Last November, renowned columnist, author and journalist Hunter Davies wrote a column in The Sunday Times about his experience visiting Hearing Healthcare Practice. You can read his article HERE.
Over the years we’re delighted to say that many journalists have written about their positive experiences with us. Martin Short of Country Life featured his experiences over two separate articles. The first is reprinted here.
PART ONE: I hear what you’re saying… I think?
Life is like a book: full of chapters that evolve to reveal the bigger picture. Sometimes previous chapters are so intense they give clues to what might follow. My own biography could easily be entitled, “I hear what you’re saying … I think?“, because chapters in my life have also provided a clue to the possible conclusion of my life’s story.
Age, as I constantly remind myself, is only a number. We are all really only as old as we act and my goal is to try and slow down the ageing process for as long as possible. Yet, despite this viewpoint, my body has other ideas! Apart from the odd ache and pain, life is plain sailing for me – that is, apart from my vision and hearing, which both defy my philosophy on life.
For a few years now I have gradually become aware that I can’t hear the full extent of conversations – some words elude me while others just aren’t too clear at all. Filling the gaps has become a leap of faith or pure conjecture. And when the occasional joke is dropped into a conversation I will laugh unconvincingly, unsure of what I should be laughing at.
Not so long ago, this issue moved from being manageable to becoming uncomfortable and problematic. However, like King Canute, however, I determined that I could not control the tide – metaphorically speaking – and that these waves of despair threatened to give me a good soaking. So, with a degree of reluctance, I decided to do something about it and found myself in the capable hands of Jo Rae, a professional audiologist at the Hearing Healthcare Practice in Harpenden.
I didn’t view making an appointment at this renowned practice as conceding to the age thing, more a positive approach with a view to reeling back the years and giving myself the opportunity to re-visit a period I thought had been lost forever: good hearing and good conversation. Recalling the clunky hearing aid my grandfather reluctantly wore – finally hiding it in a drawer never to be worn again – I was in for an eye opening experience! My first appointment with Jo, a highly commended audiologist at the practice, included a get-to-know-me questionnaire that afforded me the opportunity to express how my gradual loss of hearing affected me on a day-to-day basis, which enabled Jo to get to grips with her patient.
It was a very relaxed and casual meeting; one my partner also attended – a usual practice, which enabled the audiologist to better understand the patient’s condition from a partners perspective too! Relaxed in the comfortable surroundings of Jo’s audiology room, my wife and I further explained how my hearing has affected our social life and the way it limits my social interaction. With diagrams, Jo explained the workings of the ear, and I soon began to understand far more than I had previously. Having completed this stage Jo, then gently examined both of my ear canals using a video otoscope. This has a tiny camera to reveal, in real time, the condition of my ears. Wax build up is something most people experience and, for some, this natural condition is more rapid. Jo determined that I should tackle this problem first and suggested applying a little olive oil on a regular basis for seven nights to soften the wax, which I did.
A week later, I returned to have the wax removed – the technical stuff then followed. I was introduced to a sophisticated soundproof booth in which I had a full audiological hearing test. I was asked to listen to a series of different sounds emitted at a variety of frequencies, including the recording of the spoken word with background noise to determine the sound frequencies and conditions which were problematic to me.
Back in Jo’s consultation room, these results were analysed and a graph compared them with an acceptable hearing range. This clearly exposed my audiology issues, which were frequency related. Thankfully, “clunky’ hearing aids are a thing of the past and, these days, a range of technology is available including those that are totally invisible and inserted into the ear canal, while others sit discreetly behind the ear. If you can relate to my experience and don’t want to guess missing words in conversation with your best friend, work colleague or in a social environment, you don’t have to feel excluded anymore – particularly if discretion and modesty are part of the issue of enjoying better hearing – you too can reel back the years and enjoy a new lease of life!
My audiology test indicated…..
that I have a moderate to severe high frequency sensorineural hearing loss in both ears. This is due to the hair cells in the inner ear becoming less sensitive to sound and vibration. Typically, this hearing change is less noticeable in quiet situations as the brain attempts to compensate for the change in acuity. Any communication hardship will typically increase in the presence of background noise such as restaurants, large meetings and at social events. The results confirmed that I will have developed some coping strategies like lip reading, to support my hearing ability as the environment becomes more acoustically challenging.
During my consultation a speech in noise test (QuickSIN) was carried out. This measured how well I was able to hear speech when there was competing and interfering background sounds. The test revealed that, when sound was amplified in both ears, I heard each sentence almost as well as someone with normal hearing. Therefore, the Hearing Healthcare Practice, Harpenden believed that I would be an ideal candidate for two hearing devices and suggested a treatment plan, which included the sourcing and supply of hearing technology for me.
You can read Martin’s second feature: ‘A New, Invisible Friend‘ will be published here on Wednesday 27th November
If Martin or Hunter’s words inspire you to make an appointment with our team, PLEASE GET IN TOUCHand we’ll be delighted to give you some impartial advice.