has a moderate hearing loss in both ears and has only been wearing hearing aids since Xmas

Sula

This discussion was created from comments split from: Hi I'm Vicki. I worked as paediatric audiologist with children with complex needs. Ask away!.

Sula

Hi Vicki,
My son is ten and in Year 6. He has a moderate hearing loss in both ears and has only been wearing hearing aids since Xmas. He now will not wear his aids at all, except in school where he also has a sound field system. I have tried to make him wear them, he complains he needs a rest from them. Now I have stopped pressuring him and hope he will come round. I am concerned he will never get used to the benefits they clearly give him. He is very aware of people staring at him when he is out and now hides them in his pocket as soon as he leaves his classroom. Secondary school is around the corner and I'm concerned he will keep them in his pocket all day when i'm not there to nag him. He is a very quiet lad and the aids make a big difference, any advice would be welcomed. Thanks, Sula

VickiKirwin

Hi Sula
It's a tricky age to get used to hearing aids for the first time. They take getting used to and the brain takes some time to adapt to the new sound, but children often do worry about what their friends and other people think. It is easier to persevere with them if you really notice the benefits - does your son think they help him in school and if not why not? There may be some adjustments that can be made to programming that will help. Does he have the standard beige hearing aids or did he get to decide what he wanted? They are available in a wide range of colours and he could choose some that he thinks look 'cool' (perhaps in silver like the bluetooth mobile phone headsets that lots of people walk around with all the time now) or perhaps he would prefer to choose some that blend in with his hair colour and are more invisible.
Does your son know any other children that wear hearing aids? Most children accept hearing aids much better if they feel they aren't the only ones. You might like to contact the NDCS and ask for a copy of their events calendar - there are loads of activities and events going on around the country that he could join. Around 40% of children who use hearing aids have other needs in addition to the hearing loss and NDCS are great at meeting individual kids needs so do consider it http://events.ndcs.org.uk/
Vicki