Everyone is familiar with the symptoms of a cold or flu, but did you know that those symptoms can include hearing loss? The hearing loss usually comes as a result of the congestion build up in the sinuses and ears. Like the other symptoms, the hearing loss is usually temporary but can add to the misery of being sick.

When you have a cold or the flu, congestion builds up in the middle ear which makes it hard for the sound waves to travel through the ear. In addition, the eustachian tubes in the back of the throat can become blocked and their function is to help regulate air pressure in the middle ear. Either of these issues can muffle sound and make it difficult to discern speech. Other related ear related symptoms during a cold or flu can include balance problems and/or tinnitus (ringing in the ears).

The resulting conductive hearing loss usually dissipates along with all the other cold and flu symptoms. However on rare occasions, the flu virus can affect the nerves in the ear and cause permanent hearing damage.

If you do experience hearing loss, keep your doctor or audiologist in the loop, especially if the hearing loss isn’t getting better when other symptoms begin to go away.

If you have hearing loss there are always situations where you have difficulty making out what someone is saying. If you want to avoid frustration for both of you, it pays to develop some good communication strategies. Not many people know instinctively how to communicate with someone with a hearing loss; they think they have to shout!

First, if it is an important or lengthy conversation, let the speaker know you have a hearing loss. Don’t think of this as embarrassing; think of it as being helpful…helping you both out as much as possible. Don’t be afraid to own the fact that you have difficulty hearing.

Be sure to look at the speakers face. Some people say they don’t like doing this, because the other person will think they’re staring. But its quite the opposite. If you are watching the person speaking, it shows that you are paying attention. When you look at the person speaking, your brain is using language cues to “fill in the gaps”… Not just lip-reading, but other information from the structure of language – such as word order, the sounds which can go together in English, the meaning or context, and the intonation of the voice. Your brain has an innate knowledge of the rules of language, like a computer, and uses these without you even realising it.

Another tip …when you have to ask someone to repeat something, let them know what you HAVE heard, so that they can repeat the part you missed. For example, if someone says to you “We thought we’d go on a world trip next year”, and all you heard was, “ We thought we’d go” and “next year”, then say instead, “Where are you going next year?”

These are powerful tools you can use to reduce the frustration of faulty communication, and once you practice them, they will become a habit, and an effective way to help with your communication.

Did you know that one in six Australians have some type of hearing loss? And that doesn’t even include those of us whose hearing is just starting to deteriorate (so that we have more trouble than usual in noisy places)

But there are other things we can do to improve our communication with others who may be hard of hearing… and will save you and your loved ones a lot of pain and frustration. The most important change you could make to help effective communication with someone who is hard of hearing, is to make sure you look straight at them and make eye contact, so that they can see your face. If you get into the habit of doing this, it will help.
Once you have made eye contact, here’s some things you can do:

First of all, speak naturally, and don’t shout. If you raise your voice, thinking it will help them hear, it will distort the sound. And your body language will change with the effort of shouting, so that you look angry. Also, don’t rush your speech, just speak naturally and clearly.

If they still have problems, and the listener asks you to repeat, don’t say the same thing twice.Try saying it a different way. For example, if you said “ Let’s go to the 6 o’clock showing of the movie”, and the listener asks you to repeat, say instead: “ The movie is on at 6 o’clock, shall we go to it?” It’s harder to do than you think, but if you practise, always repeating something in a different way, it will soon become a habit.

Another tip… be aware of background noise. If you try to have a conversation from the other end of a table in a noisy restaurant, it will be an exercise in frustration. Gauge your moment and your environment. Wait until the noise stops, or move to a quieter place, or move closer to the listener and make sure they can see your face.

The other important thing to remember is never to try and speak from another room – even someone without hearing loss will struggle to hear you in this situation, so try to restrain that impulse to yell out, and go into the room where your listener is.

If you can make these small changes a habit, people will think you’re a wonderful communicator!

Today we’re going to answer one of the most frequently asked questions about hearing aids.
The number one question is how do I know if I need one?

The first thing to do is to find out whether you have a hearing loss. If you find that you have to work hard to hear somebody, especially in background noise or perhaps your family is commenting or making jokes about you being deaf then it’s time to have your hearing tested.

If you are working hard to communicate with your usual speed and efficiency and it means you have to fill in the gaps of what people are saying which is tiring, this is a good reason to try out hearing aids to see if they can make your life easier.

Another question we get is: “will hearing aids make my hearing normal again?” The answer is no they will not repair the damage to your ears but they will go a long way towards helping you maintain good communication and social interaction, which is important to enjoying a normal lifestyle and to safeguarding against cognitive decline, which intern contributes to brain diseases such as dementia.

Hi I’m Stewart, and today I answer another common question that we get about Hearing Aids. Sometimes people ask: “will hearing aids make my hearing worse?”The answer is no, correctly-programmed hearing aids will not make your own hearing worse. But, because listening and understanding people becomes so much easier with hearing aids…then, when you’re not wearing them, the contrast makes you feel as if your hearing is worse.

Before you got the hearing aids, you were unconsciously working hard to “fill in the gaps” when people were talking. But the Hearing Aids take a lot of that effort away, so when you go without them you suddenly notice how hard it is.So hearing aids don’t make your natural hearing worse, but they do give your brain a holiday when you’re wearing them!

More questions answered next week, at Hearing TV: brought to you by Edgecliff Hearing, and Mac Hearing

Welcome to Hearing TV. I’m Stewart and today I’m answering one of the more common questions we get about hearing aids.

One often asked question is, do I need 2 hearing aids. The answer is, if you have hearing loss in both ears, then yes you do. Think of it like wearing glasses – you wouldn’t wear a monocle in one eye only. The same applies to hearing aids. If you can hear in one ear only because you only have the one hearing aid, then you lose important information needed by the brain to understand speech in noise. When it’s quiet, you might get by with one hearing aid only. But as soon as you’re in a noisy place, you will not be able to understand what someone is saying. This is because the brain uses both ears to make decisions about what is speech, and what is noise.

Another important thing we are able to do only if both ears are working, is to localise sound, or tell where sound is coming from. For example without two ears, you cant tell where someone is calling from, or which side a car is coming from, so it can be a real safety issue if you do not have both ears hearing properly.

So although it is completely up to you whether you buy one aid or two, we would always recommend two if you have hearing loss in both ears.

A question we are often asked is “how long will the hearing aid last?”
These days development of technology is very fast, so new hearing aids are being released all the time,. However, previous hearing aids won’t become obsolete just because there are new ones available. In fact, you can expect the hearing aids to last about 5 to 7 years, or even longer if they are well looked after.

The next question is “how long will it take to get used to hearing aids?”
A modern hearing aid should sound quite natural, so you can start wearing them all day every day if you want to. But because you will hear sounds that you haven’t heard for a long time, especially the high frequency sounds, the hearing aides may seem to sound sharp or hissy. But don’t worry! – the manufacturers recognised that the brain needs time to adjust to the new sounds, so hearing aids have a built-in automated interpretation system which means they adjust themselves slowly to optimal levels without you even noticing.

Everyone’s experience is different so don’t be influenced by what someone else says …just go and try it out for yourself. And remember the most important thing, is to tell your audiologist everything that’s happening with your hearing aid, so that they can be informed enough to make the adjustments that you need for your particular listening environment.

EPISODE 10 FOR HEARING TV

What is a COCHLEAR implant?

Hello and welcome to Hearing TV.  My name is Merren Davies.

In the last episode we discussed Middle Ear hearing implants.

Today we are going to INTRODUCE the COCHLEAR IMPLANT.

The cochlear implant could be described as the ULTIMATE SOLUTION for people who cannot benefit from a conventional hearing aid.

To understand how the COCHLEAR IMPLANT works we need to remind ourselves of how normal hearing works:

Sounds around us reaches our ears by a relay of air molecule vibrations. These vibrations reach our eardrum, which transmit the VIBRATION of sound through to the INNER EAR via the interconnection of the 3 smallest bones in the body, which CONNECT the EARDRUM to the INNER EAR –  the COCHLEA.

The COCHLEA changes the mechanical Vibration into an Electrical signal, which is picked up by our Hearing Nerve and transmitted up to the BRAIN – where the true ‘HEARING” happens.

Most permanent hearing losses are due to a malfunction of the INNER EAR.  The COCHLEAR IMPLANT is designed to replace the function of the INNER EAR.

There are two parts to the COCHLEAR IMPLANT : an EXTERNAL and an INTERNAL part, which is why we often call it a “COCHLEAR IMPLANT SYSTEM” – as each part is needed for the system to work.

The EXTERNALLY worn part of the SYSTEM is called a SPEECH PROCESSOR.  It is the BRAINS of the cochlear implant.  It picks up the sounds of the world and determines what the INTERNAL PART should do.  It sends INSTRUCTIONS AND POWER to the INTERNAL part via
RADIO TRANSMISSION.  The INTERNAL part of the COCHLEAR IMPLANT is fully surgically implanted in the area behind the person’s external ear. And there is an electronic lead which runs from this space to inside the INNER EAR.

This ELECTRONIC LEAD then communicates to the person’s HEARING NERVE ….which transmits the signal up to the BRAIN – where ‘HEARING” happens.

We will discuss the COCHLEAR IMPLANT in more detail in the next episodes of HEARING TV.

So, STAY TUNED to Hearing TV to hear about more about implantable hearing devices.

EPISODE 9 FOR HEARING TV

What is a Middle Ear hearing implant?

Hello and welcome to Hearing TV.  My name is Merren Davies.

In the last episode we discussed bone conduction hearing implants.

Today we are going to look at Middle Ear hearing implants which are another option for people who cannot benefit from a conventional hearing aid.

Like the Bone Conduction Implant, the MIDDLE EAR implant has an internal part that is surgically implanted behind the ear,  and an external part.  The external part powers up and controls the internal implant.  The external device looks like a disk which is worn under the hair.

A Middle Ear implant is a device that is usually considered as the person’s inner ear needs help but something is not allowing them to use a conventional hearing aid.  Unlike the Bone conduction implant, the Middle Ear implant can provide amplification even when the inner ear has a MODERATE hearing loss.  And if there is a blockage in the Middle Ear as well the MIDDLE EAR implant can even help with a combined severe-profound hearing loss.

The MIDDLE EAR implant is designed to make the most of residual hearing and do the work of a conventional hearing aid – but without the need to wear anything in the ear canal or over the ear.

It is important that anyone considering a MIDDLE EAR implant that their rate at which their hearing loss is progressing is well understood as this will help predict the suitability of the device.  If someone has a moderate to profound hearing loss that is steadily getting worse year on year, then it may be better to consider a COCHLEAR IMPLANT.

We will discuss the COCHLEAR IMPLANT in the next episode of HEARING TV.

So, STAY TUNED to Hearing TV to hear about more about implantable hearing devices.

EPISODE 8 FOR HEARING TV

What is a Bone Conduction hearing implant?

Hello and welcome to Hearing TV.  My name is Merren Davies.

In the last episode we discussed how the human ear works.  Today we are going to look at Bone Conduction hearing implants which are an option for people who cannot benefit from a conventional hearing aid.

Some people cannot use a conventional hearing aid as their ear canal, ear drum or the space just beyond the ear drum has repeat infections, …. So much so that the mechanical VIBRATION part of the ear no longer works well.

For some people their history of ear infections is so long and difficult to cure, the use of a conventional hearing aids may PROMOTE ear infections. If this is the case, then they are advised not to use normal hearing aids for medical reasons.

Some people are born without fully formed ear canals and therefore they simply cannot use a conventional hearing aid.

These are some of the MAIN reasons why people choose to obtain a Bone Conduction hearing implant.

For all these reasons there is a problem with the delivery of sound through the mechanical part of the ear, such a s the eardrum and the tiny bones behind the eardrum.

While the electrical part of the ear, the INNER EAR,  is in good working order.

SO HOW DOES THE BONE CONDUCTION HEARING IMPLANT WORK?
It works by picking up sound by an outside sound processor, and the sound is delivered to the INNER EAR by vibration.

So rather than the eardrum and the tiny bones vibrating against the cochlea, the vibration is transmitted by bone conduction directly to the INNER EAR.

In our next episode we will look at MIDDLE EAR HEARING IMPLANTS.

So, STAY TUNED to Hearing TV to hear about implantable hearing devices.