after years of tinnitus

May I ask why you think you have such severe hearing loss at such a young age?

They say it is probably genetic.

Get the best you can afford. My friend has a $6-7000 set that is small and goes behind her ears. She says they are worth the extra $2000.

Thanks, R3. That is what I am getting. I am very lucky that my insurance is paying $4K. I have to do 1800 out of pocket.

EAT A HALF A BANANA EVERY DAY

portable whiteboard?

Don't get any that hand behind your ears..get the very small ones that fit entirely inside the ear, and are controlled with your smart phone. You're too young to have noticeable hearing aids.

^^Hand = hang

what????

-7 not everybody can use the completely in the ear canal type of hearing aids. They can make you ear canal sweat and cause ear infections etc

So a hearing aid helps with tinnitus? I thought it was for outright loss of hearing. Tinnitus is not that - it is a high-pitched ringing sound.

OP, I had early hearing loss same as you (from piano-playing, typing, etc.), and have hearing aids in both ears. About h.a. ("hearing aids"), I've learned:

(a) Ear wax makes them very slippery, and their odd shape makes them hard to handle securely, so don't be casual about it, or you'll be buying replacements--focus on them when you're handling them;

(b) They're wonderful to have, and just as they say in the ads they really do return you to having a proper social life . . . but when they squeal (and yes they will squeal) everyone in the world will hate you, including your lover, your mother, and Jesus (squealing usually happens from causes such as too much wax and/or hair in the ear, or some particle of something has gotten into the tubing, or there's some device nearby that the h.a. doesn't like, or just spontaneously because . . . because . . . well, just because);

(c) Don't wait for the batteries to fail, but instead get a notion of about how long the batteries should last, and change them the day before the end of that term;

(d) Have ten zillion batteries on hand, because life will seem like hell until you can replace the one(s) that went dead;

(e) Since this is your first pair, you won't have a backup pair (unless you spent a lot to get an extra pair), so if you get a notion that either one is acting a bit oddly, be quick to take it in for service. Having two is fortunate, because usually both won't fail at the same time (but . . . that can happen and does happen);

(f) Excuse me for stating the obvious, but . . . don't wear them in the rain (or in a pool or shower or bath or steam room or when you're doing sweaty labor), and don't sleep with them in your ear;

(g) As has been mentioned, the h.a.s don't get rid of tinnitus. They just help you hear "through" the tinnitus;

(h) Inspect them, say, once a week, and clean them *carefully*;

(i) Whether at home or on the road, have a specific place in your room where you always keep them, (well, when they're not in your ear) as they're easy to lose;

(j) Take them in to the audiologist once or twice a year for replacement of the tubing (a service which is normally free);

(k) Anticipate needing/getting a new pair about every three years.

That's all I can think of right now. Good luck!

Thank you SO much R12. So helpful.

Yes, I have tinnitus plus moderate mid-range hearing loss. I can barely hear over the "crickets" in my ears these days.

I have high frequency hearing loss, high frequency tinnitus, and loudness recruitment. I already had some hearing loss when I was a kid, and the additional hearing loss that often accompanies aging eventually led to my need for hearing aids.

R12 wrote a superb list of things to know about hearing aids. I’ll address a few more points. If your hearing loss frequency range and tinnitus frequencies are similar, the amplification of external sounds may mask your tinnitus to some extent. When my hearing aids are out, my tinnitus is much more apparent then when I’m wearing my hearing aids. There are also many tunable tinnitus-masking apps you can use if your hearing aids have Bluetooth, and some hearing aids have a tinnitus masking program built in.

Loudness recruitment can occur when you have sensorineural hearing loss. The ears may work harder to compensate for the hearing loss. When you are wearing hearing aids and there’s a sudden sound, you may be startled, and your tinnitus may get louder. It can become a vicious circle. I have this problem, and in some ways it’s the worst part of my hearing problems. I need high frequency amplification to understand what people are saying, but if there’s a sudden loud sound, even a cough or a sneeze, I can be very startled. In retrospect, I’ve had the loudness recruitment problem as long as I’ve had the hearing loss, but I didn’t know they were connected until my audiologist explained it to me.

Here's another tip: Don't shave (or get a haircut) with the hearing aids in. And when you take them off in the bathroom to shave, put them far enough away from where you're shaving so that they don't get splashed on. Related: Don't put them back into your ears while the inside of your ears is still wet (such as after a bath or shower)--wait about half an hour.

And thinking about getting a haircut I'm reminded of: Have a little pocket-sized case to put them into when you need to take them out of your ears when you're out and about (= "Don't just slip them into your pocket as they might fall out or get crushed"). Very often the hearing aids come with such little carriers.

All these tips might seem like a lot to remember; but don't stress out: Really, most of them just boil down to "Be careful."

I was on a bus recently sat downstairs by the window. An elderly couple who were sat near to me got off the bus and as the man passed by my window just before the bus started to move he pulled of his face mask and I noticed that his hearing aid fell out of his ear and onto the pavement. I was banging on the window and pointing to the floor but he couldn’t see anything and didn’t realise that he’d lost it. Luckily a women happened to be walking past who did see it and picked it up for him. They are so small and light that inevitably they are easy to lose.

Advanced ASL - STAT.

I got my hearing aids. The second I put them in and my audiologist started talking I started crying. I had no idea how muffled everything normally sounds to me. I could hear him perfectly, even with masks.

It is going to be a big adjustment. My refrigerator is SO noisy and there are sounds that are startling. But I am so grateful.

You don't need to keep your hearing aids in and up all the time, OP.

You haven't been missing anything.

Congrats OP, that's wonderful.

OP: How's it going? Any questions or comments now after you've had the Hearing Aids for several days?

[quote]OP, I had early hearing loss same as you (from piano-playing, typing, etc.),

Is that supposed to be some kind of dumb joke? If not, can you please explain how either of those things could contribute to hearing loss?

Wow R12, that’s incredibly helpful. Thanks for posting all of that information.

What a gent.

DOES IT HELP IF WE TYPE LOUDLY?

OP did you frequently use earbuds or headphones?

Mine are re-chargeable, no need for batteries. It takes a while to get used to them, OP, but besides helping with hearing loss, they're awesome when it comes to distracting you from the tinnitus.

I got hearing loss and tinnitus from long term use of Rx Hydroxychloroquine (Brand Plaquenil), Donald Trump's favorite drug for Covid. Seems MDs are concerned with the damage it can do to the eyes but totally oblivious that it's far more toxic to the ears.

R7, have you ever noticed that Mayor Lori Lightfoot wears hearing aids behind the ear? I never had until I wore the same ones.

My husband has hearing loss and a ringing in his ear. Surgery is not an option. He needed one and it virtually eliminated the ringing and now he can hear me mumble under my breath. He’s very happy.

Over the ear and they adjusted to eliminate the ringing. Not cheap but worth it.

Hearing loss is going to be a major issue for a large percentage of people 30-60 because so many of us have spent thousands of hours with headphones and earbuds on, exercising or just going about life. If you do this, there is a way to figure out if your levels are above the range where it can do damage. (Apple had an automatic thing for a while where it would lower the volume to safe levels and its sadly probably below whatever level you listen at).

Biggest thing you can do to save your hearing: Wax earplugs at concerts, especially indoor venues. The sound levels are often insane. The damage is not done over time, it can also happen in a one or more instances of being subjected to certain decibel levels. A single concert in a great seat can fuck your hearing for life. Try earplugs. You will hear absolutely everything and it will be loud.

The behind the ear ones are far superior to those that are completely in the ear canal. I’ve worn them since I was 17.

r22 Perhaps you're not familiar with how harsh a clickety-clack actual typewriters used to make, both manual and electric. Just as in what is being mentioned about sound levels at concerts, etc., any high-decibel harsh sound, especially long-continued, will negatively affect one's hearing . . . and just imagine if that's what you do for a living for decades. It was a pleasure when computers came in with their soft and gentle sound when one was keying away.

OP here-I think I blew out my eardrums as a punk rock kid going to too many club shows. I am sure listening to headphones over the years contributed as well. I also lived in a city for 20 years. The hearing aids are amazing. I am getting used to a few things for sure but for the most part, it has been a revelation.

If you think you are struggling to hear, go get checked. Don't wait a long time like I did.

R31, I'm old enough to be very familiar with old manual and electric typewriters, and as far as I know, the clickety-clack sounds created by typing on one of those aren't even remotely loud enough to contribute to hearing loss, not even after extended exposure. The sound level at a rock concert is hundreds of times higher, and also there's a huge difference in the type of sound produced by amplified electronic instruments and the clickety-clack of keys on a typewriter. So I don't think you know what you're talking about.

R29, half of what you wrote makes sense to me. Yes, the sound levels at rock concerts are often insane, and even occasional attendance can damage your hearing tremendously. Just ask Pete Townshend. But as for listening to music through headphones and ear buds, unless you go out and buy something special that I don't know about, I don't think it's usually possible to get a high enough volume level through those devices to damage your hearing, not even with prolonged use.

A question for those with hearing aids: How does it affect the sound quality of music that you hear?

r33 :

“Office machinery, such as typewriters and copy machines, combine with the modern architectural use of open spaces and glass walls to create an extremely noisy atmosphere. If the ear has a sufficient ‘recovery’ time from this noise between work hours, the effects of the noise can be mitigated. However, without sufficient recovery time, the temporary effects of on-the-job noise will become permanent, i.e., result in permanent hearing loss” (with a reference to Chapter 6 of Kryter, Karl D., The Effects of Noise on Man. Academic Press, New York, 1970), this quote from “Noise Pollution: Hearings, Ninety-Second Congress, Second Session on S. 1016 “A Bill to Control the Generation and Transmission of Noise Detrimental to the Human Environment” etc. etc. etc., p. 375, 1972.

R35, I didn't know you were referring to people who worked in offices with multiple typewriters and other machinery. But also, I wouldn't say copy machines make much noise, unless you're talking about those huge ones that also collate and staple. Bottom line, I worked in a lot of offices in my time, but never one that I felt was even close to being noisy enough to damage my hearing.

In 1983, I walked 35 NYC blocks one summer day listening to several Broadway shows on my Walkman. Stopped in a store and realized I had the volume up SO HIGH it could do major damage to my hearing. That was the end of that!

Earbuds and hearing loss...

When to beaucoup concerts in my youth and have avoided earbuds for that reason.