How hearing aids help when we’re wearing masks

How hearing aids help when we’re wearing masks

Now more than ever it is apparent that living with hearing impairment will lead to a cascade of changes in our daily lives that will impact us emotionally, physically and mentally.   Our sense of space shrinks, warning cues  get missed, we withdraw from social situations , leaving us vulnerable in so many ways.  For some, the current pandemic will be a catalyst to no longer wanting just ‘to get by’ but to hear the best they can, stay engaged, alert, active and above all connected.  Wearing hearing aids will help overcome the new challenges of communicating in face coverings and at distance.

Current hearing aid technology will identify and amplify speech, retraining your brain once again to interpret sounds whilst filtering out others.  Noise reduction technology will help reduce background sounds you don’t need to hear, strengthening your ability to converse with less effort and mental strain.  If needed we will also provide with you with a wireless mic, aiding to boost speech signals at distance and in challenging environment.  For the hearing impaired, hearing aids are no longer a ‘maybe’ they are a ‘necessary’.

Face masks will

  • Prevent lip reading
  • Reduce high frequencies (these hold speech cues that are vital for speech understanding)
  • Remove visual cues
  • Compromise audibility making communication harder especially in background noise

Practical Tips

  • Try to reduce background noise
  • Ask family/friends to speak slowly and clearly
  • Adjust your hearing aid volume or try a different program (if you have one)
  • Reduce risk of losing your hearing aids by thinking about the style of mask you wear, how you put it on and off, where you take it off, you may find this video of use

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