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Hi! Is it ok to ask some questions here?
I've been having trouble with not understanding words and needing people to repeat things as well as hearing ringing in my ears. My ENT recommended having a hearing test. It was today and the audiologist said hearing aids would be helpful for me. I know nothing about hearing aids (other than what I've read here in the past hour!). She said phonak audeo q would be best. She gave me a phamplet so I can pick a color and call back tomorrow, brown to match my hair was suggested. She opened the phamplet and pointed to a q90 section and said that was the one I would get. She also went over a chart with my hearing mapped out in blue and red. She showed me how I can hear low frequency sounds normally, then I have a dip around 1k where I can only hear 40 decibels and up, then it goes back up closer to 30 before dipping back down. The lowest one was the highest frequency which was 60 decibels.
Ok, now for the questions.
Should I just go with this hearing aid and not stress about trying to pick one myself when I'm not really sure what to look for?
(We live in a semi rural area without many options and I have to take at least the baby with me everywhere, sometimes a few of the older kids as well, so driving hours away would be difficult. There is one ther audiologist in town, they sell simens and phonak brands, possibly others as well; the one I went to sells phonak and resound and I think a few others).
She asked of I have an iPhone and/or iPad, which I do, and said the hearing aid she was recommending will link to them if I'd like. Now I'm reading this function requires wearing something around your neck (a no go with curious little kids on my lap all day). Is this correct? Are there other options?
I'm concerned she's selling more than I need. Does this seem to be the case or is what she is recommending sound right for me?
(After reading posts here I've realized I'm very, very fortunate that our insurance covers 100% of everything, including accessories and batteries. The cost is a non issue, no matter which one I pick, but I don't think it's right for them to pick up the tab for something I don't really need)
Does the size matter? She held this small, white, shaped plastic card up to my ear and seemed surprised I am "a zero". What does this mean? Is it relevant to choosing a hearing aid?
A seemingly insignificant question but.... would it be weird for an adult to have purple hearing aids? They're fun and I don't exactly have to look professional when I'm home changing diapers!
Some info about me I'm not sure matters or not:
I'm fairly young (barely 30) and I'd like to think tech savvy, she was talking about how many people don't understand all the features but I don't think that would be an issue for me (at least I hope not).
I stay home with my kids, I'm around little kids more or less all day and every day.
I'm moderately active, I exercise but don't run marathons or anything.
Our insurance allows a new set every three years.
We move frequently so I'm not concerned with building a long term relationship a particular audiologist and I need something that is relatively common and could be serviced by someone else.
I think that's it, sorry this was so long. Thanks for your help!
you should be asking these questions to your audiologist. if you don't feel right about it... then seek second opinion. since you're asking us some questions that you should be asking your audiologist.... I would suggest you to find another audiologist.
I would love to recommend you to my audiologist but you probably are nowhere close to me. I live in NJ and his office is just a couple towns away. he's the best one I've ever met. very meticulous. very knowledgeable. very thorough. excellent service. I always leave his office without any doubt in my mind. he came highly recommended by my NJ DVRS (Department of Vocational Rehabilitation Service) and I can see why. DVRS is definitely getting their money's worth.
that's exactly what you need... an audiologist whom you don't doubt. you'll have to drive further for that because you'll be wearing hearing aid for a long time so it's pretty important to get the right one for first time. it's definitely worth your time because if you got the hearing aids you don't like... you can return it (usually 3-4 weeks return policy) and try another one but think about headache and time you'll waste to go back and forth for fitting and tweaking. if you want to try another hearing aids, you'll have to wait for a few weeks or even a couple months for a new pair so you'll definitely want to find the right one only once.