Finding a bargain just feels good, 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 shopping decisions for you, always going after the least expensive products, is all too easy. When it comes to buying a pair of hearing aids, going after a bargain can be a huge mistake.
If you require hearing aids to manage hearing loss, choosing the “cheapest” option can have health consequences. Preventing the development of health issues such as depression, dementia, and the danger of a fall is the whole point of using hearing aids in the first place. Choosing the correct hearing aid to suit your hearing needs, lifestyle, and budget is the key.
Picking affordable hearing aids – some tips
Affordable is not equivalent cheap. Keep an eye on affordability and functionality. This will help you stay within your budget while allowing you to get the ideal hearing aids for your personal requirements and budget. These tips will help.
Tip #1: Do your homework: Affordable hearing aids exist
Hearing aid’s reputation for being very pricey is not always reflected in the reality of the situation. The majority of manufacturers sell hearing aids in a number of price points and work with financing companies to make their devices more budget friendly. If you’ve started searching the bargain bin for hearing aids because you’ve already resolved that really good effective models are too expensive, it could have serious health consequences.
Tip #2: Find out what your insurance will cover
Insurance might cover some or all of the expenses associated with getting a hearing aid. Some states, in fact, have laws requiring insurance companies to cover hearing aids for children or adults. It never hurts to ask. There are government programs that often provide hearing aids for veterans.
Tip #3: Your hearing loss is unique – find hearing aids that can tune to your hearing needs
Hearing aids are, in some aspects, a lot like prescription glasses. Depending on your sense of style, the frame comes in a few choices, but the exact prescription differs significantly from person to person. Similarly, hearing aids might look alike cosmetically, but each hearing aid is calibrated to the individual user’s hearing loss needs.
You won’t get the same benefits by grabbing some cheap hearing device from the clearance shelf (or, in many cases, results that are even remotely helpful). These are more like amplifiers that increase the volume of all frequencies, not only the ones you’re having problems hearing. What’s the importance of this? Hearing loss is usually irregular, you can hear some 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 actually solve the problem and you’ll end up not using the cheaper device.
Tip #4: Different hearing aids have different capabilities
There’s a tendency 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 with this idea is that if you wish to hear sounds clearly (sounds such as, you know, bells and whistles), you likely need some of that technology. The sophisticated technology in hearing aids can be tuned in to the user’s level of hearing loss. Background noise can be blocked out with many of these modern designs and some can communicate with each other. In addition, thinking about where (and why) you’ll be using your aids will help you choose a model that fits your lifestyle.
That technology is essential 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 up our last tip.
Tip #5: A hearing amplification device is not a hearing aid
Okay, say this with me: A hearing aid is not the same thing as an amplification device. This is the number one takeaway from this article. Because the providers of amplification devices have a financial interest in convincing the consumer that their devices work like hearing aids. But that simply isn’t true.
Let’s break it down. A hearing amplification device:
- Takes all sounds and makes them louder.
- Is often cheaply built.
- Gives the user the ability to adjust the basic volume but that’s about it.
A hearing aid, on the other hand:
- Has long-lasting batteries.
- Has the ability to adjust settings when you change locations.
- Will help you safeguard the health of your hearing.
- Is adjusted specifically to your hearing loss symptoms by a highly qualified hearing professional.
- Can be programed to recognize specific sound profiles, like the human voice, and amplify them.
- Boosts the frequencies that you have a tough time hearing and leaves the frequencies you can hear alone.
- Can limit background noise.
- Can be molded specifically to your ears for maximum comfort.
Your ability to hear is too important to go cheap
No matter what your budget is, that budget will restrict your options depending on your general price range.
This is why an affordable option tends to be the focus. The long-term benefits of hearing aids and hearing loss management are well documented. This is why an affordable solution is what your focus should be. Just remember that your hearing deserves better than “cheap.”