The time has come (in fact the time passed years ago) for me to address problems I am experiencing with my hearing.
As background, I have used handguns, rifles, and shotguns pretty regularly for over 50 years, and with the exception of some shooting done without hearting protection while hunting in my earlier years, I have always been careful to wear good quality hearing protection when engaged in shooting sports.
However, I spent almost 40 years in the mining industry working around off-road mining and haulage equipment and in obnoxiously loud smelters and rod plants. I began my mining career in 1969, and until the mid-70"s when OSHA and MSHA regulations were fully implemented, hearing protection in the work place was simply not part of my life. Prior to working in mining, I had spent four years in the military and spent all that time in fairly loud communications centers full of radio noise and teletype machinery running continuously. I also spent quite a bit of time in my youth riding motorcycles as well as operating chain saws during summers, in addition to hunting and shooting.
When employed in the mining industry and following the implementation of OSHA and MSHA regulations, I was exposed to annual hearing tests and the use of hearing protection beginning at the age of 24 or 25, and by then my hearing was already seriously degraded.
So here I am 50+ years later, finally deciding to take action and address the issue. I suppose I am the poster boy for "better late than never".
My hearing has continued to deteriorate for the past ten years, and the past year or two it has reached the point that when wearing electronic ear protection and competing in pistol matches, the range officer has to hold the electronic timer within an inch or so of my right ear for me to even be able to hear the timer audible start signal. Communicating in a room full of people or when there is virtually any source of background noise such as traffic, music, normal conversation, etc. is virtually impossible.
I have an appointment for a hearing test and complete evaluation by an audiologist on February 2 and am researching hearing loss and the use of hearing aids prior to my visit so I may better prepared to make the evaluation as meaningful and beneficial as possible.
Turning to the vast knowledge base of this forum's members has never failed me in the past when I desired to increase my knowledge base, so I am tapping that wonderful resource once more. Some questions:
- Any important questions I should ask during my visit to the audiologist?
- Any red flags I should be aware of when evaluating treatment options?
- I much prefer simplicity, and am certain I do not need or desire any hearing aids to make my coffee, auto-pay my bills, or monitor my blood pressure. With those facts in mind, are there any particular features in hearing aids that one should migrate towards, or avoid entirely?
- When shooting, what does one do with their hearing aids?
- Simply place hearing protection over them?
- Turn the volume down on the hearing aids and THEN place hearing protection over them?
- Remove the hearing aids and depend on my electronic hearting aids to serve as my "hearing aids" when engaged in shooting activities?
- Any particular brand(s) of hearing aids to avoid or to ask for because they are of known better quality?
I'm certain that if I have chosen the right audiologist, they will be able to answer all of these questions, but I highly value the aptitude, intelligence, and experience of forum members and wanted to see if there are any bits of knowledge you might be willing to share with me prior to my initial visit. ESPECIALLY as that knowledge relates to "shooting for the hearing impaired". Thanks in advance for your advice and support.