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The best hearing aids: 5 things to think about

Looking for the best hearing aid in the world? We’d love to give you one clear answer, but the best hearing aid for you depends on your specific hearing loss, your needs and your lifestyle. So let’s dig into what you need to consider in order to find the perfect match.

How’s my individual hearing loss?

Hearing loss is extremely individual. Maybe you have slightly reduced hearing in one ear, or you could have a severe hearing loss in both ears. This all plays into the capacity of the hearing aid – the more severe your hearing loss is, the more power you need from your hearing aid. And that will influence the size and the models you can choose from.

What size and style would work for me?

Hearing aids come in a range of different styles, sizes and colours, so you should consider which hearing aid style fits your needs. Do you want to keep your hearing aid discreet? Or do you wear it with pride? BTEs (behind-the-ear) are placed behind your ears, as are RICs (receiver-in-canal). The RICs, however, are smaller. CICs (completely-in-canal) sit directly in your ear canal and are very hard to see. You can get them in different colours to match your skin tone.

It’s also important to consider handling. If you have dexterity issues, it may be easier for you to handle a larger BTE hearing aid than the small RICs or the tiny CICs.

What features do I need?

You can get hearing aids that simply help improve your hearing. And you can get hearing aids that’ll stream sound directly from the TV, track your activity levels, help you personalize sound via AI… they’ll almost serve you coffee! Think about your lifestyle. Do you binge-watch series? Go for a run every day? Are you into new technology and know how to operate your smartphone with your eyes closed? Or maybe you simply want to hear the conversations around you better.

Also, think about your mobility and whether you live far from a hearing care professional. Some hearing aids can be fine-tuned remotely via video streaming, so you don’t need to visit the hearing care professional to get an adjustment. If you live far away from one, that can be a big plus.

What kind of power source would I like?

There are three main ways to power your hearing aids : disposable batteries, rechargeable batteries, and fuel cell technology (coming very soon!)

Disposable batteries need changing every so often, and can be challenging to handle, especially if you have poor eyesight or dexterity issues. In that case you may want to opt for a solution that’s more flexible. Hearing aids with rechargeable batteries are easier to handle since you don’t have to remove any batteries yourself. You can use your hearing aids all day and charge at night, so long as you have a power outlet – and remember to charge them!

Fuel cell technology is the most recent approach to energising hearing aids. With fuel cell technology you re-energise a fuel cell instead of recharging a battery. And instead of a charger plugged into a power outlet, you click the hearing aid into an off-grid refill unit. The fuel cell can be re-energised in 20 seconds and last for 24 hours, so it’s especially handy if you’re an active person who lives in the fast lane – or if you have dexterity or memory issues.

How’s the sound?

For this one you’ll need to try on different hearing aids, because every hearing aid, or at least every brand, has its own unique sound. But, overall, go for a clear sound that’s as close to what the sound is like in real life – without any distortion. A good, natural sound is what you want.

Some hearing aids have features to improve the sound around you as it changes. So consider whether your listening situation changes often during a day – maybe you’re going from listening to music, to conversation, to being in traffic? It could also be that you’re mostly in the same listening situation and don’t need your hearing aid to adapt the sound constantly – then there’s another option for you.

Some advanced hearing aids also have apps that will use machine learning and AI to help you personalise the sound in a simple way that doesn’t require much of effort on your part.

7 ways to deal with hearing loss in your family

Published 29-07-2019

Someone in your family has a hearing loss. It’s hard on them, but for sure it’s hard on you too.

Hearing loss tends to affect not only the hearing-impaired, but also the people close to them.

How do you deal with all the frustrating moments when you’re trying to talk to them, but they just can’t hear what you’re saying?

We’ve got some ideas. Check out the advice below.

1. Be supportive

It takes an average of seven years from the time a person discovers their hearing loss till they actually get hearing aids. It’s a long and winding journey, where the person with hearing loss slowly learns to accept that they need a hearing aid.

It’s a big thing. And it’s not easy admitting it to themselves and everyone around them.

So be patient and be supportive.

There are many ways to support your family member. Hug them and show them you care. Practise new communication strategies. Go with them to a hearing care professional and ask questions. Help them choose the right hearing aid. Explore assistive listening devices that could be relevant to them and help them set them up.

2. Learn what it’s like to have a hearing loss

Maybe you can imagine what it’s like to have a hearing loss, but there’s a way to get closer to experiencing the real deal. Try an online hearing loss simulator sequence like the Flintstone hearing simulator. Although the hearing simulators can’t let you experience every unique hearing loss, they let you experience how a voice sounds, depending on the degree of hearing loss. That way you’ll gain a better understanding of what it’s like.

3. Forgive and forget

When you’re talking to someone with a hearing loss, it’s easy to get into a situation where you just want to shout instead of repeating yourself again (and again).

Remember that no one is intentionally trying not to understand you. It’s just that they can’t hear you as well as a normal hearing person. So, take a deep breath and be patient. Forgive and forget. And repeat the message once more.

4. Rephrase

Every hearing loss is individual and unique. When your family member can’t hear what you’re saying, it’s possibly because some frequencies are inaudible to them. Raising your voice won’t help and comes off as more aggressive. Try to rephrase your sentence and speak more clearly (not louder!).

5. Take responsibility

When you’re trying to deliver a message, you can’t assume that the receiver will hear you perfectly. Take responsibility for your own words. Make sure they are understood as intended by whomever you’re talking to – instead of getting upset that they can’t hear you. That goes for anyone, hearing loss or no hearing loss. A good starting point is making sure that the person can see your face while you’re talking and that your mouth isn’t covered.

6. Insist on the hearing aids

Your family member knows there’s a reason they have got hearing aids. And if you don’t wear them when you’re around people who want to talk to you, then what’s the point? Insist that they put on their hearing aids before you talk to them. Most of the time it will save a lot of frustration on both sides.

Remember that insisting doesn’t mean shouting and getting impatient before your family member has even had a chance to put on their hearing aids. You know your family member best, so choose the right way to explain that you want them to put their hearing aids on in a way that resonates with them. Being kind and patient goes a long way.

If your family member with a hearing loss hasn’t got hearing aids yet, start by helping them take a free online hearing test. If there are indications of a hearing loss (which there probably are!), be supportive and go with them to a hearing care clinic. A hearing care professional will make a thorough analysis of the hearing loss and help your family member figure out how to cope – most likely by recommending a hearing aid.

7. Get professional help

If it becomes too hard to communicate with each other in your family, you can get help from your hearing care professional. A hearing care professional can teach you the best strategies for communicating in your family. Plus, it’s easier to accept advice on this delicate subject from a hearing professional than from someone you’re emotionally connected to.