Should You Get a Hearing Aid Fitting?
Roughly 2 million Americans invest in prescription hearing aids every year. Some degree of customization goes into every one of those devices. Many people fail to be successful with hearing aids because they expect perfect results the moment they put hearing aids in their ears. Instead, successful hearing treatment requires a process that includes custom calibration of hearing aids over time in order to reintroduce sounds slowly and work with your brain’s natural neuroplasticity.
Hearing typically doesn’t decline instantly. It usually decreases slowly over many years. That means your brain has been allowed to ‘forget’ many of the sounds that exist in day to day life. Our hearing treatment program takes into consideration that your brain needs time to get used to all the important, and seemingly unimportant, sounds that have been missing. We offer a personalized rehabilitation process that allows you to adjust at your pace and get you results you never thought possible.
What Happens During a Hearing Treatment Plan?
Following your hearing evaluation, your results will be explained in detail with a prognosis of your predicted success. Unlike many other avenues for treating hearing loss, your expected outcomes with hearing treatment will be discussed so you’ll know exactly what results you can expect to get. A Hearing Treatment Plan will be chosen based on your results, lifestyle, and budget.
In order to prepare you for your new hearing aids, we will meet with you a few times before your fitting. We will have a detailed pre-fitting conversation about your hearing needs. We will discuss things like what type of hearing aids you may want and what kinds of environments you will be using your hearing aids in most often.
During your pre-fitting meeting, you can expect the following:
- A thorough hearing test will be performed, and this test will provide a baseline for your hearing aid settings.
- If necessary, earmold impressions will be taken a few weeks before your fitting. Your fit will be more comfortable as a result.
Either on the same day or a different day you will be fit with the hearing devices that are part of your hearing treatment plan. Here are a few things that your hearing aid fitting will include:
- Physical Fit: We will measure the physical fit of your ears to ensure comfort then teach you how to easily insert and remove the devices from your ears.
- Device Adjustment: On day one we program the devices with initial settings to ensure you are hearing better but not being overstimulated by new sounds.
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Personalized Goals: We will teach you what you need to know to use the devices successfully during the first week, including how many hours to wear them and how to either charge the rechargeable batteries or change the disposable batteries.
How long your fitting will last depends on how everything goes. However, on average, it will take from 45 minutes up to an hour and thirty minutes.
During the first month, we will work together to ensure you are making measurable progress in hearing what you want to and what you need to hear. - Verification: As you adjust to the devices, we will perform tests and measurements while the hearing aids are in your ears to guarantee you are hearing what you should. One of these measurements is REM, discussed in detail below.
- Maintenance Review: We will teach you how to keep your hearing aids clean as well as use the BlueTooth capabilities to maximize your results.
Exactly What is a Real Ear Measurement?
A specialized test, known as a Real Ear Measurement, is used to make sure the hearing aid is set at an accurate volume.
A Real Ear Measurement works as follows:
- A tiny microphone connected to a very thin tube is gently inserted into the ear canal.
- We will then mount the hearing aid in place.
- A number of diagnostic sounds are played, and then the hearing aid's volume level is measured. First, quieter sounds will be played, then the volume of those sounds will gradually be increased.
- An audiologist will then precisely calibrate the volume of the hearing aids.
A Real Ear test is an essential step in making certain the hearing aid is properly functioning. The customization features of modern hearing aids can be maximized by using this diagnostic tool, ensuring that your device is fine-tuned to your individual hearing needs. Tuning the hearing aids to the volume and frequency requirements of the user is essential, and the best way to identify those parameters is with a Real Ear test.
A Real Ear test will remove much of the subjectivity that would otherwise be present during a hearing aid fitting, which will be especially helpful for people investing in their first pair of hearing aids.
The Importance of a Hearing Aid Fitting
It’s essential to get a properly conducted fitting in order to effectively treat hearing loss. When your hearing aids are calibrated for correct functionality, you will get the best results from your device. The following are a few reasons it’s important to get a hearing aid fitting:
If hearing aids are uncomfortable, people won't use them.
Improperly calibrated hearing aids can be uncomfortable.
Proper calibration is required for some of the more advanced functions.
We can custom calibrate your hearing aid specifically for your common environments. Wireless connectivity is another advanced function that we can help you better understand. Your total quality of life will be improved when you can get the most from your hearing aids.
Schedule an appointment for a fitting today and get the maximum effectiveness from your hearing aids.