You’ve been waiting for this day for a long time. You got your new hearing aids. You’re so excited to be able to dive into your social life again. Now, you won’t be missing parts of conversations or going through awkward transitions. But there’s an issue: everything sounds a little bit off.
That’s because it’ll likely take you a while to adjust to a new pair of hearing aids. Often, this transition can be annoying. You were so looking forward to enjoying your hearing again and it feels like it’s hard to be patient.
But there are some tips you can practice to reduce this transition period. With some practice, you can quickly get yourself to a space where you’re thinking less about your hearing aids, and tuning in to what you’re hearing.
Tips that help you start Slowly
No matter how technologically advanced they might be, it’s going to take your brain a little while to adjust to hearing certain sounds again. Use these tips to start slowly and deliberately give your ears time to adapt.:
- Use your hearing aids for a short duration: A few hours at a time is the most you should wear your hearing aids when you first start out. Your hearing aids will probably feel a little weird in your ears for a while so starting slowly is okay. You can start to wear your hearing aids for longer periods as you become accustomed to them.
- Focus on one-on-one conversations first: If you wear your hearing aids while eating at a crowded restaurant on your first day using the devices, you may be disappointed, not because the hearing aids aren’t working. When the brain has to pay attention to all those voices, it can become overloaded at first. By starting out with one-on-one conversations you will make the transition easier and also get a bit of additional practice.
- Begin by wearing your hearing aids at home only: When you’re at home, you have a lot more control over what you’re hearing, and you’ll probably experience substantially less noise pollution. This will help you concentrate on individual voices.
Tips that help you get extra practice in
As with any other skill (and hearing is a skill, among other things), there are certain activities that can help you practice with your hearing aids. Some of these are even enjoyable!
- Simply practice hearing: That’s right: Go somewhere a little quiet and take in the sounds around you. You can practice by concentrating on trying to hear the refrigerator running or the cat meowing in the other room or the birds chirping outside.
- Watch TV with the closed-captions on: It’s easy: Turn on the TV, put your hearing aids in, and enjoy. As you read the dialog you’ll also be hearing the characters talk, and your brain will begin to remember what all these words sound like. This sort of practice will help you adjust to hearing speech again.
- Listen to an audiobook while you read the printed book: This similar exercise can also be quite enjoyable. Reading and listening to an audiobook together will help your brain make associations between words and sound.
Strengthen your hearing health with these tips
Keeping your ears as healthy as you can, after all, is one of the primary purposes of hearing aids. But, as you take some time to get used to your new hearing aids, there are a few things you can do that your ears will thank you for.:
- If you have any pain, be sure you take note of it and tell us about it.: Your hearing aids shouldn’t be painful. So it’s important to report any problems with fit or any pain right away.
- Keep visiting us: You might not think you need to get hearing evaluations anymore after you get your hearing aids. Nothing could be further from the truth. We can help adjust your hearing aids, keep the fit comfortable, and continue to check in on your hearing. It’s important to continue with these follow up appointments.
Take your time, and work up to full-time hearing aids
Working your way up to using your hearing aids full time is the goal here. A slow and steadfast approach is often effective, but everybody’s unique. You’ll want to get personalized advice from us on the best way for you to get accustomed to your new hearing aid.
These tips will help you live a more enjoyable and enriched life with your new hearing aids.
