“Having hearing aids has totally changed my life”
“I could hear properly for the first time since I was a teenager. It was overwhelming.”
Mike Davies will never forget the first time he used his hearing aids. Mike has struggled with his hearing for most of his life but all that changed when he got in touch with Amplifon. Believing he would have to continue to live with deafness in one ear, he was amazed by what happened when he was fitted for his hearing aids.
“It was incredible,” says Mike. “Everything was there and crystal clear: voices, birdsong, traffic noise – sounds I hadn’t been able to hear since I was in my teens. The memory of it still overwhelms me.
“The first words I spoke after I’d had the hearing aids fitted were ‘you’re not having these back, I’m keeping them’, because it was life changing. Going to Amplifon was probably the best thing I’ve ever done.”
After several operations in his younger years, he was told the hearing had completely gone from his right ear, a situation he had lived with for 25 years before seeking Amplifon’s help.
“I’d struggle when I went to the pub with friends, and always felt like I wasn’t part of the conversation because I kept missing out on jokes,” says Mike.
“My wife, Lin, had to be my ears, even when we were talking she’d have to do two lots of listening to make sure I heard it all correctly.
“My young granddaughter was brilliant. She knew I couldn’t hear well and she’d grab my face and turn my left ear to her mouth when she wanted to tell me something.
“My right ear was completely dead and I had an aid in the other, and that does affect everybody because they all have to make allowances for you.
“It got more frustrating and I didn’t want to accept that I might spend the rest of my life in a world that was becoming increasingly silent. That’s when I decided to go to Amplifon.”
When testing confirmed what he knew about his right ear, Mike’s Audiologist recommended the BiCROS system, where a hearing aid in the left ear relays the sound to a transmitter in the right ear.
“It was the only real chance I had of hearing from my right ear again, so I said let’s go for it.” Since then, the difference has been lifechanging for Mike and his family.
“I was looking at an old wedding video and I could see that I kept touching my hearing aid and trying to adjust it, and I don’t do that anymore,” he says.
For Mike, hearing well again has quickly become second nature: “The day after I had the hearing aids fitted we went out for dinner. The hotel manager came over to talk to us and the couple at the table behind. When he walked away Lin looked at me in shock. ‘You’ve just had a three way conversation’, she said. The effect of the hearing aids was staggering: a couple of days earlier the conversation just wouldn’t have been possible.”
Mike says he can’t believe how long he’d struggled with his hearing, and has found new enjoyment in sitting and relaxing in his garden.
“I’ve always liked sitting out in the garden, but now I can appreciate it more than ever because for the first time in decades I can hear the birds sing and the wind blow through the trees.
“Our water feature was silent, but now it’s just the most beautiful musical accompaniment to my day.
“Seeking help with my hearing really has helped me regain my quality of life, and I’m so grateful. It’s never too late and I’d encourage anyone to go and see Amplifon if they’re concerned about hearing loss.
“If just one person reads this, books an appointment with Amplifon and regains their qua lity of life, it will all have been worthwhile. Go and see them. It’s never too late.”
“For the first time in decades I can hear the birds sing and the wind blowthrough the trees.”