Hearing aids when I think my hearing is ok

If your hearing has been tested and they have found a deficit then surely, the sensible thing to do is follow their advice? After all, they are the experts.

I wouldn’t if you feel comfortable how you are, and using subtitles isn’t an indication of poor hearing I can hear the news programmes perfectly but use subtitles for all the dramas
I do wonder sometimes if these high street opticians/ hearing centres etc are looking to make money
If people haven’t commented on you missing stuff and you don’t have to keep saying pardon then I d see how it goes

I hope you don't mind my asking, supernanauna1, but do you use subtitles because you find that a lot of people on TV mumble, or don't enunciate properly?

If so, I think I would follow the doctor's advice.

I know a lot of people with hearing loss who didn't realize it for a long time. They were convinced that their problem with TV was all down to people's poor speech nowadays, or the background music, or other such things. My DH was one of them.
Actually, I am now trying to convince him to have his hearing reviewed because after using hearing aids for several years now, he is complaining about those issues again. I know that his hearing has worsened, but I'm having quote a job convincing him, even though all the signs are there again!

But if you read the threads about mumbling in dramas on Gransnet then 90% of the posters on here are deaf ???

BlueBelle

But if you read the threads about mumbling in dramas on Gransnet then 90% of the posters on here are deaf ???

And given the average age on here, most of us probably do have some degree of hearing loss, with certain frequencies. Not necessarily 'deaf', though. ?

I can hear way more on TV than my husband, but there are a few bits I miss that my sons can understand OK, so I know it's not quite as good as it once was.

If we are happy with how much we can hear, and aren't having to ask people to repeat themselves more that we did in the past, I suppose there can't be a big problem. I still put myself in that catagory, but if I start needing subtitles on a regular basis (so far, it's only the occasional American film that causes me problems), I would like to think that I will get my hearing properly checked.

The trouble is, in my experience, that because hearing loss is so often a gradual thing, many people find excuse after excuse to do nothing until it is driving their nearest and dearest to distraction.

Of course it's not your hearing.
Its everyone else mumbling.

www.gransnet.com/forums/ask_a_gran/1310677-Its-not-me-you-mumble?pg=1

I had a hearing test six months ago and thought that I must need hearing aids as I have struggled sometimes in noisy places in particular, like my church group.To my great surprise they said my hearing was quite alright.
I think we must accept the verdict on hearing aids, whichever way it goes for you, but am sure there is no need for you to have them if you really do not want to.

Supernanaunal I have got a DH just like you. He has been tested and told he needs to wear hearng aid. He says he doesn't have a problem with his hearing. May be he doesn't, but everyone else does do,

Constantly repeating everything I say to him. Calling him to meals and then going to look for him because he hasn't heard me, trying to always sit on his 'good' side. gesturing when I give instructions in the car.

No, he doessn't have a problem with his hearing - but everyone else does.

I think there are online hearing tests you can do with your earphones if you do a search.
I'm quite surprised that a GP would refer you to Specsavers. I'm not entirely convinced they are experts at anything! Although perhaps the audiology department has a backlog of patients waiting for appointments.
If you are happy with the hearing you have, then there is no need whatsoever to pay for hearing aids just yet.

Sorry I should've said the NHS audiology department.

LadyStardust Why not use Specsavers? I got hearing aids from them several years ago. They were free of charge and I get free replacement batteries. I'm due another hearing test in November when I will get a new pair of hearing aids, still free. What's not to like? They have fancier state of the art hearing aids if you want to pay for them.

I'm sure many people have positive experiences with Specsavers Deedaa. I however, wouldn't trust them with a bargepole. (Bad experience with them)
I wasn't aware that their hearing aids were free though. That possibly makes a difference! I kinda thought they might be trying to make a fast buck!
Well in that case OP maybe give them a try! Nothing to lose I suppose.

My children used to moan about me , in the end went & got hearing aids , surprising what you miss ... sometimes I think it is pride people don't want yo wear them, or think they don't need them ... hearing test , then have hearing aids there & then ...

Specsavers are used by the NHS as hearing aid providers in some areas.

If an audiologist has said you need hearing aids, believe me, you need them. They are carefully trained and there are very strict guidelines about prescribing them, whether NHS or private. I have never heard of Specsavers giving out free hearing aids but perhaps it is to help clear the NHS backlog. I have two brand new hearing aids from the NHS and they are fantastic. I can control them from an app on my phone, which itself has Bluetooth so that I can hear someone talk straight into my ear. They are so comfortable that I frequently forget l am wearing them and these days are very small so someone would have to be looking very hard to see them. Untreated hearing loss has been found to be a risk factor for dementia in older people too. Apart from all this, I would imagine that you wear glasses without any thought and if you lost teeth you would want to replace them. How are hearing aids any different?

Monica , I sympathize! My DH won't even agree to a hearing test - he is 83!!! Drives me mad , our children have noticed and our son has had a word with him -to no avail! I am constantly repeating my self , he often gets hold of the wrong end of the stick - it is causing me anxiety. Television is blasting out! I find I am withdrawing from him in order to maintain my sanity. He refuses to acknowledge he has a hearing loss. His lack of hearing means he often doesn't realize what is going on !!! I have thought about booking him a test but I know he would refuse to go. What puzzles me is he us not a difficult man , so why ??
So Supernan please take heed , your hearing may not be a problem for you but is a huge problem for those around you!

Mr C has has had NHS hearing aids for about 15 years. He has just transferred from hospital audiology to the audiology department at our local Specsavers. Why? Because hospital audiology could not offer an appointment in the foreseeable future and Mr C knew he needed new aids. A hearing test appointment came within two weeks, the aids were available two days later and a referral was underway for an MRI to check nerve constriction. All NHS. Mr C can drop in at any time for batteries or tubes, an appointment is available within two weeks if he has concerns. There was a phone call a week after his new aids to check he was coping with them, very technical things this time. He’s very happy. Super if your referral to Specsavers was via the NHS route and the audiologist has suggested hearing aids there will be a reason. Why not try them? Nothing to lose.

My DH is awaiting his NHS hearing aids from Specsavers. When he had his hearing test there, the audiologist referred him to the audiology dept at the hospital, just to double check something. The waiting time for an appointment there is a year!

So we are perfectly happy with SS, the batteries and aids are free, we will see how things go.

With respect MOnica, you are enabling your DH to carry on with his deafness, by repeating everything, fetching him in for meals etc. I do understand why this happens, it’s so much easier than having arguments about hearing tests and the need for them.

When I finally got DH to agree to go for a hearing test, he was shocked to be told he had significant loss in his right ear in particular. Very subdued as we walked home from the appointment. I really think he thought the audiologist would say “No problem, your hearing’s fine!”

Unlike spectacles, I think it’s that a hearing aid seems to be a visible sign that you’re getting old, particularly for men, as women can often disguise a hearing aid with their hairstyle.

Calendargirl. DH is self destructive. DD and I are having a battle with him to make sure he uses his CPaP machine for his severe sleep apnoea. Not hearing what I say is irritating. Not useing his CPaP machine at night could kill him. Because he doesn't use it, he sleeps all day and I am worried asbout him having a micro sleep when driving. Next time he does that he will lose his driving licence for life.

Well MrOops doesn’t have a problem, everyone mumbles, or isn’t in the same room as he is. He also mishears. We are the ones with the problem.

Still, at least it isn’t Him.

Oops

?

I have hearing aids but rarely use them. My problem is hearing a conversation in a crowd and hearing aids are no help at all with that.