After months (more likely years) of your family and friends urging you to seek help for your fairly obvious hearing loss, you gave in and had your hearing tested. After your hearing test, your audiologist uses this information to determine the best digital hearing aid for your type and degree of hearing loss. Once the hearing aid is ordered you may think the process is over – not even close.
The counseling starts once the decision making and hearing aid selection process is over. The hearing aid fitting appointment involves programming your digital hearing aids and making adjustments to provide the correct levels of amplification for your particular hearing loss. The counseling appointment is a necessary step to ensure you have realistic expectations, and is crucial for long-term success.
Preparing you for the new changes in your lifestyle is an important step in the process. Unlike glasses, your hearing aids are not a cure for hearing loss. They will improve your communication abilities but also have some limitations. During your counseling session you will learn what to expect beforehand; this will help you achieve the maximum benefits from your devices.
Set an Appointment to Fit Your Hearing Aids
Your fitting appointment is next. This visit is necessary to make sure your digital hearing aids are programmed to the optimum settings for your specific hearing needs.
Your audiologist will check the physical fit of the devices to make sure they are comfortable. The hearing aids will then be programmed and adjusted based on your hearing loss and lifestyle needs. The hearing aids will be placed in your ears and turned on, allowing your audiologist to measure the volume levels to ensure that you are hearing the full range of sounds properly.
Hearing Aid Care and Maintenance
Proper care and maintenance will then be discussed. You will learn how to use your hearing aids correctly, make adjustments for different hearing environments, insert and remove them, change the batteries and clean and care for them properly. You will also learn strategies and tips for better communication.
The final step of the fitting process is scheduling the first of many follow-up visits. Your first follow-up visit will be scheduled a few weeks after your initial fitting. During this appointment, your Simi Valley audiologist will fine-tune and adjust your hearing aids as needed and answer any questions you may have. It takes a while to fit your devices to their maximum effectiveness so additional fitting appointments may be needed.