Hubby Dearest has been losing auditory acuity for quite some time. He can't hear bird calls; he misunderstands conversation (sometimes to comical effect.)
We have exchanges like this:
Me--"Do you want red or white?"
HD--"No, it's on the left."
I find myself having to repeat information, at increasing volume, three times; this gets old even if you are a patient person. Which I'm not....or so I hear.
Early this summer we assisted HD's mother with the acquisition of new hearing aids through an assistance program (Starkey Foundation, in case you have someone similarly in need.) Reading the literature, I was impressed by some of the technological advances--special features for lovers of music; control of extraneous noise, as in crowds; it's amazing! I talked this up somewhat.....but previous urgings have had no effect.
Last week DH took one of his mother's aids in to the hearing center because she found it 'had stopped working.' It was actually just gunked up and needed cleaning. But while he was there, he made an appointment for an evaluation. Hallelujah! His hobbies involve music--listening, recording, even 'cleaning up' early records and electronically removing the pops, clicks, and dampening effects to achieve a good listening experience much closer to the original live sound. He had already realized that he could not hear many of the higher frequencies....and that is what the audiogram confirmed. He ordered a set of high tech hearing aids with the custom features that he needs (for a price that doesn't bear thinking about; my first new car cost half that amount.)
In case you think Medicare or supplemental policies cover hearing aids, think again. Ditto glasses. Just about everyone will require hearing and vision aids as part of the normal aging process. For these needs, you're on your own.
For a nice added touch, it's sitting on the latest copy of his journal on recorded sound....
