Tanya is visiting her hearing specialist, being measured for her very first pair of hearing aids. And she’s feeling a little anxious. Not, you know, a ton of anxiety. But she’s never used hearing aids before, and she’s somewhat stressed that she will feel uncomfortable with a high tech gizmo sitting in her ear canal, particularly since she’s never been a big fan of earbuds or earplugs.
These worries are not only felt by Tanya. Fit and overall comfort are concerns for many new hearing aid users. Tanya has every intention of wearing her hearing aids. Now she won’t need to crank up the TV so loud that it irritates her family or even the neighbors. But will those hearing aids be fit her ears comfortably?
Adapting to Hearing Aids For The First Time
So, are hearing aids uncomfortable? The short response is: some individuals experience them as a little uncomfortable when they first use them. Initial levels of comfort will fluctuate because, like many things in life, there’s an adjustment period. But you will feel more comfortable over time as you become acquainted with your hearing aids.
Often it’s just good to know that these adjustments are coming. Knowing what to expect will help you acclimate to your hearing aids in a healthy, sustainable, and comfortable way.
There are two phases to your adjustment:
- Adapting to how your hearing aid feels: There might be some slight physical discomfort when you first begin wearing your hearing aid, and your hearing specialist might suggest you start off wearing your hearing aids for only part of the day. That being said, there shouldn’t be any pain involved. You should talk to your hearing specialist if your hearing aid is causing pain.
In order to better your overall comfort and speed up the adjustment period, get in touch with your hearing specialist if you’re experiencing trouble with the physical positioning or sound quality of your hearing aids.
Can I Make my Hearing Aids More Comfortable?
Over the years, fortunately, there are a few techniques that have worked pretty well.
- Practice: Once have your hearing aids, the world won’t sound quite the same. And it could take a while for your ears to adjust, especially when it comes to the spoken word. In order to get the hang of it more quickly, there are a number of exercises you can do like watching a movie with caption or reading along with an audiobook.
- Start slow: You don’t need to wear your hearing aids 24/7 when you first get them. You can start gradually and build up from there. From one to four hours every day is a great way to start. That said, you’ll want to work up to using your hearing aids all day, but you don’t have to start there.
- Get the right fit: Fitting your ears comfortably is what hearing aids are made to do. You’ll absolutely want to talk about fit with your hearing specialist right away but you’ll also want to see your hearing specialist for follow-up fittings to be certain everything is working correctly and the fit is perfect. And for optimal effectiveness and comfort, you might want to think about a custom fit hearing aid.
You’re Hearing Aids Can be More Comfortable
For the first few days or weeks, there may be some discomfort with your hearing aids. Before long you’re hearing aids will be a comfortable part of your daily life and the sooner you make the adjustments, the sooner this will occur. In order to really make that transition, it’s crucial that you wear them on a daily basis.
Soon all you will have to consider is what you hear, not how you hear it.