Saving money just feels great, right? It can be invigorating when you’ve found a great deal on something, and the larger discount, the more satisfied you are. So letting your coupon make your buying choices for you, always looking for the least expensive items, is all too easy. When it comes to investing in a pair of hearing aids, going after a bargain can be a big oversight.
If you require hearing aids to manage hearing loss, going for the “cheapest” option can have health repercussions. Avoiding the development of health issues including depression, dementia, and the danger of a fall is the entire point of using hearing aids in the first place. Choosing the correct hearing aid to fit your hearing needs, lifestyle, and budget is the key.
Picking affordable hearing aids – some tips
Cheap and affordable aren’t necessarily the same thing. Keep an eye on affordability as well as functionality. That will help you find the most ideal hearing aid possible for your individual budget. These tips will help.
Tip #1: You can get affordable hearing aids.
Hearing aids have a reputation for putting a dent in your wallet, a reputation, however, is not necessarily represented by reality. Most hearing aid manufacturers will partner up with financing companies to make the device more budget friendly and also have hearing aids in a number of prices. If you’ve started exploring the bargain bin for hearing aids because you’ve already decided that really good effective models are too expensive, it could have serious health consequences.
Tip #2: Ask what’s covered
Insurance might cover some or all of the expenses related to getting a hearing aid. Some states, in fact, have laws requiring insurance companies to cover hearing aids for children or adults. Asking never hurts. If you’re a veteran, you might be eligible for hearing aids through government programs.
Tip #3: Find hearing aids that can be tuned to your hearing loss
Hearing aids are, in some ways, a lot like prescription glasses. Depending on your sense of fashion, the frame comes in a few choices, but the exact prescription differs significantly from person to person. Hearing aids, too, have distinct settings, which we can tune for you, tailored to your exact needs.
You’re not going to get the same benefits by grabbing some cheap hearing device from the clearance shelf (or, in many cases, results that are even remotely useful). These amplification devices increase all frequencies rather than boosting only the frequencies you’re having trouble with. Why is this so important? Hearing loss is often irregular, you can hear certain frequencies and voices, but not others. If you raise all frequencies, the ones you have no trouble hearing will be too loud. In other words, it doesn’t really solve the problem and you’ll wind up not using the cheaper device.
Tip #4: Not all hearing aids have the same features
There’s a temptation to look at all of the amazing technology in modern hearing aids and think that it’s all extra, simply bells and whistles. The problem is that if you wish to hear sounds properly (sounds such as, you know, bells and whistles), you likely need some of that technology. The sophisticated technology in hearing aids can be dialed in to the user’s level of hearing loss. Many modern designs have artificial intelligence that helps filter out background noise or communicate with each other to help you hear better. Also, selecting a model that fits your lifestyle will be simpler if you consider where (and why) you’ll be using your hearing aids.
That technology is crucial to compensate for your hearing loss in a healthy way. Hearing aids are a lot more sophisticated than a basic, tiny speaker that boosts the volume of everything. Which brings us to our last tip.
Tip #5: An amplification device isn’t the same thing as a hearing aid
Alright, say this with me: a hearing amplification device is not a hearing aid. This is the most important takeaway from this article. Because the providers of amplification devices have a financial interest in persuading the consumer that their devices work like hearing aids. But that’s dishonest marketing.
Let’s break it down. An amplifier:
- Turns up the volume on all sounds.
- Provides the user with little more than basic volume controls (if that).
- Is typically cheaply made.
A hearing aid, conversely:
- Will help safeguard your hearing health.
- Has the capability to change settings when you change locations.
- Is adjusted specifically to your hearing loss symptoms by a highly skilled hearing professional.
- Is calibrated to amplify only the frequencies you have difficulty hearing.
- Has batteries that are long lasting.
- Can identify and amplify specific sound categories (like the human voice).
- Can regulate background noise.
- Can achieve maximum comfort by being molded to your ear.
Your ability to hear is too important to go cheap
Regardless of what your budget is, that budget will determine your options depending on your general price range.
This is why an affordable solution tends to be the emphasis. When it comes to hearing loss, the long term benefits of hearing loss management and hearing aids is well documented. That’s why you need to concentrate on an affordable solution. Don’t forget, cheap is less than your hearing deserves.”