Listening ACCESSability

If you’re reading this blog then you probably already know that personal hearing devices fall into three categories. Here’s a quick recap:

It can be really hard as a hearing person to appreciate what listening through one of these devices is like, and each device gives its own unique experience. A Cochlear Implant (CI) for example is an electronic simulation of hearing, a Bone Anchored System is sound created by vibrations and Hearing Aids amplify the sound to replace missing frequencies.

I recently got to chat with a late deafened bilateral (two sided) CI user who explained to me what listening through a CI sounded like when it was first activated. She described it as a series of beeps and sounds, which over time became natural sounds. This is impossible to accurately simulate because of the way that sound is generated. Last year, I had the opportunity to listen to the sound generated by the sound processor of a CI. To a hearing person, this is a hyper realistic portrayal of the environment around them, with the inclusion of sounds such as fans, background noises and more.

Interpreting Listening through a Cochlear Implant is subjective due to the nature of the technology used. This simulation was taken from https://ais.southampton.ac.uk/cochlear-implant/cochlear-implant-sound-like/

At a conference this week, Tracey and I decided that we wanted to allow people to understand the impact of using a remote microphone or FM/DM system in the classroom for our students with hearing loss. To be able to accurately simulate this we needed a way for those with normal hearing to understand the way in which the hearing device works. Tracey worked some magic and with the use of a Stethoset (a special type of stethoscope for listening to hearing aids) attached over the ear mould of an old set of hearing aids, we were able to allow people to listen to the sound produced by the hearing aid.

This is where, for me, things got interesting. We firstly had a hearing aid which was programmed for someone with a high frequency loss. This resulted in an amplification of all the high frequencies including the sh, k, f, s, th speech sounds, a lot of distorted background noises, chair scraping, and things such as air vents, rustling, tapping, etc… The second hearing aid we had was from someone with an even loss across all frequencies, which led to a far more natural amplification. One which for me was far more pleasant to listen to: things were just louder with the amplification of the additional background noises.

Once everyone had had the opportunity to listen to the hearing aids, we then attached a Roger X receiver which connects the hearing aid to the remote microphone, in our case we had access to a Roger Touchscreen, and a Roger Inspiro. Connecting the remote microphone instantly cuts through the background noise, and reverberation, bringing the voice of the speaker closer, and making it ‘clearer’ for the listener. The remote microphone does not actually improve the clarity of the sound, but the perception is such by having the sound delivered via direct-audio input. The voice isn’t amplified, it’s simply right there at your ear. As someone who struggles with listening in noise myself, it is easy to see how this would be hugely beneficial for anyone who has hearing loss.

Finally, we had some Oticon units for students with Central Auditory Processing Disorder (CAPD), which are used with headphones. Our participants had a great time trying these out as the system allowed them to understand how the FM would potentially sound to someone with typical hearing but without the amplification of the background noise.

So, can we fully understand what it is like to listen through personal listening devices as people with normal hearing? Simply put, in my opinion, no! But, it is possible to open a window to this world with activities such as this and give a whole new appreciation to the auditory fatigue experienced by the d/Deaf and hard of hearing, as well as the challenges faced in listening over noise on a daily basis.

Next time you head out, pop in some ear plugs and see how you function for a few hours. It’s eye opening! Let’s not forget that hearing technology is not like glasses, there is no restoring the hearing back to 20:20.