PV has been coming to the Zephyrhills office of Gardner Audiology for 7 years. She has been faithfully wearing the hearing aids she purchased in 2008. On a recent visit to our office for a routine clean and check, she mentioned she was not hearing as well as she used to. I told her about our current Hearing in Noise Field study and the benefits of new technology over her current aids. She opted to participate.
PV was fitted with a set of Starkey 3 Series i70 receiver in the canal hearing aids. She came back for her first follow up and reported much improved hearing. Over the next couple of weeks she repeatedly reported situations where she noticed she was understanding more of the conversation. Communicating was easier and without stress. We made no adjustments and she happily purchased the aids.
Our hearing and the pathway our bodies use to process what we hear changes as we age. Hearing aids that work well for us at one stage of our lives may become less effective. PV found that while she did well with her previous hearing aids for years, upgrading to hearing aids that managed background noise better was what she needed now. People seldom realize how much effort they put into trying to follow conversation until they are able to do so easily. When hearing loss makes communicating a chore, the time has come to seek help.
