You’re Annoying Me, Art!

Let me start by saying that Art was right, even though he had no idea how right he was.

I am “of an age” when my mailbox fills with ads for walk-in tubs, funeral pre-planning, and hearing aids. All such mail goes immediately into the recycle bin. The hearing aid ones in particular have always seemed silly to me. Why would someone have to persuade me to get tested? If I had a problem hearing, I would get it checked. Just like vision. I have worn glasses all my life. I had cataract surgeries when the time came. If I have a need and a tool exists to help me, I am all for it.

Recently, Art decided to have his hearing checked. He had had it done several years ago and was curious whether there had been any deterioration since then. As sound guy for Act Two Theatre (local community theater), he needs to be able to trust that his hearing is allowing him to set sound levels accurately. So he went off to Costco for his test. Turns out his hearing is well within the normal range.

Now comes the annoying part. He started encouraging me to get my hearing tested. Hearing loss does run in my family. I am very aware of what it is like to be with someone whose hearing is failing. I was having no issues, thank you very much. Sure, I would sometimes miss an occasional word of dialog in a movie. Once in a blue moon I would misunderstand what someone nearby said while others were talking. But I was not asking “What?” all the time. I was not missing things going on around me. So I resisted. If I found I had any issues in the future, I would absolutely go in for a test. Who would know better than I did if I had a problem hearing?

Eventually, I made an appointment and went. I would be able to say, see, I’m fine too. Imagine my utter shock to discover, after a battery of tests, that I have mild to moderate loss in both ears, particularly in the range of female and child voices. I took the report and went home in a fairly solid mood of denial. The mood passed and I called back that afternoon to see how much aids would cost. Art, also truly surprised by the findings, researched over the counter hearing aids and related info—pros and cons and other scary stuff like the strong association between hearing loss and dementia. The next day I called back for an appointment to come in to find out which type would be right for me and to order them. No point waiting around. The evidence was clear. And, as I say, I have no issues using tools to make my life better. No vanity issues, either, so whatever they ended up looking like would be OK.

About a week after ordering them, I was back for the fitting and instruction session. I am completely astonished at how tiny and capable the aids are. The phone app gives me a lot of control for different situations, ones I don’t think I need yet, but so easy to try out. I am noticing lots of minor sounds I had completely missed for a long time, like the quiet beep the dishwasher makes when it finishes a cycle, the chirping of birds at the outside feeder, and the squeak our kitchen floor makes.

I am getting quicker at putting them in. They are rechargeable so no batteries to fuss with. All in all, this is a very positive change. I truly had no idea that my hearing had deteriorated. I could function just fine. And I am grateful that I have the aids now, before my hearing had worsened to the point that I really knew it was bad. My “getting used to” the aids is a trivial event. It’s mostly a matter of surprise at small everyday sounds I had not been aware of. Life is good.

So thank you, Art, for being a sensible person and (gently) pushing me to do the sensible thing. And thanks to the medical and technical worlds for making such a wonderful tool available.

Even if you are not “of an age”, you might consider getting your hearing checked. It doesn’t hurt to have a baseline established. It is reassuring if you find you have no issues. And it is miraculous if you DO find you have issues to get a tool that will help.