Hearing Aids

Glad you're trying hearing aids! It wasn't my first choice either, but I hope you have good luck!

 

Thanks Jazz, time will tell if they will help. I will continue to attack T in everyway I can until then, by trial and error, mostly error.

 

Wonder if this would help with tinnitus for people who only have hearing loss in one ear.

Chew on This! Hearing Device for the Mouth


BOSTON, Mass. (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Thirty-six million adults in the U.S. report some degree of hearing loss, but only one in five people who could benefit from a hearing aid uses one. Now, a new mouth device could help many hear much better.
Remember how the grown-ups in Charlie Brown used to sound? With 80 percent hearing loss in her right ear, this is how Mia Tavan says most people sound to her.
“Wah, wah, wah, wah. I can tell there’s sound, but the inner ear nerves are fried and can't translate sound,” Mia Tavan told Ivanhoe.
Now, she’s got a new hearing device on her tooth! The SoundBite is helping her hearing, “through vibrations, the patient hears it in their better ear,” Susan M. Kelleher, Au.D., CCC-A, Audiologist at Boston Medical Center, told Ivanhoe.
Mia’s bad ear is fitted with a microphone that wirelessly transmits sound to a device on her tooth. Those vibrations travel through her skull bones and are picked up by the inner part of her good ear. The bone conduction technology gives her the perception that she can hear in both ears.
“As long as the hearing in the good ear is near normal, patients with bilateral or hearing loss in both ears are not good candidates,” Dr. Kelleher said.
Mia says the SoundBite has improved her quality of life.
“Oh it's been amazing. It’s been absolutely amazing,” Mia explained.
She tells us the only downsides are getting used to the device, occasional feedback, and making sure the batteries are charged.
There are other bone conduction devices on the market, but they require surgery. The SoundBite does not require any invasive procedures. It is FDA approved, but it’s not covered by all insurance companies at this time. The device costs about 7,000 dollars.

 

I would like to believe this is true. But given I had not recent hearing loss and my tinnitus came during a period of deep stress most of which is still going on it makes it difficult to know the source.

 

Saw the audiologist a a few day ago, the PNG masker/hearing aid combo is not ready to be released yet. I did return the WNG got all but $50 back. it was worth it though to test first hand if a
masker was right for me. It did make the T noise more tolerable. Waiting for the new ones to come out. They are made by Unitron.

To get me by on a bad day, I use the portable FM radio tuned to where there is no station and listen to the white noise using an ear phone/bud. I listened to various sounds like rain with thunder, stream of water, I like the constant Pink noise myself.

Lord: you may want to try and give the FM radio with an earphone a try and see if it sounds better to you that the Tnoise....

 

I got a masker hearing aid combo a few weeks ago. It has four programs.

1. hearing aid/masker with low frequency pink noise.
2. high frequency pink noise (just above my hearing loss)
3. low frequency pink noise (just below my hearing loss)
4. hearing aid only.

It can be programed with any combo of masker pink noise, (low or high frequency) and hearing aid as listed above.

It is very tiny. there are no controls on the device. Everything is controlled from a remote control.
The remote has a volume control for the masker portion. Button to change programs. The only thing you can't control is the level of amplification regarding the hearing aid, it is custom set for you, using your audiogram.

To turn the unit off completely, you open the battery holder, it's very simple and made to be open and closed on a regular basis in this manner.

Mine was $950 with remote, via my ENT's audiologist.

These are pretty new, the only place I could find one like mine, so you guys could see it was ebay. Here is the link.

Unitron Moxi E Kiss BTE Hearing Aid (CRT) Canal Receiver Technology

Ok, does it work? Yes, it does what it is supposed to do. It makes pink noise and has a hearing aid to use with or without the pink noise. Also it is available with white noise instead of pink noise.

I only use mine on a really bad day. I tested out the hearing aid portion and it work as it should.

The thing I like best about it, I don't even know it is behind & in my ear!

Other devices will work, I used a FM radio with earbuds for white noise, but it was to awkward for me. Plus I like the idea of having the hearing aid portion on when the pink noise is on, if I choose to.

I tried just a masker a few months ago, but the white noise was all I could hear, I had to turn the TV way up, it also made the inside of my ear sore after awhile.

These are very new on the market, at least that's what I was told.

When watching TV with my wife, we can have a conversation while using the masker/hearing aid.

Does it help cure my tinnitus? no, it does not.
Do I think it is worth $900? For me yes, it's a lot better than listening to the T noise...

 

Hi Gary,

Hearing aids do help most people. They help people react less to the tinnitus. This is particularly true when hearing aids include maskers. Over time, the hope is that you won't hear the tinnitus anymore, i.e., habituation. We all want a cure, but we need peace until a cure is found!

I've had hearing aids for three months and they've helped me. I still hear my tinnitus and it still cycles, i.e., varies in loudness. But the tinnitus is better. I can go longer without noticing it. I'm hoping the improvement will continue. I've read you need at least six months for your brain to adjust to the hearing aids. So you should continue to get better.

 

One thing I don't understand about hearing aids: don't they amplify the outside world, directly into your ear? How does this not risk doing more damage/worsening your Tinnitus? I'm sure there's simple reason: I just can't think of it, perhaps because I don't fully understand how they work?

 

Jason123 -
The audiologist will set the amplifiers in the hearing aid based on your hearing loss. For example, in my right ear I have loss at 4KHz (which happens to be the tinnitus tone I hear, too). My audiologist adjusted my hearing aids so that 4KHz is amplified in my right ear. The other frequencies aren't amplified.

I already have cochlear hair damage at 4KHz (possibly to a few hairs cells caused by an ototoxic medicine). Once damaged they can't come back (unless stem cells become a viable therapy). I think the amplified signal is picked up by adjacent undamaged hair cells, restoring hearing balance.

As jazz says, it takes some time to get accustomed to hearing things normally again. I found it to be overstimulating those first couple of days. Many people have their tinnitus suppressed, especially if it's tonal tinnitus.

You raise a good question: Can hearing aids worsen tinnitus? I don't think so. Hearing becomes damaged by either very high decible noise or ototoxic drugs. I don't think hearing aids are that loud - at least mine aren't!

 

Thanks Karl - I really appreciate you taking the time to explain. A hearing aid that only amplifies certain frequencies is pretty amazing, isn't it! In the grand scheme history, we're lucky that helpful tech is available. And of course we'll be even luckier if stem cell research comes through...

 

Hi Jason123,

Karl notes that hearing aids may be overstimulating at first. This is so true. For several days, my tinnitus got worse, but then it calmed down. Some people freak when this happens to them and assume the hearing aids are making their tinnitus worse. But it's not true. It's just a little overstimulation that will pass. The key is to wear them all day during your waking hours. That will help your ears get adjusted to hearing new sounds.

 

Jazz is right. Some people have very bad hearing, and the transition to normal is too stimulating. Most aids have a built-in feature that gradually increases the volume. Without an adjustment period, people would be crashing their cars after leaving the audiologist!

Jason123 -
Yeah, it's truly amazing what they can do these days with eletronics. Mine were programmed specifically to my auditogram using a Bluetooth connection.

I'm convinced that someday there will be stem cell therapy which will allow hair cells to grow back. German doctors are fixing people with Meniere's disease using stem cell therapy. Tinnitus is a lot like Meniere's disease.

In the meantime, as I wait stem cells, I've chosen the "Bionic Man"/"Borg" fix.

 

Hi Karen, I got mine through my ENT's office. The audiologist that works there full time took care of everything, all the measuring, programing, settings etc...

 

Hi Jazz, I will try wearing them all day. I have only been putting the masker/hearing aid on when the T is very high. I have been have a few good days now where I don't need a masker. I will put it in hearing aid only mode, and see how it goes, going to try it now...

 

Hi Gary,

That's great news! I wear mine from the moment I get up until I go to bed!

Regarding the masker, can you adjust the volume? My masker is set to noise at my hearing loss, but I can adjust the volume. When I'm having a good day, I keep it on low. I can barely hear it. But when my tinnitus is loud, I increase the volume so it blends in with my tinnitus. (When it spikes, my tinnitus is too loud to be masked. But blending in does help!)

The only reason I use the masker daily is to habituate my brain to the tinnitus noise. Why do some people, like us, hear their tinnitus, and others with hearing loss don't hear it? One of the main reasons is our limbic system. The limbic system is our emotional center. And it's this system that probably perceives the tinnitus sound as something threatening. It's the old "fight-or-flight" theory of psychology. The masker helps desensitize our brain to the noise. Once desensitized, the brain no longer fears the tinnitus and so we hear it less or not at all. That's habituation.

Now, you might say, "I'm not worried about my tinnitus, so why do I still hear it?" That's where I am. I do not worry about my tinnitus, and I rarely react negatively to it. I just accept it, even when it disrupts my work. But I was very fearful about my tinnitus when I first got it. For two months, I rarely slept and couldn't eat. During this time, my brain focused on the tinnitus sound and decided it was an intruder. And so my brain began to memorize the sound, and this is how tinnitus becomes chronic. Now, I'm teaching my brain to forget about it. This will take a while, but it will happen.

Hearing aids help to facilitate the habituation process by giving your brain back some of the sounds it is missing! So that's less work for your subconscious to do as it tries to forget the noise.

The theory I've just explained was developed by Jastreboff in his Neophysiological Model of Tinnitus. (Actually, the theory is more complex; I'm just simplifying.) That model is the basis for Tinnitus Retraining Therapy or TRT. If you want to know more about TRT, you can search for it on the TT board. There's lots of information here. Karl, who frequently posts on the board, is an expert in this area so look for his posts.

Here's a great PDF that also explains TRT:

http://www.tinnitus.org/home/frame/tin2_download.PDF​

With time and patience you will be fine! Dont' get discouraged if you get set backs. The road is crooked and full of potholes. But over time you will get better, and you will regain your peace of mind! Be positive, and, if you get too discouraged, try something like CBT (cognitive behavioral therapy) that will help you focus on good thoughts while you heal!

 

Jazz. thank you for all the good info, I am familiar TRT but not CBT. Yes my device has a volume control for everything. Amplification of the hearing aid is preset, but the it can be reprogrammed at any time. The pink noise is set at a frequency just above and just below my hearing loss, I can change it back and forth with my remote control. I have been using the H.A. only all day, so far so good. I am able to accept a 5 to 7 on a 1 to 10 scale, but when it hits that ten it is rough for me, but I must say I am dealing with the 10's better than I was when I first got T on 7-29-12

 

Karen, I feel for you. Top bad the masker alone did not help. Before I got mine, I took an old potable AM-FM radio. tuned it to where there was no station to get just get the white noise, used an ear bub, it did help, that's when I made the decision to get the H.A.M. tired of spelling out hearing aid/masker

 

Karen,

I'm sorry your second hearing aid (the combo masker) didn't work out. Perhaps, another model would be better. The technology is always improving. From your post, it appears you only wore one hearing aid--the one for your bad ear. Do you have hearing loss in both ears? (Hearing loss as opposed to tinnitus.) My tinnitus is unilateral, and my hearing loss is slight. But the hearing loss is in both ears, even though the tinnitus is only in one. Of course, good hearing aids can be outrageously expensive. (Some are as high as $5K for two.) And so I wanted only one hearing aid--the one for my tinnitus ear. My audiologist, however, said people with tinnitus always need two hearing aids. Together, the hearing aids help to balance out your brain--which is part of the problem with tinnitus. Oh well, this is just a thought. Of course, your tinnitus includes a pulsatile component, and mine does not. That alone could be the difference!

Of course, Gary's idea of a masker might also help! The key is to get a sound that distracts you from your tinnitus, rather than competing with it. I do like the masker component of my hearing aid.

I also love water sounds. Do you have an iPod or an MP3 player? When my tinnitus is really bad, I take out my one hearing aid and replace it with an earphone. (I place the earphone in my good ear. My tinnitus ear reacts to music and other sounds.) I'll play water sounds or music--very softly, of course! I do find this to be a decent distraction. If you wear ear phones, the best are the open ones. By open, I mean the ones that fit on the outside of your ear. I wouldn't use an earbud. Too much sound too close to your eardrum! Here's a link to the ones I use:

http://www.amazon.com/Brookstone-Reverse-Sound-Earphones/dp/B009H86A46/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1372298990&sr=8-2&keywords=brookstone earbuds​

​

The earphones use "reverse sound" technology that seems pretty safe. The music is first directed away from your ears, then into your ears. You'll have to read the explanation! But I love them and the sound is great! They are a bit pricey for earphones, but cheap compared to the high fidelty ones that are probably dangerous for people with tinnitus.

 

For anyone in the uk.The head audiologist Mark at The Tinnitus Clinic(where the acoustic CR neuromodulation comes from).Said to me the NHS hearing aids are now as good as the most expensive hearing aids,It all depends on the skill of the audiologist who is programming them.He said there is nothing he could do with top range private that he couldnt do with NHS Digital.

Just a heads up.

 

Hey guy's. I was fooling around with my H.A.M. By accident I discovered that I can also control the amplification of just the H.A. portion of the device if I choose to. Audiologist told me it was preset, non-adjustable, so I never bothered to mess around with it. My fault though, I never read the instruction manual.

This is now day four using just the H.A. only setting, it seems to be helping the T not to reach those insanely high levels. So far.....

 

Gary,

Be optimistic and carry on. Your bad days will become fewer in number if given enough time. And one day they may even be gone!!

 

Jazz, I am an optimistic by nature, but also a realist when it comes to the way T reacts on me. I have had a string of 7 days before, where T was low. If this device helps for another week then I will give it a thumbs up.

 

Hi,

I am suffering from tinnitus since last 7 months and medicines are not working.

I have low frequency hearing loss.

I have decided to buy tinnitus masker.

My doctor suggested me hearing aid to improve hearing and told me that this will help me with tinnitus problem.

Doctor saying using hearing aid I can listen surrounding sound louder and this will help me to deal with tinnitus sound.

But I think hearing aid will not mask my tinnitus sound.I need masker using white noise to mask tinnitus sound.

I can inform people around me that I have very low frequency hearing loss so please ping me twice if did not hear you.

Currently I am using white noise from my mobile to work and sleep. This is helping but disturbing others.

Please advise on tinnitus masker or hearing aid?

-Thanks

 

@edge k, I have High freq hearing loss, my ENT said hearing aids will knock out the T while they are in. I never believed him... he was right. From being in the forefront, a jet engine noise it goes to the background.

With Low freq loss... mmmmmmmmm maybe listen to the doc (for once!!!!) Best, pete