Keep It Down Over There

Well, I am the not-so-proud owner of a new pair of Phonak hearing aids. Yep, it's official, I'm old. I got them on Tuesday and went through all the fitting/training procedures at the audiologists office.

I was surprised by the small size of them and when they're in, they are very difficult to see. (Of course I realize that by posting this, I am tipping you all off, and now you'll be looking for them next time you see me. Don't be a judger.)  In fact, the day I got them I went to Ben's swim meet neither my friend nor Ben noticed them until I mentioned it to them. That was my big hangup for so many years was the vanity end of it. That and the fact that it skews me as "old," which I may be becoming. Not sure yet.

Anyways, when I first tried them on, I was shocked at how loud and echoey my voice was. The doctor adjusted it and said that over time my brain would get used to it and I wouldn't notice it anymore. The other thing that was shocking was, I could hear her rustling papers even though I couldn't see the papers. I know for sure this is a sound I wouldn't have heard without the hearing aids. It made me wonder how many other sounds I haven't been hearing over the years.

I went to work after the fitting and the first thing I noticed was the clicking of my mouse - super annoying! I hear every click, which I don't recall hearing before, at least not at the present volume. The other annoyance is the clicking of my keyboard keys. Again, I've heard those before, but never this clearly. I'm not entirely sure this is a desirable fix.

The coolest thing about them though is that if I'm not hearing something, all I have to do is click the right one and everything goes up a notch. Same goes for situations when something is too loud - like, say, any political speech or banter - I can click the left and it all goes quieter. So, if you see me picking at my left ear, you'll know.

I was set up at 80% of my max with a slow adjustment up to 90% over thirty days. This allows me to get used to them. I also need to have them set it up so I can use a phone app to adjust them - which I think this model is capable of.

My whole concern over how they look and people's perceptions is totally stupid and selfish. I think of my brother Rob who wore hearing aids his whole life and never much cared what people think. I need to get over it and rejoice in being able to hear things that I should.

So that's what I plan to do. And don't be talking about me behind my back, because I might just hear ya!

Blogging off...

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