There’s going to be another division of the spare parts dept in our household opening soon.
The trial period is over and the verdict is – I’ll take one (or even two) !!
As I said I have had one on trial for the past week and discovered my neighbours to the left of us have a couple of budgies and more birds spend time in our trees and bushes than I realised. It’s amazing what a difference a little thing stuck behind your ear can make 🙂
Yes, after having the eyes renewed a couple of years ago it’s now time to bring the ears in line. No need to shout, it’s the pesky high sounds that I’m losing – a nice lady at Australian Hearing called it High Frequency Hearing Loss. She’s been monitoring this very slow decline in both ears for a few years now and suggested a trial run of a loan tailored to my requirements so I could actually see hear the difference.
So come the New Year (because I can get a better health benefit payout) I shall be the proud new owner of two tiny little things that will mean I make less mistakes in thinking I heard something when it was actually something else that was said 🙂
How I get on with this remains to be seen because mentioning it to friends has brought forth lots of horror stories about things whistling in the dark (as well as in the ear), hearing being worse than before and ‘Uncle Joe” still not being able to hear at the pub so I’m taking them all with a grain of salt.
Over the past few years my sisters have both had new hips – several friends acquired new knees – many friends have had new stes of teeth – yet nobody has admitted to having new ears. What is about deafness (no matter have slight) that we are loathe to admit to?
How will I cope with these new appliances? I don’t know. We shall see what happens when the time comes. 🙂
How do you view ageing and the decline of body parts?
Everything old is new again – a trip to the spare parts dept!
Does it bother you or are you glad there are ‘things’ out there to lessen the burden
What thoughts are roaming round your head this Monday?
Still Waters 
Mother had ‘new ears’ when in her nineties: the first lot were whistlers, but she changed them for something a bit more high tech which work well – except when she forgets where she has put them – so take heart!
LikeLike
Lol ‘new ears’.
knowing my propensity for putting things down any ol’ where I’ll have to be careful about using the case them come in. Then of course it’ll be a case of where did I leave that. After the cataract op it was a relief to not have to worry where I left the eyes – now I’m going to worry about the ears. I can see The Golfer on the way out the door having great fun – check, phone, keys, ears!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hubby has extra ears. I can tell when he isn’t wearing them. And it’s not because I can see them. Yes. He says if there are lots of people all talking at the same time it won’t work.
But then again who can hear all the different conversations anyway.
But ultimately it will be better for you. If it is too difficult in those situations. Do as he does and just don’t wear them then
LikeLike
Thanks for your confidence in me Angela. I know it’ll be a case of try them out in all situations and don’t write them off after one go
LikeLike
I have knee trouble but for now, an injection prevented re-alignment of the leg. It’s all good for now. Who knows what the future holds. My hope is to be able to adapt with the changes. Not always easy though!
Good luck with the new hearing aids. The New Year isn’t far away now.
LikeLike
Thanks Marie – I didn’t want to leave it too long as I wanted to be ‘sound enough in mind’ to accept the technology. it’ll be a good way to start the New Year. ‘ I can hear clearly now’
LikeLike
Wise choice to act on this instead of ignoring it. One thing I’ve learned around people with poor hearing is that hearing and listening are not the same thing! If you have used different techniques to adapt, such as lip-reading, guessing, getting people to deliberately catch your attention before they speak, or asking people to repeat themselves, you may have to work to change those behaviours, even when you can hear better!
My main thing with ageing so far is tiredness and an inability to deal with “late-night” activities. A movie that starts at 9 pm? Forget it 🙂
LikeLike
My goodness Dar most of what you said is just what my ‘consultant’ mentioned so I may have a little adjustment in behaviour to make once I start wearing them
Oh I’m so with you on the late night wearies. It’s the day after wearies that get me as well 🙂
LikeLike
I am grateful for the advances in technology. And a tad sad that I need them. Inconsistent? Well yes.
LikeLike
Bit like senior/ pensioner discounts isn’t it EC. Great to have but hard to admit we qualify for them 🙂
LikeLike
I didn’t do well in the spare parts department. Some days I wish I had the old parts to muddle through old age with …
LikeLike
I know I wouldn’t mind having my old shape back – that worked quite well. I keep looking for it but it’s hidden itself under a layer of fat lol
LikeLike
My husband should wear his hearing aids but won’t because basically his brain can’t filter background noise anymore. Consequently we have some ridiculous conversations because he doesn’t hear and just guesses,or he will agree with something when he disagrees but didn’t hear. Frankly it’s a problem . He talks quietly because he says everyone else is so then he gets ignored in groups because no one realizes he spoke.I honestly don’t know how to help. Good luck and I gather that if you persevere then you can learn to filter out background noise.
LikeLike
Oh I hear you on the weird and wonderful conversations lol. It does sound like a problem for your husband though, is he able to go back and have them adjusted again?
LikeLike
Ah but all these spare parts make all the difference. Older age is easier than once it was!
LikeLike
Certainly is Freda. On the few occassions I saw my granny in Belfast she was always complaining about one ailment or the other. My dad said there was no way she would have even entertain the idea of a hearing aid.
LikeLike
I’m with ‘an exacting life’ regarding late nights. They really knock me around. It’s great that there are these spare parts now, but I think they all take getting used to.
LikeLike
I’ve never been one for bouncing back after late nights. Worse still if there is a little bit of alcohol involved as well lol
I’m wondering if peoples acceptance of the new technology depends a lot on the advice and counselling received. Yes, healing of the body when parts are replaced can be a factor but I’ve had friends complain about ‘not being told’ certain things might happen
LikeLike
Angela’s comment worries me. I was thinking of hearing aids because I have trouble following conversations when lots of people are talking at once, and she says that her hubby still can’t hear in that situation 😦
They’ll be handy at home though, I won’t have to turn up the TV so loud the people two blocks over can hear it.
LikeLike
I’m sure if you check with Hearing Australia they will help with testing and advising which level would be best for you River
LikeLike
I have more friends who need hearing aids than have them However you need to go to Just Ask Judy and see that our friend Kenju (Judy) has just acquired new hearing aids and the two of you can commiserate:-) My oldest sibling has a set but they don’t seem to do much good.
LikeLike
Lol at more friends who need them than actually have them 🙂
Annie I will pop over to Judy’s and say Hello when I have a minute.
LikeLike
I think the new ones are supposed to be pretty good.
LikeLike
Hope so – better be – even with the government subsidy they are a lot more expensive than they were 🙂
LikeLike
A friend of mine who had relied on lip reading, and hearing aids for more than 30 years (she went deaf in her20s) got a coccliea (sp) implant – steep learning curve on all kinds of things…including hearing the car engine noises and worried something wrong with the car.
but the best hearing story – was the time, it was all too much and she took a seat in the Mall to wait for her daughter. When the daughter came back from supermarket she asked her “what is that whiswing noise? I’m hearing it regularly?”
they sat together and suddenly my friend said “that noise!” – turned out it was people pushing their supermarket carts across the floor. (noises we don’t really hear).
when she was out with me, an exercise she was told to do – go to another place you don’t regularly visit “this time it was her doing something…” that something turned out to be her putting her teaspoon on the saucer after stirring her tea!
LikeLike
My dad was born in 1906 and his hearing was bad most of his life. He wouldn’t admit it to anyone outside the family but as he grew older and it got worse, I saw this articulate, well educated man lose his confidence when he was out and about in social situations. It also changed how others viewed him, because he would pretend to hear them, but say something back that made no sense whatsoever. They must have thought him to be going a little bit senile. When I saw what an effect this was having on him, I took him in for hearing aids and I’ll never forget the smile when I took him back for his fitting and he heard me speak to him for the first time without having to yell! Why is it that we will admit to other ailments but not hearing loss? My sister inherited his condition later in life, but got ‘new ears’ as soon as she figured it out. She would be lost without them! Hope yours work just as well!
LikeLike