Hunting with Hearing aids

finally gave in to years of nagging from wife and kids etc, and last week got hearing aids...Audiologist said he couldn't believe i had waited so long, Left ear is pretty munted (maybe 40 years of hunting? ) right ear is pretty bad too. Well I've always thought i was reasonably quite and stealth full moving through the bush while hunting. Took my new hearing aids for a bit of a walk up the Kaimais yesterday. Found out what a friggin racket i was really making, I think years of limited hearing has made my bush hunting style become lazy and clumsy. I was quite shocked how much noise i was really making. Its a wonder i manage to get close to anything in the bush, i guess im lucky the odd redskin is curious to eyeball the herd of Elephants it can hear approaching and hangs around long enough for me to get a shot away

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Originally Posted by deer4u

finally gave in to years of nagging from wife and kids etc, and last week got hearing aids...Audiologist said he couldn't believe i had waited so long, Left ear is pretty munted (maybe 40 years of hunting? ) right ear is pretty bad too. Well I've always thought i was reasonably quite and stealth full moving through the bush while hunting. Took my new hearing aids for a bit of a walk up the Kaimais yesterday. Found out what a friggin racket i was really making, I think years of limited hearing has made my bush hunting style become lazy and clumsy. I was quite shocked how much noise i was really making. Its a wonder i manage to get close to anything in the bush, i guess im lucky the odd redskin is curious to eyeball the herd of Elephants it can hear approaching and hangs around long enough for me to get a shot away

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I empathise with your situation. I’m meant to wear two hearing aids, but seldom do as I’m by myself most of the time. Yesterday I was in the bush at Aongatete for the first time in four years. The increased birdsong was most noticeable, due in part to the restorative work done there, but more because I was wearing my ‘ears’.
I firmly believe the aids are more help than hindrance and as due for an ACC update, should enquire as to noise cancelling models. Too often guys are too staunch to admit their hearing is stuffed.

Its true about the bird song, never noticed it before haha

Yeh, birds tweeting, paper rustling and how loud their pissing sounds are the three most common things guys comment on when they get hearing aids :)

As for "noise cancelling" models, there are slow but incremental improvements. If you're told that the latest and greatest models will filter out unwanted noises, I suggest you need to be wary of who you are dealing with. It just plain isn't true. What is true is that your brain is the best filter but it takes practice- wearing your hearing aids occasionally is like practising your French every five years, an exercise in frustration. Bite the bullet, stick at it and you will soon reach a point when background noise doesn't bother you.

Biggest hassle for me with hearing aids is getting them wet. They dont like too much sweat or rain. Have to be weary of that, even with the top tier models. Electronic earmuffs can almost produce the same results.

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Originally Posted by Mathias

Biggest hassle for me with hearing aids is getting them wet. They dont like too much sweat or rain. Have to be weary of that, even with the top tier models. Electronic earmuffs can almost produce the same results.

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I have the same issues water in the ear canal stops them so put them in my pack and lost my last set $10k down the drain.

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the noise cancelling earmuffs really opened my eyes (or should that be ears??) walking along with chainsaw ideling in hand listening to fantails twittering and the instant saw picked up revs even a tiny bit they switch off. took them to work and could hear bosses conversation in next room...surprising sitting in my fert spreader it kept clicking off when driving,makes a fella wonder just how loud the engine noise is and what damage its doing all day every day.
Ive tried wearing them hunting butbeing only mono...I have no sence of direction ,eg can hear noise but dont know where its coming from...must buy an adjustable stereo set and try them. the water issue is whats holding me back from hearing aids... one day will have to bite bullet.

I’ve got a pair that wifi to an apt on my phone. Can take the background noise out in a rowdy room and have a one on one discussion. I have an electric drying box I put them in.
Good electronic ear muff are good for duck shooting, you can hear the wing noise,

A friend has a pair of the WiFi ones he didn't realise at the time, probably wasn't listening and anyway he doesn't have a phone but his mrs does. Her favourite trick is to play with the volume when they're out.

[QUOTE=Ingrid 51;1323643]I empathise with your situation. I’m meant to wear two hearing aids, but seldom do as I’m by myself most of the time. Yesterday I was in the bush at Aongatete for the first time in four years. The increased birdsong was most noticeable, due in part to the restorative work done there, but more because I was wearing my ‘ears’.
I firmly believe the aids are more help than hindrance and as due for an ACC update, should enquire as to noise cancelling models. Too often guys are too staunch to admit their hearing is stuffed.[/QUOTE
Hope you have more luck with ACC than I did for an update. They moved the goal posts after 35 years and stated that only 17% of my hearing loss is accidental, the 83% is hereditary. They wouldn't look at my record going back the 35 years, started again at square 1.

Yep, similar issue with ACC. Previous career in the airforce, not always wearing hearing protection inside the Herc/Andover a/c especially when para jumping then they tell me that it is more likely caused by hunting and not over the threshold for claiming nor one particular event.

yeah same story for me with ACC, my early working life on chainsaw's and in sawmills, where i thinks damage was done, very little if any hearing protection back then. Went through the long drawn out ACC application, got turned down. Waste of time. The ones i just got came from Specsavers, mid range with re-chargable batteries, impressed with the service / fitting etc. Just under 3k all up

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Originally Posted by Marty Henry

A friend has a pair of the WiFi ones he didn't realise at the time, probably wasn't listening and anyway he doesn't have a phone but his mrs does. Her favourite trick is to play with the volume when they're out.

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My wife likes to play with my volume as well:thumbsup:

I was contacted by audiologist who recommended a hearing test update to protect my entitlement to ACC hearing aids. Original claim was accepted as result of repeated (employment related) shooting and mates discharge near my left ear. Guess I’m lucky to have been accepted.

Had zero problems with ACC excepting the claim as employment related during the 1980's plus upgrades every 10 years. Only been in the last few years that ACC has moved the goal posts and treated it as a new claim, not taking the previous records into their assessment procedure.

Used to have 100%ACC cover as industrial deafness from foundry work since my early 20's now the only pay half.

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Have used hearing aids for past 10years, my hearing is slowly deteriorating. Use them hunting, even then I struggle to hear deer in the bush. Hunting with my son really highlights how big the gap in my hearing is. He’ll hear deer move off 30-40 yards away,I’m oblivious. Have tried using electronic ear muffs as well as the hearing aids, and this really helps but can’t wear them this way for long periods.

When we get a cure for tinnitus I’ll be really happy, hearing aids I have have been tuned to take some out, but the ringing is relentless

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Originally Posted by Maca49

When we get a cure for tinnitus I’ll be really happy, hearing aids I have have been tuned to take some out, but the ringing is relentless

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That is my greatest problem also, near impossible to get the hearing test correct with constant "ringing"

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Originally Posted by chainsaw

Have used hearing aids for past 10years, my hearing is slowly deteriorating. Use them hunting, even then I struggle to hear deer in the bush. Hunting with my son really highlights how big the gap in my hearing is. He’ll hear deer move off 30-40 yards away,I’m oblivious. Have tried using electronic ear muffs as well as the hearing aids, and this really helps but can’t wear them this way for long periods.

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Have relied on a dog for my hearing discrepancies for many years. Now back to square one starting a pup again. Try and hunt where hearing isn't the main factor in contacting deer.

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Originally Posted by chainsaw

Have used hearing aids for past 10years, my hearing is slowly deteriorating. Use them hunting, even then I struggle to hear deer in the bush. Hunting with my son really highlights how big the gap in my hearing is. He’ll hear deer move off 30-40 yards away,I’m oblivious. Have tried using electronic ear muffs as well as the hearing aids, and this really helps but can’t wear them this way for long periods.

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Have relied on a dog for my hearing discrepancies for many years. Now back to square one starting a pup again. Try and hunt where hearing isn't the main factor in contacting deer.

A cure for tinnitus ranks with a cure for the common cold. Most current hearing instrument models can deliver a variable amount to white or narrow band noise to provide a degree of distraction from your tinnitus but normally the level of noise needed to fully mask the tinnitus is way too high to let you hear all the important real sound. In practice, hearing real sound better gives many people useful tinnitus relief, ie, amplification alone.

You just have to accept that tinnitus is an associated and expected -symptom- of the primary sensorineural hearing loss, so during a hearing test (audiogram), the results are limited by your actual hearing sensitivity, not the tinnitus. I used to explain to patients in this regard that "you're deaf because you're deaf", not limited by the tinnitus.

I've had hearing aids for couple years now but only wear them at work and at home. Haven't used them out hunting ,i am worried about losing them pushing through thick bush etc and getting them wet from rain or sweat or forgetting were i put them LOL.
And i also wear contact lenses for distance vision but need reading classes to see up close, so it just seems a big hassle with all the shit i carry into the bush.
But after reading these threads i mite try wearing my aids out hunting, in the right conditions they mite help, like quietly sneaking in on that jap stag,or being able to hear animals moving around that i cant otherwise hear. cheers

I think Mick Jagger put it best...." What a drag it is getting old "

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Originally Posted by 6x47

A cure for tinnitus ranks with a cure for the common cold. Most current hearing instrument models can deliver a variable amount to white or narrow band noise to provide a degree of distraction from your tinnitus but normally the level of noise needed to fully mask the tinnitus is way too high to let you hear all the important real sound. In practice, hearing real sound better gives many people useful tinnitus relief, ie, amplification alone.

You just have to accept that tinnitus is an associated and expected -symptom- of the primary sensorineural hearing loss, so during a hearing test (audiogram), the results are limited by your actual hearing sensitivity, not the tinnitus. I used to explain to patients in this regard that "you're deaf because you're deaf", not limited by the tinnitus.

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Had 50 plus years of it. Hearing deteriorated further with time, tinnitus increased.

I too used electronic earmuffs in the bush and thought it a revelation. Now after a set of these Phonak beasties I'm really happy on the stalk and they definitely help with the high-frequency stuff.

I've lived with 50% hearing loss all my life. Sometimes I wonder how I actually shoot a animal..deer especially.....they must be suicidal or sick of life....[emoji16][emoji38]

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Yes hearing aids are great.......until you pull the trigger! I leave mine out while hunting and prefer to wear electric muffs or at least have them at the ready.Must find out if my supplier has noise cancelling aids,but having just shelled out 10k for the current ones! I think the muffs are a more practical answer. I find even working with power tools, grinders and the likes its best to leave the aids out.

Easy fix- grow an Afro. Wind turbulence 100% gone :P