No New Hearing Aids

[November Gypsy]

I hope that you get those hearing aids.

Thanks sweetie. I'll find away. There has to be one.

 

[Adamsmomma]

Thanks sweetie. I'll find away. There has to be one.

Did you get the info I sent you? I saw another resource I'll have to find it again LOL

 

[deafdude1]

Deafdude1: I am profoundly deaf in my right ear and severely hoh in my left. We had thought about the internet option some time ago, in fact, when I got the hearing aids I'm using right now. As it turns out, that's illegal but I didn't know that for a long time and we really thought about doing that.

How many DB loss, do you have any audiograms? What kind of HAs do you have and are they any good? It's perfectly legal to buy HAs online if you sign a waiver. Expect to spend $1500 per HA that will be suitable for severe-profound HL.

Thanks for the info! I feel majorly for your boyfriend. Give him a hug for me. I'm on Medicade too...so, yes, I know allllll about them saying they pay for HA's...and then not. It was very depressing. And not everyone can use CIs, right? I mean, I'm pretty sure my hearing loss wouldn't be fixed by that. I don't get it. I mean, even though the whole hearing world seems so eager to think we 'need fixing' as hoh and deaf people, they pretty darn recluctant to help when it comes down to money. ..but, happily,we have lots of other options like ya'll are showing me.

If CI is an option for you and you are interested in it, it might actually be easier to get insurance to pay for CI than HA. Ask for loaner HAs which they will give you before you can get CI(well ive seen people go straight to CI without finding out if proper HAs could have benefitted them, but that's irresponsible) anyway when you get your loaner HAs, if you are happy with how well you hear with them, you could buy one of the loaner HAs or just return them and buy the $1500 HA online. If the loaner HAs don't give you enough benefit, you might be a CI candidate in your worse ear.

 

[November Gypsy]

How many DB loss, do you have any audiograms? What kind of HAs do you have and are they any good? It's perfectly legal to buy HAs online if you sign a waiver. Expect to spend $1500 per HA that will be suitable for severe-profound HL.

I'm not sure of exact numbers. I know my right ear is in the 95-105 range, but all I know about the left is that it is considered the higher end of severe. I've never gotten a copy of my autograms. I have Meniere's Disease, which means, among other things that my hearing loss flucuates, despite the fact that it is in steady decline. For example, this week I am not hearing well at all. I can barely hear anything with my hearing aids full-blown. But about two weeks ago, I could somewhat better. It's always a little worse over all, but some frequences get a little better once in a while.

I'm surprised that it's legal. I was told by my audiologist when we asked about it that it wasn't. But, I believe you. I have Starkey Inner-Ear Hearing Aids. They are pretty powerful little things, but no longer helping me much at all.

If CI is an option for you and you are interested in it, it might actually be easier to get insurance to pay for CI than HA. Ask for loaner HAs which they will give you before you can get CI(well ive seen people go straight to CI without finding out if proper HAs could have benefitted them, but that's irresponsible) anyway when you get your loaner HAs, if you are happy with how well you hear with them, you could buy one of the loaner HAs or just return them and buy the $1500 HA online. If the loaner HAs don't give you enough benefit, you might be a CI candidate in your worse ear.

I'm not thinking I really qualify for CI. I don't think it's considered much for Meniere's Disease. I could be wrong though. That, and I really don't want to have surgery invovling my head. I can't even afford 1500 right now, really...but can you really find good hearing aids for that little? Taking into account that I have some flucuation?

 

[Bottesini]

I'm not sure of exact numbers. I know my right ear is in the 95-105 range, but all I know about the left is that it is considered the higher end of severe. I've never gotten a copy of my autograms. I have Meniere's Disease, which means, among other things that my hearing loss flucuates, despite the fact that it is in steady decline. For example, this week I am not hearing well at all. I can barely hear anything with my hearing aids full-blown. But about two weeks ago, I could somewhat better. It's always a little worse over all, but some frequences get a little better once in a while.

I'm surprised that it's legal. I was told by my audiologist when we asked about it that it wasn't. But, I believe you. I have Starkey Inner-Ear Hearing Aids. They are pretty powerful little things, but no longer helping me much at all.






I'm not thinking I really qualify for CI. I don't think it's considered much for Meniere's Disease. I could be wrong though. That, and I really don't want to have surgery invovling my head. I can't even afford 1500 right now, really...but can you really find good hearing aids for that little? Taking into account that I have some flucuation?

Meniere's is one of the things that CI is supposed to be a big help for.

And Medicaid will pay for it.

Since you are late deafened and really seeming you want to hear, you probably should be checking on CI>

 

[November Gypsy]

Meniere's is one of the things that CI is supposed to be a big help for.

And Medicaid will pay for it.

Since you are late deafened and really seeming you want to hear, you probably should be checking on CI>

Thanks for the info. I don't really feel comfortable with the idea of having a surgery to change my hearing loss. I want to hear my baby's first word, but after that, I am willing to be who I am, as it were. I understand what you mean, but, honestly, it just doesn't seem like the right thing for me. I am not miserable, just adjusting.

 

[lovezebras]

Most insurance companies will pay 80-100 percent of CI costs, I believe. On that note though if you just want hearing aids and you do buy online don't buy from ebay cuz in the end your going to have to shell out money for an audi to program the ha's and get new molds, etc. If I were you I would just look into the lions club, vocational rehab in your area and things like that where you can get donated hearing aids rather than ones online. You're going to have to get them programmed but I think it's better to go through a person face to face rather than online because than you have to deal with hassles of if it doesn't work do i sent it back, shipping and handling, insurance while it's in the mail cuz if it's loss ur sol...I just think for you and to create you less hassle november just e-mail (or get hubby to call around) organizations and clubs to see if they can help you out.

**if you want to buy online check out america hears, i think thats what its called, anywho if I had this dilemma, which I did before my current audi helped me immensely, i would be too chicken to buy online in case something went wrong. But good luck november, I'm sure luck will come your way and you'll get new hearing aids!

 

[deafdude1]

I'm not sure of exact numbers. I know my right ear is in the 95-105 range, but all I know about the left is that it is considered the higher end of severe. I've never gotten a copy of my autograms. I have Meniere's Disease, which means, among other things that my hearing loss flucuates, despite the fact that it is in steady decline. For example, this week I am not hearing well at all. I can barely hear anything with my hearing aids full-blown. But about two weeks ago, I could somewhat better. It's always a little worse over all, but some frequences get a little better once in a while.

Do you have a reverse slope audiogram that is common of Meniere's Disease? If you are missing the low frequencies, youd be missing most of the sounds and speech. Were you born hearing? What age did you start to lose your hearing? How did you adjust to the loss? I was born severely deaf and my hearing has been stable in the lows but I did lose all the highs, well what little highs I had when I was young.

I'm surprised that it's legal. I was told by my audiologist when we asked about it that it wasn't. But, I believe you. I have Starkey Inner-Ear Hearing Aids. They are pretty powerful little things, but no longer helping me much at all.

Most audies do not want their customers shopping elsewhere. If you buy elsewhere, don't let him/her know. Can you have your ITE HAs reprogrammed for more gain or are they maxed? I do know ITE is not suitable for profound losses.

I'm not thinking I really qualify for CI. I don't think it's considered much for Meniere's Disease. I could be wrong though. That, and I really don't want to have surgery invovling my head. I can't even afford 1500 right now, really...but can you really find good hearing aids for that little? Taking into account that I have some flucuation?

If you are serious about CI, I can not tell if you qualify or not, that is up to your surgeon(and insurance) I can only tell you that most people with Meniere's Disease who become profoundly deaf qualify so your odds are good.
If your insurance doesn't pay 100% of the CI cost, youd not be able to afford it at this time anyway. If you can't afford $1500, youll need to have HA(s) donated to you or maybe rent a HA for a monthly fee? Maybe you can trade in both of your ITE HAs for some credit towards a single powerful HA?

Thanks for the info. I don't really feel comfortable with the idea of having a surgery to change my hearing loss. I want to hear my baby's first word, but after that, I am willing to be who I am, as it were. I understand what you mean, but, honestly, it just doesn't seem like the right thing for me. I am not miserable, just adjusting.

And here I am surprised why some people rush into CI, even when they have unaided audiograms I would take anyday over a CI! I really wish my unaided hearing was as good as some of the recent CI "candidates" I would benefit so much from HAs! I am also surprised why so many mothers of "deaf" babies(many of which are just HOH) rush to CI without giving HAs a fair chance. Yes CI is proven to work, but so are HAs(provided there is still residual hearing no worse than 90db HL in the lows) and with HAs you avoid the surgery and many other risks! I am living proof of how well HAs work for me.

I totally respect your decision not to get a CI at this time. I am sure CI surgery will become safer and less invasive, you don't have to rush into CI if you are able to cope/deal with hearing no speech or even environmental sounds. If all that matters is hearing your baby's first few words, why can't you just rent, borrow or loan a HA? If I lived near you, id seriously let you borrow my HA(use your own mold) for a week so you can hear your baby talking. Don't you have any friends that would be willing to do this? I would.

 

[November Gypsy]

Wow! Thanks so much for the interest and the post. You have no idea how much it means to have people like yourself who are so understanding and interested. Or, maybe you do have an idea, but either way, it's great.

Do you have a reverse slope audiogram that is common of Meniere's Disease? If you are missing the low frequencies, youd be missing most of the sounds and speech. Were you born hearing? What age did you start to lose your hearing? How did you adjust to the loss? I was born severely deaf and my hearing has been stable in the lows but I did lose all the highs, well what little highs I had when I was young.

Yes, I do have a reverse slope. And, in fact, I am going to call my audi and have them send me my last one because I'd really like to know more about it. I miss the low frequencies and, in fact, my understanding of speech is horrific. I have a very difficult time with that, however, I am already a pretty decent lipreader and as long as people remember to look at me, I can usually get an idea of what they are saying. (Except, of course, those people who can't be bothered to open their mouths more then a quarter of a centimeter.)*Grin* I have also sustained a lot of high tone hearing loss, but realitively middle tones were not bad for a while, though they are now fading quickly away.

I was born hearing, but have had terrible ear infections all my life. When I was a very small child, some hearing loss was suspected, but I was later diagnosed with APD (Auditory Processing Disorder) which means at that time there was nothing wrong with my ears but rather with my brains ability to understand the meaning of what was said. So, while I actually started realizing I was sustaining hearing loss at the age of almost twenty I suspect that I was probably going deaf before that, but nobody noticed because I was already asking 'what' all the time. I hope that made sense.

Anyway, I was just finally diagnosed with Meinere's about one or two months ago. A very long time to be going deaf without knowing why, as I am now 23 and this started when I was 19. But, to be fair, I've done a lot of moving around and had to deal with a lot of different doctors. I am still adjusting. It's only been just barely 4 years, after all, and my prognosis suggests that I will be completely deaf in a relitively short time. There are days when I feel good and ready to tackle the world. There are other days when I am as frightened as any child of the dark.

How have you coped with your deafness? Do you regret hearing, or do you feel that you are complete as you are? I hope, one day, to feel the latter for myself.

Most audies do not want their customers shopping elsewhere. If you buy elsewhere, don't let him/her know. Can you have your ITE HAs reprogrammed for more gain or are they maxed? I do know ITE is not suitable for profound losses.

Ah. Well. That's pleasant of them. *Looking grumpy* Well. I'm glad to know that! Thank you. We'll look into that as well as into vocational rehab and other programs. I will persevere! My ITE HAs are completely maxed out, even on my 'good' ear. Unfortunately, the issue with having Meniere's is the fluc. I hate that. I would rather just have my hearing be one thing, or go down steadily, rather then this shifting around. I have even been accused of exaggerating my hearing loss,which is, at best, hurtful. However, my fluc is not as bad as others, and is pretty mild in general. It's almost non exsistant now in my right ear, but my left ear still changes somewhat...overall all their is a decline going on that I have never recovered from.

If you are serious about CI, I can not tell if you qualify or not, that is up to your surgeon(and insurance) I can only tell you that most people with Meniere's Disease who become profoundly deaf qualify so your odds are good.
If your insurance doesn't pay 100% of the CI cost, youd not be able to afford it at this time anyway. If you can't afford $1500, youll need to have HA(s) donated to you or maybe rent a HA for a monthly fee? Maybe you can trade in both of your ITE HAs for some credit towards a single powerful HA?

We are very poor right now. We won't always be, but my husband is trying to start a business, and that, of course, is a little risky and difficult in this economy. Still, he's happy and that's how I want him. I am looking into the rent idea, and I don't know about the trade in. My concern with having one hearing aid (I don't know if this is valid or not) is that I already have some balance issues due in part to having been a preemie and due in part to my Mieneres. I'm not sure, but I'm afraid that being able to hear a little out of one ear and not the other would make me more unstable. *Turning red* Not that I'm unusually unbalanced...just very clutzy.

And here I am surprised why some people rush into CI, even when they have unaided audiograms I would take anyday over a CI! I really wish my unaided hearing was as good as some of the recent CI "candidates" I would benefit so much from HAs! I am also surprised why so many mothers of "deaf" babies(many of which are just HOH) rush to CI without giving HAs a fair chance. Yes CI is proven to work, but so are HAs(provided there is still residual hearing no worse than 90db HL in the lows) and with HAs you avoid the surgery and many other risks! I am living proof of how well HAs work for me.

I totally respect your decision not to get a CI at this time. I am sure CI surgery will become safer and less invasive, you don't have to rush into CI if you are able to cope/deal with hearing no speech or even environmental sounds. If all that matters is hearing your baby's first few words, why can't you just rent, borrow or loan a HA? If I lived near you, id seriously let you borrow my HA(use your own mold) for a week so you can hear your baby talking. Don't you have any friends that would be willing to do this? I would.

I don't completely understand about CI as it is...but there is something in my gut, as it were, that rebels againist the idea. I think I can understand what you mean, to a point. Probably my hearing is still better then yours for the moment, and I am sure it is hard for you to understand why people who hear better then you do rush into getting this equiment. My stance is that if it makes 'em happy, go for it. I don't think it will make me happy. I don't like the idea of having my head messed with, and...I dunno...I guess if I'm supposed to go deaf, I'd rather go deaf and wear hearing aids, if possible, instead of changing that with a surgery to have artifical hearing. That's just my idea and no offense to anyone.

I think I understand why mothers rush in to get their babies CIed sometimes to a degree. I'm a new mommy myself, and I can see why they'd do it, especially if they weren't deaf of hoh themselves. If my baby were going deaf, would I rush to get a CI at this point? No. Would I have if I was still hearing and had no understanding of the deaf world? Probably yes. For hearing people, it's a disability to be deaf. It's a scary and undesirable thing. For a mother of a baby who was facing hoh or deafness, I can understand why she'd be scared and want to get the CI. It's hyped as the best thing for deafness. Before I started getting involved with the deaf community, I didn't understand any better then that myself. I didn't understand that being deaf is a way of life, and has just as much a chance of being happy as any hearies life. I get that now...but not every hearie has my exposure.

Overall, I'd rather go with HAs. I seriously doubt I will ever want CI. Even if I go completely and utterly silent. *big hugs* THANK YOU for understanding that. I'm afraid it's hard to explain that to family members who assume that the best quality of life is hearing. I am beginning to understand this not to be the case, though I admit I have a lot of work to do before I am completely comfortable with the whole hoh/deaf thing. I have no deaf friends in the real world to borrow from. In fact, I have very few friends of any hearing status. I am supremely shy. I am working really hard to overcome that, but it's a challange. But, you have really, really touched me with your thought. *hugs you again* It made my day. You are a special person. Thank you so much. You must tell me more about you, you know!

 

[Phi4Sius]

NovemberGypsy- Would you be able to afford an analog hearing aid? They still make them. I got my analog for just a tad over $500.00 from my audie and I'm hearing far better and clearer than I ever did with any of the digitals I wore. BTW, you're wearing an ITE? Have you tried going to a power BTE?

I have a similar level of hearing loss to yours (mine's sensorineural) - starting at 50 dB in my right ear (about 5 dB above the threshold for severe I think - making me moderate/severe in my right) and going down from there. I have profound loss in my left and will find out if a hearing aid will do something for me in that ear on Monday.

I hope things work out and wish you the best in getting the hearing aids you need.

 

[Phi4Sius]

Haha...didn't realize my new sig didn't appear in the post.

Much better...I think.

 

[November Gypsy]

NovemberGypsy- Would you be able to afford an analog hearing aid? They still make them. I got my analog for just a tad over $500.00 from my audie and I'm hearing far better and clearer than I ever did with any of the digitals I wore. BTW, you're wearing an ITE? Have you tried going to a power BTE?

I would possibly be able to get an analog...but even that I'm not sure of. You see, we are trying to start a business, and any and all funds we have left from the monthly expenses goes into help support and supplement that. There is just isn't money to be spared at the second. Yes, I wear an ITE. When I got my ITE about a year and a half ago, my hearing was only in the mild to moderate hearing loss range. Now, I have maxed out my ITEs because my hearing is profound in one ear and severe in the other. I have never tried a power BTE, but that was what I was supposed to get through this program that denied me. It's so fustrating. I think what happened is that they looked at our finances back when I was 8 months pregnant. My husband had just lost his job, and we had to sell everything we could spare to survive at that point. So, it looked like we had some money in the bank. The reality? ALL of that money went to pay hospital bills for my pregnancy. We hardly used a cent of it. We tried to explain that to the program, but, I guess there is no real way to prove it.

I have a similar level of hearing loss to yours (mine's sensorineural) - starting at 50 dB in my right ear (about 5 dB above the threshold for severe I think - making me moderate/severe in my right) and going down from there. I have profound loss in my left and will find out if a hearing aid will do something for me in that ear on Monday.

I hope things work out and wish you the best in getting the hearing aids you need.

My left ear is now in the severe to profound range, while my right is in the profound. I will have the exact numbers soon, so I can show you guys. Mine is also sensorineural, caused by Menieres. I hope you find out good things on Monday! Please let us know! Thanks so much for the support and ideas! *hugs*

 

[Lissa]

I hope you'll be able to get another suitable hearing aid for your hearing loss. I have a severe-profound loss i think and i need to get a better sound quality hearing aid. let us know how you get on!

 

[November Gypsy]

Thank you sweetheart! *Many hugs* I hope so too. I didn't know you needed new hearing aids. We'll figure it out together then!