hearing aid (for real, no joke)

[az]

Originally posted by Lizzard[MPE]
friends have been saying they were going to buy me hearing aids since highschool...

i'll get one in a few years im sure

If you have trouble understanding people but not actual trouble hearing stuff, look if you have a Tomatis institute nearby (SpiralDragon, this could also apply to you, many people are dyslexic because they have trouble understanding speech - this is often in conjunction with motor problems, light forms of autism, depression, mood swings and trouble getting along with people, feeling and getting misunderstood etc. This Tomatis stuff can really help, if you want it to and practice. This works better the younger you are. Unfortunately, this isn't covered by most medicare plans, especially for adults.)

Sorry Gangster for the OT.

AZ

[VJ]

Well, the latest generation can actually amplify the frequency ranges you need amplified (sort of like an equalizer). Some models even detect speech and amplify only this.
Some models also support directions, so that you still have an idea of were a sound originated from.
(the Belgian reference for hearing aids is http://www.laperre.be, they offer quite some information on their website, but either in Dutch or French. I have quoted some characteristics of their models above, I don't have any personal experience with it)


Slightly on topic: I'm learning to fly (currently mostly a C-150). For headset, I'm thinking about either a Bose Aviation Headset X

http://www.bose.com/controller;jsessionid=BDpWhpBdY2VvCRFfSMhppFMPhFG21R2xpHzZGJQvKbjvhHMlhMGd!-1843063512!803544250?event=VIEW_PRODUCT_PAGE_EVENT&product=headsetx_headset_index&linksource=centernav_img_pilots&pageName=/index_2.jsp

or a David Clark (one of their active noise reduction models).

http://www.davidclark.com/HeadsetPgs/aviation.shtml#enc

10-13XL or 20-10XL (as long as it has its own battery)

Do you have any suggestions? I am leaning towards the Bose, as it is much lighter and has better battery performance, but its noise isolation is specified quite differently from e.g. the David Clarks, making any comparison hard. The bose headset is about € 300- € 400 more expensive, but that doesn't bother me.
I'll probabely ask the Bose one for trial. Any things I should particularly look out for?



Jörg

[Dilitante1]

Originally posted by Brian Ellis
Is this not because you are so busy talking, that you don't hear what others say?

me hides b4 the bbq starts, been nice knowin ya Brian

[gangster]

thx to all for the info!

as if that wasn't enough of a challenge, i got hit by a car while riding my bike near home several days after posting this thread. spent 4 days in the hospital but am only bruised up now. a lucky break seeing as the driver blew a .22 (blood alcohol content) for the cop!

lets all be carefull out there...

[Jon P. Inghram]

Ouch, that sucks.

the driver blew a .22 for the cop!

For a moment I didn't understand what ya ment, thought he shot at the cop or something!

[Lizzard[MPE]]

Originally posted by Brian Ellis
Is this not because you are so busy talking, that you don't hear what others say?

this is actually possible

[gangster]

Originally posted by Jon P. Inghram
Ouch, that sucks.



For a moment I didn't understand what ya ment, thought he shot at the cop or something!

good point as no weapons were involved. i edited it thx.

[Lizzard[MPE]]

Originally posted by spadnos
What's your malady? If it isn't from lots of loud rock concerts (or helicopters), it may be fixable without hearing aids.

I have Otosclerosis (inherited from my father). I had corrective surgery (a Stapedectomy) on my right ear in March, and on my left ear 3 weeks ago. The procedure is a same-day thing - it took me longer to drive to the hospital and be driven home than the actual surgery took.

The results from my right ear were excellent - the improvement was around 30-40db at most frequencies.

It's more expensive than hearing aids, but you can swim and not worry about having to replace anything.

- Steve

(I didn't chime in for gangster because that's a different problem entirely.)

I have no idea why i cant hear all the time. Its mainly in crowded areas or when people are talking to me with their backs turned or talking from the other room. Its pretty strange. the word i have said most in this world is "What?"..

[gangster]

pay for a hearing test, a really good one. its worth it, things are pretty advanced now.

[Lizzard[MPE]]

Originally posted by az
If you have trouble understanding people but not actual trouble hearing stuff, look if you have a Tomatis institute nearby (SpiralDragon, this could also apply to you, many people are dyslexic because they have trouble understanding speech - this is often in conjunction with motor problems, light forms of autism, depression, mood swings and trouble getting along with people, feeling and getting misunderstood etc. This Tomatis stuff can really help, if you want it to and practice. This works better the younger you are. Unfortunately, this isn't covered by most medicare plans, especially for adults.)

Sorry Gangster for the OT.

AZ

great idea! i already see forms of dyslexia with me

[Lizzard[MPE]]

Originally posted by Dilitante1



me hides b4 the bbq starts, been nice knowin ya Brian

i dont bite

[Jon P. Inghram]

I've got a bit of tinnitus and my left ear's sensitivity above 10 kHz is a bit less than my right, and I'm sure it's mainly because I drove for a living and often had the window down.

I too have trouble understanding people in noisy environments, I think it may be more of a "listening" problem than a hearing problem, by which I mean not everyone's brain/mind/whatever processes the auditory information the same way.

For example, the crazy audiophile who spends hundreds of thosands of dollars on audio equipment doesn't have ears that are that much better than other people, he just thinks they are. He's trained himself to listen to minute differences in music, to the extreme point that, IMO, he hears changes that arn't even there.

And likewise, the person who thinks that the crappy earbud that came with their portable cd-player sound excellent doesn't automaticly have terrible hearing, they just don't know any better.

And then there are also lots of more obscure hearing problems that don't reduce your ears sensitivity to sound but can interfere with hearing anyway.

[Fat Tone]

Originally posted by Lizzard[MPE]
I have no idea why i cant hear all the time. Its mainly in crowded areas or when people are talking to me with their backs turned or talking from the other room. Its pretty strange. the word i have said most in this world is "What?"..

I have vey simillar symptoms to you Liz. I was lucky and was able to have some pretty advanceed tests done as part of a study evaluating new kit. Seems my hearing is physically perfectly normal, its just the way my brain is wired that causes the problem.

My mother has the opposite problem. She needs a noisy environment to be able to hear conversation well, but she has had operations on both mastoid bones. She has the wrap arounds atm, but I think she'll go digital soon. They were extremely expensive first time she looked.

[az]

Really, people, if you have difficulty understanding speech and it's giving you trouble, look into this Tomatis stuff. It isn't paid for by madicare, but it isn't all that expensive. Most institutes won't accept adults, however, unless they have very serious problems with it. But if you expect your child has these sorts of problems (along with the ones I describe above), go there and get it checked. Maybe it's nothing, but maybe you're just saving your kid's social life.

AZ