I can hear my music again
IKE many people with hearing loss, Steve Javan faced a unique combination of hearing issues and he needed an equally unique hearing system to solve them – but unfortunately the NHS couldn’t deliver when he consulted them for help eight years ago.
He recalls: “The NHS did the best they could, but they only give you what they’re allowed to give you pricewise.”
And for Steve, that was a pair of hearing aids which proved ineffective, particularly in his weaker left ear: “I had the volume up so loudly the hearing aids were screeching.”
Eventually he booked a free hearing test at Amplifon.
An Amplifon hearing test takes an hour and 20 minutes and includes a comprehensive health history, thorough examination of the ears and a series of tests which not only map the sounds and frequencies you can hear, but also mimic real-life scenarios to identify the impact any hearing loss is having on everyday life.
Steve says: “My audiologist identified the problems I had without me having to tell him. Of the hearing aids I’d had in the past, he said one of them had been doing nothing because I had hardly any hearing in that ear. That’s when he explained I could use a cross-over system.”
This ingenious technology uses two aids which work in different ways. The hearing aid in Steve’s right ear transmits sound to the aid in his left ear, which acts as a speaker.
Neater and less conspicuous than his NHS aids, music fan Steve says: “There was a huge difference straight away. It was superb.
“I can pick up the sounds a lot more… I can also wear headphones now, which I couldn’t before.”
Steve took up Amplifon’s offer to trial his aids for a month before buying.
And when he needed a few tweaks in the first few weeks of use, while staying in the US, a local Amplifon branch there was able to make all the adjustments he needed.
He adds: “The NHS can only do so much and Amplifon provide a fantastic service, so to me it’s worth the extra money. I would say to people, ‘Don’t be afraid to go, because it has changed my life’.”