Somewhere in my 50's I started noticing the tinnitus (self-generated noise in the inner ears) was louder, constant, never going away. Made it hard to sleep. Also drowned out most soft sounds. And the high frequencies were gone -- cymbals were muffled, horns sounded like they were under a blanket. And I could no longer could hear birds or crickets chirping.
By the time I turned 60 I knew I would have to do something because I could no longer understand words in business meetings, and my daughter's lovely voice was disappearing under the barrage of tinnitus.
I tried the low-end "amplifier" type of hearing aid. Yes it made things louder, but the background noise level was unbearable.
So last year I broke down and got real hearing aids. I have Oticon Alta-2 models, very high-end DSP (digital signal processing) types. They provide variable loudness and treble boost, multiple "programs" and best of all they suppress background noise. I can hear conversations in noisy restaurants.
The bad news: $3000 each ear, thankfully my insurance paid half.
The good news: I cannot adequately explain how completely they have changed my life for the better. It's such a difference in ease of conversation, and confidence that I'm not missing important information.
While I totally understand the concerns about cost, my opinion is that it's worth stretching as far as you can to get really good hearing aids. Cheap ones are a waste of money, IMO.
Good luck and God bless.
Our stories are very similar. Thank you for your advice. Precisely what I value in this search.
I may need to check these out while we still have good insurance.
Thanks!