Adapting to Your
Hearing Instrument

Discovering you have a hearing loss and adjusting to hearing instruments can be overwhelming. Most people do not simply lose their hearing overnight. Rather, their hearing loss gradually develops over several years. In the meantime, you forget what sounds are like. The same is true for learning to hear with a hearing aid. Simply placing the aids in your ears will not instantly eliminate the hearing loss. It takes commitment, determination and patience to successfully adjust to hearing aids.

Don't get discouraged. For people with long-term hearing loss, sounds heard through a hearing aid may be unusual since they haven't been able to hear them in a while. Becoming accustomed to the new sounds takes time.

Talk to your hearing healthcare professional. If something doesn't sound right, or listening is not comfortable, let your hearing healthcare professional know about your concerns and ask to have your instrument adjusted.

Be persistent. Wear your hearing aids as much as possible. Take a break when you need to, but put the aids back in your ears as soon as you are ready. Try to increase the amount of time you wear your hearing aids each day.

Be realistic. Don't expect to hear every sound clearly from the moment you put your hearing aids on as it takes time to learn to hear again.