How to Get Used to New Hearing Aids

Some people may not realize that there is an adjustment period when you purchase a new pair of hearing aids. Knowing this ahead of time can increase your chances of being satisfied with your new device. However, one needs to know that getting used to hearing aids is a process and doesn’t happen overnight. If you are using hearing aids for the first time, it can be disorientating because your brain needs time to adjust, especially if you’ve dealt with any degree of hearing loss for some time before seeking help. Knowing how to get used to your hearing aids can help mitigate the feelings of discouragement and can keep you on track to better hearing.

When you finally decide to bite the bullet and invest in a pair of hearing aids, don’t expect your hearing to be what it used to be immediately, and realize there is a “break-in” period. If you need help getting used to hearing aids, check out these helpful tips for first-time hearing aid users.

• Wearing hearing aids for the first time will probably feel funny or foreign at first, so it is important that you take it slow in the beginning and only wear them for a short time in the beginning. Each day, slowly increase the number of hours you are wearing them and make sure you do this daily for the best results. This will allow your brain to reconfigure slowly to being able to hear sounds again.

• When you first get your hearing aids and wear them for the first day, start out by wearing them in a quiet room. When you do this, you are less likely to be overwhelmed with hearing particular sounds again for the first time. Wearing your device in a quiet room will allow you to begin retraining your brain by hearing faint sounds at first, even though they may sound unnaturally loud at first until your brain adjusts.

• To help retrain your brain, read aloud to yourself daily to help your brain to recognize words and speech. Depending on how long you’ve dealt with impaired hearing, your brain will need some help to become reacquainted with speech, sounds, and words again. Generally, those with hearing loss tend to shout, but if you read aloud to yourself, you can correct this by determining the correct volume level and adjusting your voice to it.

• While you may be tempted to turn up the volume on your device, refrain from doing so. Many hearing aids adjust the volume level to different sounds automatically, limiting the need for a manual adjustment of the volume. You do not want to turn up the volume level of your hearing aids too loud. They are not meant to hear faint sounds loudly. In fact, by attempting this, you run a risk of damaging your hearing even further.