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At Encore Hearing Care, we want to make you completely comfortable with your new pair of hearing aids – how they work, how you control them, and how they fit. If you think you might benefit from the use of hearing aids, the first step is to take a hearing test with our team. If a hearing loss is detected, we will work carefully with you to find the best devices to treat your needs.
Here are some guidelines to consider before buying a new pair of hearing aids.
Consult with Our Team at Encore Hearing
We’ve got nearly three decades of experience in the business and we are proud to serve our community. We pride ourselves on the attention we give each client. We stay abreast of current technology and can help you with a full range of products designed to provide better hearing. Our team will go through what each model does and find the exact right fit for you.
Bring a Friend
Bringing a friend or loved one with you to your first appointment is helpful. You are going to have lots of questions and you’ll be getting lots of information. Two people can absorb a lot more information than one person. Your friend may even have questions you have not considered, and the two of you can process the information thoroughly by discussing the consultation afterwards.
Consider What You Want from Your Devices
What do you need your hearing aids to do for you in your daily life? You will be wearing your hearing aids every day, so it is important to consider the different activities in which you engage on a daily basis.
Do you want to connect to your TV or smartphone? Do you miss hearing the birds or the sound of children talking? Are there certain places you visit that seem to be more difficult for understanding a conversation? Are you a musician or a music buff and you need something with access to recorded or live sound? Do you attend the theater? Do you use video chat? Do you want to stream phone calls and television sound to your hearing aids? Do you regularly attend conferences or lectures and need to hear in large halls? Are you athletic or spend a lot of time outdoors?
There are hearing aid features and technology designed to address many different listening environments and lifestyles, so narrowing down your specific interests could help determine the best model for you.
Test Your Hearing
When you schedule an appointment with us at Encore Hearing, your hearing will be tested in a sound-proof room. If a hearing loss is detected, our team will determine the level of loss you are experiencing and give recommendations on hearing aids based on data from your audiogram. This is important for determining the right device for you, as the degree and type of hearing loss you experience can help inform the style of hearing aid that would work best for your needs.
Hearing Aid Features
Small directional microphones can help with hearing in noisy places, while built-in telecoils can help with access to sound in public spaces (if venues offer hearing loops). These days, there are many different Bluetooth and wireless options that connect your hearing aids to your smartphones to stream sound directly to your ears. Some hearing aids come with discreet remotes that allow you to make adjustments to your listening experience. Newer models offer rechargeable batteries, which provide up to 24 hours of listening on a single charge!
Familiarizing Yourself with Your Hearing Aids
After you are fitted for hearing aids, our team at Encore Hearing will make sure that you know how to make adjustments to your listening experience. We will also help you understand the full capabilities of your hearing aids. Keep in mind that it takes time to adjust to a new pair of hearing aids, so we will go ever the experience you’ll have in the first few weeks and make sure that you can identify issues if they arise.
Visit Us at Encore Hearing
Millions of Americans are dealing with hearing loss, and studies show they wait three to five years before getting hearing aids. Why wait? Our team at Encore Hearing Care is here to help you get on the path to better hearing. Give us a call today for a hearing test and hearing aid fitting.