For the cost of hearing aids, are they really worth it. People who have hearing loss are normally worried about the price. You wouldn’t choose homelessness over investing in a new house. Cost is not the only value consideration with regards to getting hearing aids.
When shopping for a big-ticket item like this you really have to ask yourself, “what do I get out of using hearing aids, and what’s the consequence of not using them?” As it turns out, there is a monetary cost for deciding not to buy hearing aids. Your decisions should also factor in these costs. Bear in mind a few good reasons why getting hearing aids will save you money in the long run.
If You Choose to Buy Cheaper Hearing Aids, You Will End up Spending More
You will most likely find, when you’re shopping for hearing aids, that there are cheaper hearing aids that will seem to save you money. You could even buy a hearing aid from the internet costing less than a dinner.
When it comes to over the counter hearing aids, you get what you pay for. When you purchase these devices, you’re actually purchasing an amplification device like earbuds, not an actual hearing aid. They just amplify all of the sound around you, including unwanted noise.
A high quality hearing aid is custom programable which isn’t a feature that cheaper devices offer. If your hearing aids can be programmed to manage your particular hearing needs, you will have a much higher quality experience.
Store bought hearing devices also use cheap batteries. Spending large amounts of extra cash on batteries will get expensive. You could wind up switching out batteries a couple of times each day if you decide on a cheap amplification device. The battery is likely to die when you most need it, also, so prepare to bring lots of extras around with you wherever you go. Do you really save money if you have to replace worn out batteries every day?
Higher quality hearing aids last a lot longer because they have more efficient electronics. Many models don’t even need to have their batteries replaced at all because they are rechargeable.
Career Issues
It’s possible that you will earn less if you choose not to use hearing aids or to wear cheap ones. A 2013 study published in The Hearing Journal states that less money is made by adults with hearing loss – up to 25 percent less, and are more likely to be jobless.
Why? There are lots of factors involved, but communication is important in just about every trade and that’s the major factor. You need to be able to hear what your manager says so that you can deliver good results. And in order to assist customers or clients, you need good listening skills. You’ll most likely end up missing out on the whole content of the discussion if you are always trying to hear what people are saying. To put it simply, if you cannot participate in conversations, it’s really hard to excel at work.
The ordeal of trying to hear on the job will cause stress to you physically, as well. Even if you are able to get through a day with compromise hearing, the anxiousness that comes with worrying about whether you heard something right and the energy required to make out as much as possible, will make you exhausted and stressed out. Here are some consequences of stress:
- Your relationships
- The quality of your sleep
- Your immune system
- Your quality of life
All of these have the chance of affecting your work efficiency and decreasing your income as a consequence.
More Trips to The Emergency Room
There are safety problems that come with loss of hearing. It will be dangerous for you to drive a vehicle or cross the street if you don’t use quality hearing aids. How can you stay clear of something if you’re not able to hear it? How about emergency warning systems like a twister alert or smoke alarm?
For jobs including a manufacturing facility or a construction site, you have to be able to hear in order for you and your coworkers to be safe. So your safety, and your career options, will be limited if you don’t wear the quality hearing aids you need.
You also should take into consideration financial safety. Did you pay the waitress too much for dinner because you couldn’t hear her? Do you really need all those new tv features that you failed to hear the salesperson discussing with you? Perhaps the lower priced style would be all you would require, but it is hard to know if you can’t hear the person talk about the difference.
The Health of Your Brain
The increased chance of dementia is one of the most critical problems with hearing loss. The New England Journal of Medicine reports that each year people spend as much as 56,000 dollars treating Alzheimers disease.Dementia accounts for 11 billion dollars in Medicare expense annually.
The chance of getting dementia and Alzheimer’s disease is a risk factor linked to hearing loss. It is calculated that someone with serious, neglected hearing loss increases their chance of brain impairment by five fold. The risk of getting dementia goes up by three times with modest hearing loss and doubles with even mild hearing loss. Hearing aids decrease these dangers.
There is little doubt that a hearing aid will cost you a bit. If you look at all the concerns that come with not getting one or buying a cheaper device, it’s unquestionably a sound financial decision. Make an appointment with your hearing care specialist right away.