Part of connecting with a client and understanding their hearing is being able to put yourself in their shoes. As a licensed Hearing Instrument Specialist and hearing aid wearer for nearly 29 years now, I can appreciate the challenges of wearing new hearing aids for the first time from both points of view. I feel as this gives me unique insight to be able to really connect with our clients as I’ve experienced the same things they are experiencing—often more than just once.

I remember one client specifically that I’ll refer to as Mrs. Smith*. She had never worn hearing aids before and wasn’t really sure about purchasing them at first. Her family was pushing her to get hearing aids but she was very anxious and a bit overwhelmed. I contacted her for her Welcome Call, which is part of our process to help new customers get acclimated to their hearing aids and set them up for success.  At that point, she had only had her Eargos for a few days and she was concerned that things just didn’t sound “normal” and that her own voice was “way too loud”. 

My training, paired with my own experiences, told me that what Mrs. Smith was going through is called adaptation—and that it was perfectly normal. Adaptation is the process by which your brain learns to adapt to hearing sounds again that you may not have been hearing for a while. During this period, sounds may seem overexaggerated or louder than you would expect. Over time, your brain relearns which sounds are important and which sounds can be ignored, or not emphasized. There is no one-size-fits-all timeline in which this occurs though, it’s different for everybody. We discussed this and reset expectations for her hearing, but the thing that set her most at ease was knowing that she wasn’t alone in her experience. I was able to share experiences from both my clinical and user points of view to assure her that everybody goes through the same thing at first. In fact, I‘ve experienced adaptation with each new pair of hearing aids that I’ve worn in my life. I encouraged her to take it slowly and not expect too much too fast. By the end of our call, she was much more relaxed and knew what to expect going forward. We set a check-in call for the following week and off she went. 

Fast-forward one week, and the first thing Mrs. Smith said to me was “You were right!” She chuckled and proceeded to tell me that she had been wearing her Eargos all day, everyday. She was much more comfortable with what she was hearing, and she didn’t notice her own voice as much as she did just a week ago. She went on to tell me that she could also now hear the birds outside at her bird feeder—and how wonderful they sounded! 

While this client’s case is a great example of the value of our Welcome Calls to set proper expectations, it’s just the beginning of our relationship with Mrs. Smith. Our team of licensed hearing professionals are here to support our clients for as long as they own their Eargos. 

So, if you’re an existing customer and have questions about your Eargos, something has changed with your hearing, or you’re experiencing something you’d like to discuss, don’t hesitate to reach out to us! 

And if you’re considering Eargos but aren’t sure about what type of support you’ll get, know that we’ll be with you from the get-go to ensure that you hear life to the fullest.  

Having been on this journey myself since the age of 5, I find it extremely gratifying to help others through their personal hearing journey.

Watch some additional adaptation tips for new Eargo users:

*Our client’s name was changed to Mrs. Smith to protect her privacy.