OVER-THE-COUNTER HEARING AIDS

Professional Solutions to Hearing Loss

Over-the-counter hearing aids are not the same as traditional hearing aids. Research has shown that even slight hearing loss can negatively affect your health. Still, many people ignore their hearing loss and avoid getting hearing aids. At Trebil Hearing Center, we often are told that hearing aids are just too expensive.

That's why we try to help our clients afford the right hearing loss treatments for their individual needs. Breakthrough innovations have made hearing aids more affordable than ever! This includes lower-cost devices, such as over-the-counter amplifiers, which are available in many pharmacies.

However, just because you can get a device over the counter doesn't mean you should attempt to treat hearing loss on your own. Treating hearing loss is a science and starts with determining which frequencies you're having trouble hearing. This is why the first step should always be a hearing test.

Contact Trebil Hearing Center for a FREE personalized hearing consultation.

Why Do I Need a Hearing Test?

Over-the-counter hearing aids are not strong enough to treat all types of hearing loss, so, to truly hear clearly again, you need a hearing test to start the process. A professional hearing test will make sure you're purchasing the right device for your specific type of hearing loss and make sure you get the right "fit."

Hearing aids and some over-the-counter devices can be programmed to your specific hearing loss, but if you don't know which frequencies you're having trouble hearing, you can't take advantage of that function.

Volume is Not the Only Variable

Hearing aids are not miniature speakers - they do so much more! Hearing devices should be programmed to specifically address the frequencies you no longer naturally hear.

• If you increase the volume indiscriminately across all frequencies, it'll be painful in the frequencies that you do not have hearing loss. In fact, you can risk harming your hearing even more.
• If it is painful or uncomfortable, you may stop wearing your over-the-counter hearing aids, which is a waste of money and you aren't treating your hearing loss.
• Some consonants and vowels are spoken at different frequencies, so in order to understand speech, you need to hear all frequencies at the same volume. If your device isn't programmed correctly, you won't hear the conversation well.

Therefore, not only should you have a hearing test before you buy a hearing device, but regular hearing tests also help make sure your hearing hasn't changed subtly and they're still working correctly.

Blocking Out Background Noise

Modern hearing aids also have other features you cannot find in over-the-counter devices. For example, they use artificial intelligence to help you block out background noise to focus better on speaking voices. They can also include features to treat tinnitus and sync with your smartphone or TV, and some even have advanced features such as translation or health tracking.