capability can have a special phone
program placed in to the device for talking on the telephone. New digital technology hearing
instruments are compatible with Bluetooth wireless technology. This is accomplished by wearing an
ancillary product around your neck that a Bluetooth cell phone pairs with wirelessly. This in turn will
allow for hands free hearing through both hearing aids.
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