Hearing aids advice

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blackjack17

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#303245 27-Jan-2023 13:19

So my 65 year old mother has just been diagnosed with profound hearing loss in both ears.

We have been telling her for years but she never listened 😁

The audiologist gave her a range of options ranging from around $4,000 to over $10,000 (think it was Bay's audiology?)

She doesn't want to cheap out but at the same time that is a lot of money. She is still quite active and so that is something to consider.

Does anyone have any recommendations? brands / models / must have features / over rated features

I see 19% of hearing aids sold is the states are through costco, would that be worth considering?

Thank you

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#3027864 27-Jan-2023 13:43

take your quote to triton hearing and see if they can match it, if they can go back to bat and see it they will do the same

johno1234

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#3027874 27-Jan-2023 14:04

Hearing aids have been life changing for me in my late 50s. I wish I got them earlier. At 65 if your mum is still sharp minded they'll be great for her. The only issue is that they are small and fiddly. You need to clean the wax out of them from time to time, as a tiny spec of wax in the wax filter completely blocks the sound. Also from time to time, you need to replace the click-on domes, also a fiddly job. She can always get her boy to do this or pop into the audiologist.

Absolutely essential is rechargeable. A lot of them still run on batteries and changing those is inconvenient and fiddly. If your mum watches a bit of TV then a TV to hearing aid streamer is also very useful, but they're surprisingly expensive at around $400 IIRC

For me, absolutely essential is Bluetooth streaming from your phone. I found Android support to be quite poor in this regard, whereas Apple just worked. Was enough to move me from Android to IOS.

As to brand: I went to Specsavers Audiology. They re-brand OEM hearing aids as their own "Advance" brand - mine are the top of the range, and are re-branded Siemens/Signia (or whatever that brand is called nowdays, it constantly changes). They have all the DSP bells and whistles, Bluetooth, rechargeable etc. Cost from memory was $4.5k less the government $1k rebate so $3.5k nett. I am sure that the exact same Signia would be in the $7-$9k price range.

It really was a no-brainer.

richms

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#3027885 27-Jan-2023 14:42

Feedback on the costco facebook page of people who have gone there is that it has a decent saving over the same things at other places and the staff doing the testing were great. Probably worth a shot and you can refund the membership if you dont like it anyway.

Richard rich.ms

Jase2985

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#3027951 27-Jan-2023 16:41

this is what my dad said

"Both (Bay Audiology and Triton) do deals at various times & will match each other’s quotes … but the quote has to be in writing … I wouldn’t pay full price … was happy with the discount … was still $6k … but did save $2.5/$3k. I here SpecSavers do them now as well. Ultimately it depends on what you want & what you’re prepared to pay."

dazzanz

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#3027989 27-Jan-2023 19:31

I think my mother needs hearing aids, she is about 70. When she visits there are many times when she won't hear something, if she knows she missed it she will often pretend she understood which results in her giving a reaction that doesn't always fit what was said. Other times she doesn't even notice and it leads to having the same conversation twice. I think she doesn't want to admit she needs them but also has stories about friends who had hearing aids and how they didn't work in most scenarios, especially group conversations.

@johno1234 as someone who uses them, do you have any ideas on how to get her to consider hearing aids or perhaps a comment on how they are to use in group conversations? She is relatively fit for her age and enjoys playing music and meeting up with her friends. I have mentioned she should have her hearing tested a few times.

Edit: She is also pretty good with technology and plays video games so I don't think any tech part of it would worry her.

johno1234

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#3027992 27-Jan-2023 19:42

dazzanz:

I think my mother needs hearing aids, she is about 70. When she visits there are many times when she won't hear something, if she knows she missed it she will often pretend she understood which results in her giving a reaction that doesn't always fit what was said. Other times she doesn't even notice and it leads to having the same conversation twice. I think she doesn't want to admit she needs them but also has stories about friends who had hearing aids and how they didn't work in most scenarios, especially group conversations.

@johno1234 as someone who uses them, do you have any ideas on how to get her to consider hearing aids or perhaps a comment on how they are to use in group conversations? She is relatively fit for her age and enjoys playing music and meeting up with her friends. I have mentioned she should have her hearing tested a few times.

Edit: She is also pretty good with technology and plays video games so I don't think any tech part of it would worry her.

I think she just needs to hear people like me, or even better some of her friends and peers, say they've made life so much better - in particular socially. Much less being left out of conversations, particularly in crowded noisy places. You really miss out when you can't hear conversations. I've heard people say being deaf is worse than being blind because of the social isolation it creates.

It is a significant investment, but with Specsavers, they promised me that if the hearing aids didn't work out, I could return them for a full refund. So there's nothing to lose and a *lot* to gain.

Get her to go for a hearing test for a start. That was quite confronting for me - I didn't really understand what my hearing loss was. Then get those hearing aids in and try them out. If she gets this far my money is she'll thank you.

I've been without my hearing aids a couple of times - once when I lost one of them and once when I left them down at the beach house. It seemed inhuman that I actually had to pick up my phone to listen instead of having it magically stream into my ears!

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blackjack17

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#3027993 27-Jan-2023 19:42

johno1234:

Hearing aids have been life changing for me in my late 50s. I wish I got them earlier. At 65 if your mum is still sharp minded they'll be great for her. The only issue is that they are small and fiddly. You need to clean the wax out of them from time to time, as a tiny spec of wax in the wax filter completely blocks the sound. Also from time to time, you need to replace the click-on domes, also a fiddly job. She can always get her boy to do this or pop into the audiologist.

Absolutely essential is rechargeable. A lot of them still run on batteries and changing those is inconvenient and fiddly. If your mum watches a bit of TV then a TV to hearing aid streamer is also very useful, but they're surprisingly expensive at around $400 IIRC

For me, absolutely essential is Bluetooth streaming from your phone. I found Android support to be quite poor in this regard, whereas Apple just worked. Was enough to move me from Android to IOS.

As to brand: I went to Specsavers Audiology. They re-brand OEM hearing aids as their own "Advance" brand - mine are the top of the range, and are re-branded Siemens/Signia (or whatever that brand is called nowdays, it constantly changes). They have all the DSP bells and whistles, Bluetooth, rechargeable etc. Cost from memory was $4.5k less the government $1k rebate so $3.5k nett. I am sure that the exact same Signia would be in the $7-$9k price range.

It really was a no-brainer.

Mum is still very active. She hikes, runs, bikes and walks and so something that could handle this would be essential.

Can yours handle this?

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johno1234

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#3027995 27-Jan-2023 19:47

blackjack17:

johno1234:

Hearing aids have been life changing for me in my late 50s. I wish I got them earlier. At 65 if your mum is still sharp minded they'll be great for her. The only issue is that they are small and fiddly. You need to clean the wax out of them from time to time, as a tiny spec of wax in the wax filter completely blocks the sound. Also from time to time, you need to replace the click-on domes, also a fiddly job. She can always get her boy to do this or pop into the audiologist.

Absolutely essential is rechargeable. A lot of them still run on batteries and changing those is inconvenient and fiddly. If your mum watches a bit of TV then a TV to hearing aid streamer is also very useful, but they're surprisingly expensive at around $400 IIRC

For me, absolutely essential is Bluetooth streaming from your phone. I found Android support to be quite poor in this regard, whereas Apple just worked. Was enough to move me from Android to IOS.

As to brand: I went to Specsavers Audiology. They re-brand OEM hearing aids as their own "Advance" brand - mine are the top of the range, and are re-branded Siemens/Signia (or whatever that brand is called nowdays, it constantly changes). They have all the DSP bells and whistles, Bluetooth, rechargeable etc. Cost from memory was $4.5k less the government $1k rebate so $3.5k nett. I am sure that the exact same Signia would be in the $7-$9k price range.

It really was a no-brainer.

Mum is still very active. She hikes, runs, bikes and walks and so something that could handle this would be essential.

Can yours handle this?

You absolutely can't get them wet. They're not really that useful when running and biking and can create a bit of wind noise so I would leave them out for that. Walking, absolutely leave them in, unless it is pouring rain. I always leave them in for golf. Golf is more about the banter than hitting the silly little ball so essential to be able to hear!

As I mentioned in the previous comment - get a hearing test and get the hearing aids if recommended. If they are not helpful then return them no questions asked.

dazzanz

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#3027996 27-Jan-2023 19:48

johno1234:

I think she just needs to hear people like me, or even better some of her friends and peers, say they've made life so much better - in particular socially. Much less being left out of conversations, particularly in crowded noisy places. You really miss out when you can't hear conversations. I've heard people say being deaf is worse than being blind because of the social isolation it creates.

It is a significant investment, but with Specsavers, they promised me that if the hearing aids didn't work out, I could return them for a full refund. So there's nothing to lose and a *lot* to gain.

Get her to go for a hearing test for a start. That was quite confronting for me - I didn't really understand what my hearing loss was. Then get those hearing aids in and try them out. If she gets this far my money is she'll thank you.

I've been without my hearing aids a couple of times - once when I lost one of them and once when I left them down at the beach house. It seemed inhuman that I actually had to pick up my phone to listen instead of having it magically stream into my ears!

Thanks for the info, next time she visits I'll try have a chat with her and see if specsavers has an appointment available just to get a test.

tecnam2003

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#3028093 27-Jan-2023 22:09

I'm a hearing aid user...very expensive hearing aids I may add!!

I went to a well-established and professional company who took molds of my ears and I have custom in the ear (ITE) devices...they work well , I need them when out and about and they have size 10 batteries which are a pain in the BUM.

I always look to the new technology, ear buds with pass through ability etc.

at home I decided to try AUDIOUS https://audious.com/products/audious-hearing-aid

as spare emergency aids ...rechargeable and ITE invisible...for me they are not invisible as I have narrow ear canals BUT they are very very good....reduced from Over US$ 700 to $ 275

volume is set using an enclosed mini screwdriver ...usb rechargeable...

so without breaking the bank and getting mum or a loved one to try hearing aids I really recommend them

they are my spare set as I would be lost with hearing aids...

the technology between ear buds and hearing aids is slowly converging with app controls etc..

hope this helps

Kevin

magnetonz

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#3028146 28-Jan-2023 08:27

Regardless of what hearing aids are purchased, please insure them somehow.

Father in law has lost his multiple times now as they are so small, they drop out and he doesn't notice until he realizes he can't hear properly again.

Yes you pay the excess, but there is no way they could afford to replace them at full retail cost otherwise.

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bagheera

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#3028164 28-Jan-2023 10:06

have a look at specsavers - they have some good option at a good price

https://www.specsavers.co.nz/hearing

bagheera

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#3028166 28-Jan-2023 10:12

johno1234:

You absolutely can't get them wet.

the latest advance hearing aids are rate IP67, so can get them wet, just do not go swimming with them

FineWine

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#3028196 28-Jan-2023 11:38

You can get Hearing Aid Dryer boxes for around $150

Whilst the difficult we can do immediately, the impossible takes a bit longer. However, miracles you will have to wait for.

jonathan18

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#3028214 28-Jan-2023 11:48

magnetonz:
Regardless of what hearing aids are purchased, please insure them somehow.

Father in law has lost his multiple times now as they are so small, they drop out and he doesn't notice until he realizes he can't hear properly again.

Yes you pay the excess, but there is no way they could afford to replace them at full retail cost otherwise.

Some insurers offer older clients nil excess for heaing aids - my elderly mother managed to lose and destroy hearing aids in different events, and her insurer (State) replaced them at no cost. They did the same for her glasses on more than one occasion.

One thing to note is if you are insured with IAG and make a claim, they’ll push you to use Triton; much like with car repairs, you can insist on selecting your own audiologist.

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