Buzz buster

By STACEY ASHCRAFT, DMG Writer
HANCOCK — Imagine the ability to hear clearly with the help of a hearing aid that is so discreet, many people cannot see it.

Superior Hearing Aid Center in Hancock now prescribes a new, innovative hearing aid, geared to reduce noise and amplify voices, Tammy LaBeske, hearing aid specialist, said.

“Hearing aids now are small and are not visible,” she said.

The new hearing aids eliminated an annoying whistle and buzz that could be heard when the individual used telephones and are designed to cut out background noise.

“It’s really great if you’re at a restaurant and you want to talk to the people at your table and not hear the people talking behind you,” LaBeske said.

Another new service offered by Superior Hearing is the quick and easy financing system where the individual can get testing done and be placed on a payment system.

“I could put you on small payments and you can go,” she said.

The new hearing aid, called Rhapsody, is based around a technology that has been around for a while, she said, it’s only been perfected.

The new hearing aids are smaller and fit comfortably into the ear canal. The hearing aids also feature new vents that “allow the ear to breathe.”

“Nobody would know it’s there,” she said. “It just looks like a shadow in your ear.”

The nice thing about the new hearing devices is the fact that they can now be plugged into her computer and the hearing aid can then be adjusted.

“Now we just plug them into the computer, change the prescription, and you’re good to go,” she said. “With the older hearing aids, you would have to change the hearing when you changed prescriptions.”

The hearing aid can now be fine-tuned and tweaked with the help of the computer.

Superior Hearing also sells hearing protection ear plugs. The establishment sells plugs designed to protect the ear while swimming. The innovative plug is custom made to fit the ear and can come in several colors and designs.

“We also sell hearing protection for hunters,” she said. “We sell a solid plug and we also sell a hearing enhanced plug that compresses the loud sound of the gun, but it also brings in the sound of the people around you.”

Along with specialty earplugs for hunters, Superior Hearing also sells plugs specifically made for musicians that have a vent to allow the musician to hear the music around them but quiets the deafening sound of the amplifiers.

“Not very many people notice there are custom earplugs for iPods and stethoscopes,” she said. “You can have the earplugs made in your school colors and put your initials on them.”

Properly protecting your ears from loud sounds is important, she said.

“We expose ourselves to a lot of loud noises and we don’t even think about it,” she said. “Machinery, gunfire and even just driving down the road with the window open can damage a person’s hearing.”

Someone can tell when they are having hearing problems when they have trouble hearing people talk and need to ask them to repeat what they say. This is when it’s time to seek professional assistance with hearing issues, LaBeske said.

“We offer a free hearing exam,” she said. “It’s nice just to get a baseline and figure out where your hearing is.”

After the hearing test, professionals will sit down with the individual and discuss what type of hearing enhancement or hearing protection at the individual’s request.

“We talk about your lifestyle and talk about when you will need some custom ear plugs,” she said.

At the exam, LaBeske conducts a short interview to find out facts about the individual’s lifestyle.

“Based on your lifestyle, I can prescribe the correct hearing aid for you,” she said. “Some of our hearing aids don’t have all the fancy features and that’s good for someone who needs a little bit of amplification.”

For people who are active, LaBeske prescribes hearing aids geared to reduced background noises.

“This hearing aid is so awesome, it knows the difference between noise and voice,” she said. “There are certain frequencies that bring the voice to you and gets rid of the noise.”



Stacey Ashcraft can be reached at sashcraft@mininggazette.com