Wellness

[SeaMaiden]

I certainly would not want someone telling 

me what to do.  It is his hearing, his business. Sure, mention it once....but if he is fine with his hearing, then do not nag at him. 

[Tinkrbl44]

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@RedTop wrote:

My husband has significant hearing loss, and I too was running out of patience with him not agreeing to a simple hearing test---especially since it was covered thru the VA, and no money was coming out of his pocket.   

Since nothing my daughters or I said was making an impact on him being tested, my approach was to point it out every time he didn't hear something correctly.   Once my husband was reminded in front of others, how many times he was answering incorrectly, along with me asking him not to answer the phone because I didn't trust him to hear a conversation correctly, he agreed to the test.   

He became overwhelmed immediately with his first set of hearing aids because of background noise, and stopped wearing them.   By the time I got him to have them checked, and adjusted, they were outdated, so he was retested for new hearing aids.   His hearing loss was quite a bit higher than before, but this last time I made sure he fully understands the adjustment capabilities with digital hearing aids, so that background noise is not prominent.   My husband is wearing the hearing aids daily, and loves the device he wears around his neck when he watches TV, that transmits sound from the TV into his hearing aids.   No more blaring TV!   

Having gone thru this with my mom last year, the place to start is with your husbands medical doctor, and a simple hearing test in the office.   With that information, the doctors office sets up a referral with an audiologist for a more definitive hearing exam.   After the test, my mom was shown two hearing aids most recommended for her degree of hearing loss.   I convinced her to go for the lower priced model which was $2500.  Having the medical test information from the doctors office meant that mom was not charged sales tax on her purchase of the hearing aids.   

Just like with my husband, when moms hearing aids came in, they were set by a computer program to moms comfort level in the office.   After two weeks she went back for an adjustment, and has worn them every day since then.   Digital hearing aids are set precisely to an individuals hearing needs, so there is greater satisfaction and more success in wearing them.  

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@RedTop

Great idea .....  and the obvious place to start!

[ChynnaBlue]

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@2blonde wrote:

Explain to him about the new evidence that hearing loss is related to dementia.   They aren't sure what the connection is yet, but they think that not hearing things causes the cognitive part of the brain to deteriorate due to lack of input.  I know if it were me, that would be enough for me to get a hearing aid!

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This is a tricky one.

While there have been studies done that link hearing loss to dementia and Alzheimer's, there are no studies (yet) to show that hearing aids will help prevent dementia and Alzheimer's. 

I hope they can prove a link, because as of today, most insurance plans will not cover the cost of hearing aids, which can be very expensive. If they can prove that they can prevent dementia and Alzheimer's, maybe we can use that to pressure insurance companies into covering hearing aids, as they would be less expensive than the costs associated with the care and treatment of patients with dementia and Alzheimer's.

[ChynnaBlue]

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@depglass wrote:

He spent his life working outside with heavy equipment.  They supposedly always wore ear plugs.  Now he can't even hear the seat belt buzzer, and the TV has to be jarringly loud.  Missed words?  Its almost comical except that I am running out of patience.  I know he lost his hearing working to support me, so I don't push this.  Any suggestions?

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My entire household conspired to get my grandfather to get his hearing checked when I was a kid. We would all speak quietly and turn the volume on the TV down whenever he wasn't looking. After a week of that, he finally agreed to let my dad take him to the doctor and get the hearing aids, which he did wear.

But as others have mentioned, if someone doesn't want to go, getting the hearing aids may not be a solution if the person doesn't wear them.

[violann]

@DrKelli- Excellent and very helpful comments! Just wanted to point out that hearing loss from excessive noise is also "nerve loss".

Conductive loss ( the other kind) comes from too much wax, damage to the tiny bones in the middle ear, damage to the ear drum. 

Typically, hearing loss in older people is often "mixed" loss, a combined action of both conductive and nerve loss.

( I may be using obsolete language, but the ideas are pretty much the same as they were when I was in college).

WANTED TO ADD- hearing aids, especially for first time wearers, should be prescribed with the input of an AUDIOLOGIST with the qualification "CCC AUD". A SALESPERSON may NOT be qualified to recommend the best services for every client.

[Shelbelle]

Maybe the next routine visit to his doctor, you could have the doc tell him it is suggested as a routine screening to have hearing checked. Set it up with the doc ahead of time.

[reiki604]

Is he an adult?????? It's up to him to decide what he wants to do after you speak to him about your concerns. It's his life and his body. You are only responsible for how you deal with his decisions.

[Zhills]

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@reiki604 wrote:

Is he an adult?????? It's up to him to decide what he wants to do after you speak to him about your concerns. It's his life and his body. You are only responsible for how you deal with his decisions.

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I agree wholeheartedly. But stubbornness is powerful.  He guesses what he thinks you said and is wrong 98% of the time.  I retreat to my computer.  Conversation is literally impossible!

[DrKelli]

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@violann wrote:

WANTED TO ADD- hearing aids, especially for first time wearers, should be prescribed with the input of an AUDIOLOGIST with the qualification "CCC AUD". A SALESPERSON may NOT be qualified to recommend the best services for every client.

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YES!  Please see an audiologist!  They can administer the hearing test and do the hearing aid fitting.  I started at the ENT and waited to see if I would regain any function.  I was getting so frustrated say "hunh?" or "what" during conversations, I contacted the audiologist about a month after the conversation with the ENT.

[Carmie]

@reiki604My husband suffers from hearing loss too.  He is in denial and has a million reasons why he shouldn't get and wear a hearing aid or even be tested.

When I grew up, my mother was legally deaf, my father was very hearing impaired as he got older and I have one sister who is deaf in her left ear and my youngest brother also suffers from massive hearing loss. They all have worn hearing devices.

Unless you have lived with someone who can't hear and refuses to do anything about it, you have no idea of how it is difficult to ignore.

Sometimes all of our TV's are turned up to full volume at the same time   He can't hear his cell phone ringing and when I tell him, he says "what?"  When I repeat speaking louder, he accuses me of yelling at him.

When he is asked questions, he gives crazy answers and sounds foolish sometimes because he is so far off base.  It's scary when he drives because he can't hear traffic, plus the radio in the car is so loud, I can't hear it either.

Many men have a stigma about wearing a hearing device.  The people who live with them suffer too.

I have set up appointments with the doctor and he says he'll go, then he cancels at the last minute.  I have threatened to duct tape him and carry him to see a doctor. I might have to.

Yes, it's his life, but it is affecting mine greatly.  Turn your TV up to full volume and try to ignore that.  Impossible.

My heart goes out to the OP, if you figure it out, clue me in.

corrected typo