I could not agree more with Matti. I don't want to go into detail, but if I had it to do over again (and knew then what I know now), I would not have used the same audiologist. I can certainly relate to the sighs, but whether the eyes rolled or not, I didn't notice - the voice tones certainly went along with eye-rolling though
. Everything that went wrong was either my fault or eventually the company's fault (EarTechnology) - or at least that's what came my way from the audiologist. At one point I called EarTechnology (the TransEar folks), and when I next visited my audiologist, I almost felt like a little kid being scolded for having called them (uh, the box it comes in SAYS to call them if there are questions!). My aud. had only done one previously, and told me the patient liked it. Apparently forgetting she'd told me that originally, she later said that patient returned it very quickly. She also had another patient who got one shortly after I did, and he returned his almost immediately. At one point, if I had a longer return privilege, I was ready to return mine, too.
Then I called a wonderful lady I'd talked to before at EarTechnology, and asked her to keep our conversation between us - she agreed. I told her how frustrated I was with things, to include my audiologist. During the course of the conversation, she just happened to ask if my TransEar had been sanded or ground down on a grinding wheel. I told her it had hit the grinder on two different occasions (if I remember correctly now - possibly three, but I think two). I could almost hear the gasp at the other end of the phone. I had a problem with the BTE portion, but it was decided that I'd just give the audiologist the whole unit (ITE and BTE portions, with wire). Then EarTechnology took my original mold, and made a brand new TransEar for me, shipped it back to the audiologist, and simply told her that they'd noticed it had a few grooves in it suggesting it might have been ground down, and compared it with the mold - there was quite a bit of difference. So as far as my audiologist ever knew, EarTechnology just decided on their own to remake the ITE piece without any call by me to the company. The person I've dealt with at EarTechnology on several occasions, has been exceptionally patient, and tried her best to also work with my audiologist in re-programming it several times. On one of the very first times, she asked that the audiologist call her while I was in the office, and she'd walk her through the programming. I knew that, but the audiologist didn't know I knew, so I know that the audiologist chose to just go it alone that time - and the programming still wasn't all that good. Much later, it got reprogrammed yet again (with more help by phone that time), and the improvement was a quantum leap forward! Sadly, I wasted around 5 months with a poorly functioning TransEar (and a total of more than a month without it, due to various reasons like the ear canal ulcer, having it re-made, etc.) , and I'm convinced EarTechnology is NOT to blame. If they offered me my money back now (even including the fee for the mold), I'd keep my TransEar in a heartbeat. I was amazed at the difference, finally. I learned that there are only some similarities to programming the TransEar and a "standard" amplifying hearing aid. I don't know to this day if it's as good as it could be, because I can't use it even in a special situation to carry on a phone conversation through the TransEar, like a couple of people have reported. But I was so satisfied with the last re-programming that I decided to quit while I was ahead, and avoid the sighs, little remarks, etc.
Oh - I also learned from EarTech. that the programming should be set for between 3-3½ if I remember right. Interestingly, I can't get it above a 2½ (max of 4) on the volume, or it's constantly feeding back (I hear it AFTER others do - a bit embarrassing). But the difference even at a little above 2 on the volume setting in the BTE piece, is that quantum leap I was talking about above. And my batteries are now lasting almost 3 weeks - almost double what they did before. I'm a very happy camper with my TranEar, now that 9 months has passed (and I haven't been back to the audiologist in several months now). And as for sanding, the EarTech. person told me that the amount sanded off should be about the thickness of a tiny layer of skin at a time (about the thickness of whatever skin peels off your body a week after a really bad sunburn), nothing more than that at a time. She instructed me how to do it, if needed. I never needed to. When it went back for the re-make, EarTech compared my original mold with where my audi. had ground it down, and took just the slightest amount off at the factory. I've never needed to sand it since I got the new unit back. She also told me the audi. had gotten instructions on fitting, working with, programming, etc., and the audi's instructions are specifically NOT to touch it with the grinding wheel - too much taken off, so much poorer bone conduction.
Sweating? Yes, some. And I'm in a "Deep South" state that had mid- to upper-90's all summer, a couple of 100+ days, and humidity is ALWAYS high. I haven't found the sweating to be particularly bad though. However, I also tend to take it out when I get home for the evening, and stick it in the Dry&Store well before I go to bed. ALWAYS put it in your Dry&Store. I've been amazed that the little battery door has a thin film of moisture around the outside when I open it up at night to take it off.
As for Ixta, you simply should not have to put up with the TransEar hurting, I don't believe. My original one did and caused an ulcer up inside the ear canal (had to take out the TransEar yet again for about a week to let it heal). And itching??? I've not had that except on a few rare occasions. Any chance of a fungus or something in your ear canal? And are (or were) you using the Dry&Store every night? Overall, it sounds like you may not have had a good experience with your audi, more than anything.
Finally, the issue of when to get it came up in JerseyGirl's first post. I lost complete hearing on my left side on 9 July 2006, and did not get the TransEar until January of this year ('07). I honestly believe I'm better off for having waited and
gotten used to being totally deaf in one ear first. With all the adjustments that come with that (no directionality with sound anymore, poor word comprehension in crowds or where there's background noise of another sort), I don't believe I would have appreciated the subtle but important difference my TransEar makes. It's very hard to explain, but sometimes I actually close my good ear for a moment to make sure I'm still hearing things that are coming through the TransEar - it blends so nicely that I can rarely tell for sure it's on. The exceptions, at first, were dramatic though. I already knew what I
couldn't do anymore, and then started finding myself being able to carry on a conversation in a setting I couldn't have pre-TransEar. Once you have a couple of those (what I call) breakthrough experiences, you KNOW you want to keep it! At one point after having it for several months, had I been given the opportunity to get my money back I think I would have jumped on the opportunity! But I've gotten a taste of the subtle (but very important) difference between SSD and having the TransEar working well. It's a keeper - you just need to be very, very comfortable with your audiologist and make sure s/he is patient - because there are likely going to need to be some adjustments at first. I kept being told I was expecting too much, and other such comments in the beginning. NO I WAS NOT! - because what I've got with the TransEar now is far, far better than "as good as it's going to get" from my audiologist.
Best wishes,
Chris
