How Long Does It Take to Get Used to Hearing Aids? What to Expect

Getting hearing aids for the first time can be exciting and maybe even a little nerve-wracking.  You’re looking forward to hearing better and communicating with friends and family with ease.  But hearing aids will also be a new part of your daily routine, and it can take a little bit of time to adapt and adjust to life with them.  Because of this, there are a few things you can expect to notice when wearing a new set of hearing aids, and we’ll learn just how long it takes to adjust to hearing aids.

Adapting to How a Hearing Aid Sounds

This is probably the biggest aspect of hearing aid use that will take some getting used to.  People can often feel a little disappointed in how a hearing aid sounds; at least at first.  This is because hearing aids work by electronically amplifying sounds and voices around you and can sometimes sound a little “artificial” or perhaps, “robotic”. 

Many people will also observe that hearing aids can sound “tinny” at first.  This is because people tend to have more significant loss of hearing in the higher frequencies, rather than lower ones.  Therefore, the hearing aids will have more pronounced high frequency amplification, increasing the audibility of high-pitched sounds the wearer has been missing.  This is exactly what we want, as these high-pitched sounds are critical for speech understanding.  However, as the brain will not be “used to” perceiving these high-pitched sounds, it can initially sound somewhat tinny and harsh. 

It is also common to notice a hearing aid sounding “echoey” or “hollow”, particularly when the hearing aid user speaks and hears their own voice.  This is because the hearing aid is blocking up the ear canals to a degree, and it can give you a similar sensation to speaking when you put your fingers in your ears.  This is a phenomenon known as the occlusion effect.

The above issues are mostly a matter of just taking some time for the brain to adapt to hearing through a hearing aid.  With consistent use of hearing aids, most people fully adjust to how they sound within four to six weeks.  However, this can take longer for some people, and for others, much quicker! Hearing aids have also come a long way, and the manufacturers have significantly improved how a hearing aid sounds at first use, and some people will already notice that they’ve adapted quite a bit by just the end of their hearing aid fitting appointment.  Adjustments can also be made by your audiologist, if necessary.  These can include adjusting sound levels or changing physical components of the hearing aid, which in turn affects the acoustics.

Adapting to How a Hearing Aid Feels

When you start wearing hearing aids for the first time, you may be quite “aware” of the physical feeling of them in your ears.  Some people will find hearing aids to be a bit itchy or tickly at first.  This is normal and it can take a few weeks or so to adapt to this.  You may recall that if you wear glasses or contact lenses, you might have found these to be uncomfortable or irritating initially as well.  But with time, this sensation improved, and now you probably don’t notice them at all! The same can be expected of hearing aids.  However, it’s important to note that hearing aids should not be painful or causing any significant discomfort.  If this is the case, it’s worth bringing this up to your audiologist, as the fit may need to be adjusted. 

Adapting to Routine Hearing Aid Use and Maintenance 

Hearing aids will also be a new part of your daily routine, and that can take some time to get used to.  Ideally, you should be putting on your hearing aids shortly after you wake up in the morning and only removing them before going to bed (with a few exceptions, such as when bathing).  Putting your hearing aids on correctly can take a bit of practice, and you may find that you need to set aside just a few extra minutes each morning to do this.

There is also some regular, simple maintenance involved with hearing aid use, and there can be a small learning curve when it comes to this.  This can include things like replacing the hearing aid’s battery or charging the hearing aids nightly if you have rechargeable hearing aids.  Your hearing aids should be kept clean and moisture-free, and there may be certain bits that need to be replaced on a regular basis, such as the hearing aid’s earwax filter.  Your audiologist will review all of this with you at your hearing aid fitting appointment.  Once you’ve had your hearing aids for a few weeks, you’ll probably find that hearing aid maintenance doesn’t take more than a few minutes of your time each day.

Conclusion

Getting hearing aids for the first time can make people a little apprehensive.  They’ll be a new part of your day-to-day life, and that can take a little bit of getting used to.  Adapting to how a hearing aid sounds is usually the most significant aspect of hearing aid use that will take some time to adjust to.  Some people also find the physical feeling of hearing aids in their ears to be a bit tickly at first, but this usually settles.  Hearing aid maintenance is also something that will need to be incorporated into your week, but this usually won’t take up more than a few minutes of your time.  The key to being successful with hearing aids is by wearing them consistently, for a full day, every day.  With regular use, most people find that they fully adapt to their hearing aids within four to six weeks.

If you'd like to learn more about the kind of hearing care we provide for our patients at Finchley Hearing, please explore our website and feel free to get in touch with any questions. We're a private, independent audiology clinic in London committed to ethical, evidence-based practices and would love to help you on your journey to better hearing.

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