You totally spaced your hearing test tomorrow, but that’s not very unusual, you’re very busy. Fortunately, you just got that reminder text from us, and you still have some time to prepare. So how should I get ready?
Hearing exams aren’t like back in college or high school where you’d have to pull an all-nighter to study for a test. With a hearing exam, it’s more about trying to remember everything you need to know about your symptoms. In other words, getting ready for your hearing exam is really about ensuring you get as much out of your time with us as you can.
Get prepared with these 7 tips!
1. Put together a list of your symptoms (and when they happen)
Hearing loss doesn’t manifest the same way for everybody all the time. Some symptoms might be more pronounced than others. So take a few notes on when your symptoms are most noticeable before your appointment. You can jot things down like:
- Is talking on the phone difficult? Note times when understanding the person on the other end is harder.
- During meetings at work, do you lose focus? What time during the day is this most prevalent?
- When you’re out in a busy restaurant, do you strain to keep up with conversations? Does that happen a lot?
- Was it difficult to hear the tv? How loud is the volume? And do you have a harder time hearing at night?
This type of information is extremely useful for us. Note the day and time of these symptoms if you can. At least note the occurrence of the symptoms if you can’t remember the times.
2. Get some info about hearing aids
How much do you actually know about hearing aids? It’s a relevant question because you don’t want to make any decisions influenced by what you think you know. If we tell you a hearing aid would be helpful, that’s going to be an ideal time to ask informed questions.
You will get better answers and the process will be accelerated when you know what types of hearing devices are available and understand what your preferences are.
3. Think about your medical past
This is another moment when writing something down can help hasten the post-hearing-test-discussion. Before your appointment, you should take some time to jot down your medical history. This should consist of both major and minor incidents. You should write down things like:
- Allergies and reactions to medications.
- Major or minor surgical procedures that you have undergone.
- Medical devices you may currently be using.
- Any history of sickness or health problems (you don’t have to note every cold, but anything that stands out).
- What kind of medication you take.
4. Loud noisy settings should be shunned
If you have a hearing assessment scheduled and you go to a loud concert the night before, the results will be skewed. Similarly, if you check-out an airshow the morning before your exam, the results will not be reliable. The point here is that you should steer clear of loud noises before you come in for your hearing test. This will help ensure your results are reliable and reflect your current hearing health.
5. Before your appointment, check with your insurance company
The way that health insurance and hearing tests work together can be… confusing. If your hearing loss is related to a medical problem, some insurance plans will cover it. But other plans might not. You will be a great deal more confident at your appointment if you get this all figured out before you come in. In some cases, you can work directly with us to get insurance answers. If not, you can talk to your insurance company directly.
6. Bring a family member or friend in with you
There are some important advantages to bringing a friend or relative with you to your hearing test, though it’s not entirely necessary. Among the most notable advantages are the following:
- When you’re at your exam, a lot of information will be discussed. Having a dependable friend or loved one with you can help you remember all of that information when you get home.
- Even when you aren’t aware that you have hearing loss, people close to you will certainly be aware of it. This means that we will have access to even more information to help make a definitive diagnosis or exam.
7. The results will come fairly quickly
With many medical diagnostics, it might be days or weeks before you get your diagnosis. But with a hearing exam, that’s not the case. With a hearing test, you will get the results right away.
And what’s even better, we’ll show you how to enhance your overall hearing health and walk you through what your results mean. That might mean using some hearing protection or some behavioral changes or possibly hearing aids. You’ll know immediately either way.
So you don’t have to overthink it. But being prepared will be helpful, particularly for you.