You take care of your hearing aids. Cleaning them every day, you make sure they are safe and comfortable on their charger when you go to bed.
But you get pretty distressed when your hearing aids suddenly stop working the way they did once. Fortunately, there are some steps you can take to diagnose the problem. Just don’t forget: your main job is to avoid damaging your hearing aid further (or you may have to replace them).
Hearing aid troubleshooting
Naturally, when you first got your nice new hearing aids, you made a point of putting the owner’s manual in a safe place. You’ll want to pull it out so you can utilize it for troubleshooting and, potentially, maintenance. Following your owner’s manual is important because every model of hearing aid is different.
Here are some things you can check on most models:
- Check your battery: You’ll still want to check the battery power even if you had your hearing aids on the charger at night. It might be a good plan to check if you might need new batteries or if the old ones are properly inserted, especially if your batteries are replaceable.
- Wax accumulation: Make sure there’s no wax on your hearing aid by giving it a visual check. Wax can accumulate quickly even if you clean your hearing aids frequently so make it a point to double check.
- Look for visible damage: Does your hearing aid have any noticeable loose components or cracks around its shell? Cracks, obviously, could suggest more significant damage (or let in moisture).
- Keep your microphone clear: Check for anything blocking the microphone of your hearing aid. A blocked microphone can create feedback or can cause your hearing aids to sound broken or quiet.
Once again you can find out how to address each of these issues by referring to your owner’s manual. In some cases, you may be able to perform maintenance yourself.
How can I tell when my hearing aid needs repair?
Your hearing aid will probably need to be professionally repaired if you do routine maintenance and it still malfunctions. That might not always sound desirable, after all, you depend on your hearing aid for day-to-day communication (along with dinners with your family, keeping up to date with your favorite Netflix series, and so on).
It’s definitely worth taking note that “repair” doesn’t always mean “mail your hearing aids in for service and wait several weeks”. Sometimes, we can fix it in office and you can take it with you when you go.
Or, depending on the level of the damage, you could have your hearing aids back in a few hours.
There are still some instances where such quick repair is not possible. A backup pair of hearing aids might be required in these cases. So if you’ve got an old pair lying around, ask whether they will serve on a temporary basis. We might even be able to let you borrow a pair while you are waiting.
Don’t wait to get assistance with your hearing aids
It’s essential to have your hearing aid checked and repaired if you begin to notice the sound quality is beginning to fail.
You’ll want to avoid any downtime. Untreated hearing loss can affect your overall health, including your mental health. Moreover, once your hearing aids are forgotten in a box somewhere, it’s all too easy to pretend they’re not there, meanwhile, your hearing gets worse and worse.
The optimum way to keep your hearing working properly is to keep those hearing aids working. Keeping them charged, clean, and when necessary, professionally repaired is the best way to do that.