ENT doctor visit

[wes]

Most of us will get old, but only some of us will enjoy the journey. You seem like a very well balanced person. I'm not quite your age, but I feel father time. I wake up and the back especially feels stiff, several yoga poses are required. Once in a while my back pops in relief. This is the first year ever where I had to plan a diet, and cut out some junk and processed foods. Not because I am fat, more for mood, mental clarity and energy. Seeing old friends and catching up is my favorite thing to do these days. If I could be 20 again with my knowledge now my life could have been much better, but you live and learn. The most important thing I learned from Getbig is not to open any e-mails from Matt , especially those with the word ropes in the title.

[IroNat]

Most of us will get old, but only some of us will enjoy the journey. You seem like a very well balanced person. I'm not quite your age, but I feel father time. I wake up and the back especially feels stiff, several yoga poses are required. Once in a while my back pops in relief. This is the first year ever where I had to plan a diet, and cut out some junk and processed foods. Not because I am fat, more for mood, mental clarity and energy. Seeing old friends and catching up is my favorite thing to do these days. If I could be 20 again with my knowledge now my life could have been much better, but you live and learn. The most important thing I learned from Getbig is not to open any e-mails from Matt , especially those with the word ropes in the title.

[The Scott]

In one of my "special" classes all of us were asked to choose a handicap if we had such a choice.  Pretty much everyone chose deafness.  Considering being blind is pretty awful and being confined to a wheelchair is in some ways worse, one can understand deafness being the #1 kneejerk response.

But having nearly  lost all hearing for a day or two due to infection I can say that I do not want to be deaf. Nor blind.  Or anything really and I am working daily to be totally free of my braces and crutches.

Having said that, this is NOT about me but about Prime and I mention that only to put it in perspective.  Reality is rough, I know.   Get better, brother.

[Marty Champions]

You need to remove meat from your diet for 2 or 3 months and get plenty of exercise Then the infection may subside. Would not hurt a thing to try

Last Friday I saw an ENT doctor for the inner ear problems I've had since having COVID last February. My right ear drum is retracted which suggests there is still congestion/infection in the right eustachian tube. It is also the ear with the most hearing loss.

The doctor prescribed Sudafed 24 hour, which is 240 mg. I took the first one this morning. Now I feel woozy like on the verge of passing out. It could be that I am allergic to Pseudoephedrine HCI. Unless I start feeling better real soon, I will cease taking it. I couldn’t believe the hassle I went through to get Sudafed. Although no prescription is needed, you must show ID and get them from the pharmacist. Also, many pharmacies don’t sell it.

The audiologist identified my hearing loss in the right ear within a certain range as profound. The other ear is moderate to severe. I have worn hearing aids for over 6 years. They no longer work well. Oftentimes I hear better without them.

These were state of the art hearing aids which cost me nearly $7 G for the two. Back then Regence Medicare Advantage did not cover any of the cost of hearing aids. Now they do. I think up to $1,000 each. Also, I think hearing aids cost less now than they did then.

The new audiologist is going to let me sample several brands to determine which works the best for me. This is something the previous audiologist didn't offer. Not that it would have made much difference since I had no idea what to expect of them back then.

Hearing loss is incredibly isolating. I have a lot of difficulty making out what folks are saying. Rather than ask them to repeat it for me again, I started pretending I heard them and basically nod in the affirmative because yes is usually better than no. One of my best friends is so soft spoken, I cannot understand a word she's saying. So, I avoid visiting her and her boyfriend.

[SweetDaddySiki]

.

[bhank]

In one of my "special" classes all of us were asked to choose a handicap if we had such a choice.  Pretty much everyone chose deafness.  Considering being blind is pretty awful and being confined to a wheelchair is in some ways worse, one can understand deafness being the #1 kneejerk response.

But having nearly  lost all hearing for a day or two due to infection I can say that I do not want to be deaf. Nor blind.  Or anything really and I am working daily to be totally free of my braces and crutches.

Having said that, this is NOT about me but about Prime and I mention that only to put it in perspective.  Reality is rough, I know.   Get better, brother.

Did you ride a recumbant bike today? Did you swim with a kickboard? Did you walk in a pool? What work are you doing?

[The Scott]

Did you ride a recumbant bike today? Did you swim with a kickboard? Did you walk in a pool? What work are you doing?

I go to physical therapy daily as outlined by multiple physicians.  I cannot swim.  Never have been able to. I will do what is required of me by doctors. Thank you for asking.

[IroNat]

Did you ride a recumbant bike today? Did you swim with a kickboard? Did you walk in a pool? What work are you doing?

Bhanky,

Did you get a recumbent bike for your birthday?

[Primemuscle]

I am getting my first pair of hearing aids next months.
A little scared to be honest. Curious where are actually people buying hearing aid supplies - online or in some special shop?
Is there a point to order everything together with the first hearing aids or is there a chance that I gonna like them and need to make an exchange at the end?

Not sure how buying something that is fine tuned to work with you particular hearing issues can be purchased online. Most of the cost of the hearing aids was paid for via my health insurance. Mine came with a 90 day return option if for any reason I didn't like them or they didn't work as expected at no cost to me. These hearing aids are probably one of the most expensive types available. My co-pay was $1,000 each. Without insurance they would have run close to $7,000 for the pair. 

[falco]

Wish you a good recovery Prime.

[IroNat]

The ripoff on hearing aids is well-known.

The markup commission is tremendous.

Up to now, there was really no option to getting ripped off by an audiologist.

[stuntmovie]

I haven't had time yet to read all of the above yet but last month I drove my brother to the local VA hospital to pick up his hearing aid set and attended a 20 minute session on how to turn them on and off and how to clean them when necessary and a lot of other basic stuff.

The only question I asked was, "How much do these cost?"

The response was "$8,000+" if purchased outside of the VA.

But that included both ears, so "What the hell!".

Anyone on this board have $8,000  ear-plugs with sound enhancement?

[Primemuscle]

The ripoff on hearing aids is well-known.

The markup commission is tremendous.

Up to now, there was really no option to getting ripped off by an audiologist.

Had I paid the full advertised price buying them off the Internet with no Audiologist involved, they would have cost me more than three times what the Regence MedAvantage copay for them is. Regence MedAdvantage covers only Truhearing brand hearing aids, and you must purchase them from an in-network audiologist.

My hearing loss is 'severe' in one ear and 'profound' in the other. Oddly enough profound is worse than severe. OTC hearing aids are okay for folks with mild to moderate hearing loss. My state-of-the-art hearing aids are almost infinitely adjustable, but many of those adjustments can only be performed by an audiologist. There are also 6 different built-in programs which I can adjust using my smart phone.

The bottom line is when, it comes to health issues, shopping around for the best/cheapest deal is not advisable, IMO. This is an area where the saying you get what you paid for, is a valid concept.

[Primemuscle]

I haven't had time yet to read all of the above yet but last month I drove my brother to the local VA hospital to pick up his hearing aid set and attended a 20 minute session on how to turn them on and off and how to clean them when necessary and a lot of other basic stuff.

The only question I asked was, "How much do these cost?"

The response was "$8,000+" if purchased outside of the VA.

But that included both ears, so "What the hell!".

Anyone on this board have $8,000  ear-plugs with sound enhancement?

The VA hearing aids are among the most advanced you can get. My son-in-law has service-related hearing loss. Every couple of years the VA offers him new hearing aids at no charge.

I wore my previous hearing aids for 6 years. When I got them, they were the most advanced available. Hearing aid technology changes much faster than that. The difference between the ones I have now verses my old ones is unbelievable. 

[illuminati]

CAN EVERYONE POSTING SPEAK UP - I CANT HEAR YOU

🤣😂🤣😂🤣  👊🏻