Tanya is being measured for a new pair of hearing aids by her hearing specialist. And she’s feeling a little anxious. Not, you know, a lot of anxiety. But hearing aids are new to her, and she’s a little worried that she will feel uncomfortable with a high tech gadget sitting in her ears, particularly since she’s never been a huge fan of earbuds or earplugs.
These worries are not unique to Tanya. Countless first-time hearing aid users have worries about the general fit and comfort of their hearing aids. Tanya wants to wear her hearing aid. She’s looking forward to hearing her son’s jokes and listening to her TV at a volume not likely to cause problems with the neighbors. But how comfortable will those hearing aids be?
Adjusting to Hearing Aids For The First Time
So, is wearing hearing aids uncomfortable? The short response is: some individuals experience them as a little uncomfortable at first. Early comfort levels will vary because, as with many things in life, there’s a period of adjustment. But after a while, you’ll get used to how your hearing aids feel and become more comfortable.
Knowing that these adjustments are coming can help ease some of the stress. Knowing what to expect will help your adjustment period be smoother.
Adjusting to your hearing aid includes two phases:
In order to better your overall comfort and speed up the adjustment period, consult your hearing specialist if you are experiencing trouble with the physical placement or sound quality of your hearing aids.
How Can I Enhance The Comfort of My Hearing Aids?
Luckily, there are a few techniques that have proven to be fairly successful over the years.
- Practice: The world may sound just a little bit different after you get your hearing aids. And it could take some time for your ears to adjust, particularly when it comes to the spoken word. There are many practices (reading along with an audiobook or watching your favorite movie with the closed captions on) that can help you get better at this a little faster.
- Get the right fit: Fitting your ears well is what hearing aids are designed to do. It may take a number of visits with your hearing specialist to get everything working and just the right fit. And for optimal comfort and effectiveness, you may want to think about a custom fit hearing aid.
- Start slow: If you’re breaking in your first set of hearing aids, you shouldn’t feel as though you need to wear them all day, every day right off the bat. You can gradually work your way up to it. Begin by wearing your hearing aid for one to four hours a day. Ultimately, you will be using your hearing aids all day, when you become comfortable with them.
You’re Hearing Aids Can be More Comfortable
For the first few days or weeks, there might be a little discomfort with your hearing aids. Pretty soon you’re hearing aids will become a comfortable part of your everyday life and the sooner you make the adjustments, the sooner this will occur. In order to make that transition, it’s critical that you wear them every day.
Before you know it, you’ll be focusing on is having good conversation with friends.
