I wonder if your father would learn to lip-read. Lipreading.org has online lessons with videos that look quite enjoyable. It suggests that you learn too, so that you understand how to make yourself ‘readable’. PS I just realised that this post is quite old. If OP still wants answers, a new post from her would be a good idea.
I would first check out the hearing aids. If digital they may need adjusting. Your Moms hearing could have worsened and the aids need to be adjusted for the new level. Digital only are set for a certain range.
My DH found that the digital are not good for him. He does much better with analog. Since analog is no longer available, his provider helped find him a digital close to analog. He does better but remember, a hearing aid can only do so much. As hearing loss continues, the person will eventually be deaf. Hearing aids can't help then. My husband without his aid hears nothing, with it maybe 20 to 30%. After a point a hearing aid can only amplify so much.
Mom should see the provider once a year to have aid cleared of wax. If over the year tubing may need changing and the mold. If the mold doesn't fit well the aid is effected. Molds do shrink and harden. Last, she could have hardened wax in her ear. This will effect hearing. Don't allow her to use Qtips. They should not be used inside the ear. They push wax in.
Cochlear Implants only work if the hairs in the Cochlear are damaged. I have a friend who went thru the procedure and it hasn't helped her. Her friend it did. At this point, I would not put a 95 year old thru this operation.
Even with mom’s audiologist adjusting her hearing aids she still couldn’t hear. Ears wear out for someone in their 90’s. My mom started loosing her hearing years before though.
The same with my uncle who died at 96. His audiologist told him that he wouldn’t benefit from hearing aids. He wouldn’t allow him to waste his money on them.
PocketSound Personal Sound Amplifier - uses corded earplugs and available from Amazon for less than $30. A lot of seniors prefer them to hearing aids because they are larger and easier for them to turn on and off or put in ears. Harder to lose too.
I had this issue with my mom and it was totally exhausting and frustrating.
She saw a very good audiologist, spent thousands and wouldn’t wear them or only when she felt like it and would still say she couldn’t hear well. I noticed that she often read lips. If I walked away while speaking she couldn’t hear me. If I faced her and spoke slowly she could read my lips.
The audiologist also has personal who cleans wax from ears and my mother had very bad wax build up. Her hearing aids had to be cleaned weekly due to the wax buildup. If there is wax buildup then they will not be able to hear out of the hearing aid no matter how much they cost.
She wore headphones for her soap opera because I would get a headache from the blaring television. She heard better with the headphones than the hearing aids.
It isn’t just the volume that is the problem, it’s also not being able to hear certain tones. So regardless of how loud it is the person is completely deaf to those tones.
I even thought about buying a battery operated hand held microphone to speak to my mother. I looked at them on Amazon. They weren’t horribly expensive.
I've been doing a little online searching and I wonder if an inexpensive karaoke microphone might work for you, you can get kiddie ones for around $30.
Isn’t it exhausting to continually repeat yourself and raise your voice trying to talk to someone who is deaf? My mother refuses to wear her hearing aids, and I have refused to repeat myself OR shout anymore. I was getting mean looks in public and anger was taking over me....so I decided that she takes the consequences of her vanity. Your situation sounds different so I have to think something may be wrong with his aids (settings, etc) or possibly something else..needs another evaluation. Good luck...and thank your lucky stars he will wear them...
Have you looked into a Cochlear Implant for him, would alleviate a lot of issues. My step father has one. His supplementary insurance paid for it. As for you I have no clue.
My first reaction is a question is about the hearing aids, are they prescription HAs from an audiologist or are they one of the ones you can shop for on line? If they are high end devices have you taken them in to check whether they are working properly? Have you checked the HAs and his ears for wax build up? What kind of advice are you getting from the audiologist?
PS I just realised that this post is quite old. If OP still wants answers, a new post from her would be a good idea.
My DH found that the digital are not good for him. He does much better with analog. Since analog is no longer available, his provider helped find him a digital close to analog. He does better but remember, a hearing aid can only do so much. As hearing loss continues, the person will eventually be deaf. Hearing aids can't help then. My husband without his aid hears nothing, with it maybe 20 to 30%. After a point a hearing aid can only amplify so much.
Mom should see the provider once a year to have aid cleared of wax. If over the year tubing may need changing and the mold. If the mold doesn't fit well the aid is effected. Molds do shrink and harden. Last, she could have hardened wax in her ear. This will effect hearing. Don't allow her to use Qtips. They should not be used inside the ear. They push wax in.
Cochlear Implants only work if the hairs in the Cochlear are damaged. I have a friend who went thru the procedure and it hasn't helped her. Her friend it did. At this point, I would not put a 95 year old thru this operation.
The same with my uncle who died at 96. His audiologist told him that he wouldn’t benefit from hearing aids. He wouldn’t allow him to waste his money on them.
She saw a very good audiologist, spent thousands and wouldn’t wear them or only when she felt like it and would still say she couldn’t hear well. I noticed that she often read lips. If I walked away while speaking she couldn’t hear me. If I faced her and spoke slowly she could read my lips.
The audiologist also has personal who cleans wax from ears and my mother had very bad wax build up. Her hearing aids had to be cleaned weekly due to the wax buildup. If there is wax buildup then they will not be able to hear out of the hearing aid no matter how much they cost.
She wore headphones for her soap opera because I would get a headache from the blaring television. She heard better with the headphones than the hearing aids.
It isn’t just the volume that is the problem, it’s also not being able to hear certain tones. So regardless of how loud it is the person is completely deaf to those tones.
I even thought about buying a battery operated hand held microphone to speak to my mother. I looked at them on Amazon. They weren’t horribly expensive.
If they are high end devices have you taken them in to check whether they are working properly? Have you checked the HAs and his ears for wax build up? What kind of advice are you getting from the audiologist?