Beck: Hi Sarah, thanks for spending some time with me today.
West: Hi Dr. Beck. Its good to be here.
Beck: Sarah, would you tell me a little about your hearing loss please?
West: Sure. I have sensorineural hearing loss, which is possibly related to autoimmune ear disease, but could be related to antibiotic medicines I took years earlier.
Beck: Was this a recent onset?
West: No, not really. I am 40, and I was first tested and diagnosed with hearing loss when I was on my 20s. I didnt really have it checked again until 1995, when I found it had deteriorated. In 1998, I had a vestibular problem which caused vertigo, and found I had more hearing loss... Then in 2002, I lost a little more hearing, which interfered with my work, and so I had to do something about it. I have a precipitous high frequency hearing loss, so without hearing aids, I just cannot understand speech.
Beck: I want to discuss that too, but before we get there, Sarah, I know you have a very interesting occupation-would you tell me about that too?
West: Im a musician, a professional cellist. I live in Minneapolis and I work as a freelance musician. Ive played in many different places, weddings, recordings, I toured with Ray Charles years ago in 1984 and 1985, and I play with orchestras. I studied at Julliard in New York. As a freelance musician, I work pretty much whenever something good comes along!
Beck: How does your hearing loss impact your profession?
West: Well, my hearing loss was not as much of a problem early on, but it became worse and it did make a difference in my performance and my ability to play. It wasnt just my perception of music, but also my pitch perception for voices. They were all affected by my hearing loss. I got a set of digital hearing aids a few years ago, and they were OK, but I still felt like I was not hearing the high tones.
Beck: Well, theres a chance you werent. Often times in years past, some hearing professionals would reduce high frequency gain, also referred to as amplification, in order to deliver more total sound without feedback. It works, but of course, there is a trade off.
West: Right. Well things were louder and I did hear better with the early digitals, but I was missing the high pitches and that impacted my music and my speech perception.
Beck: So how did you get to try the Sonovations?
West: My first digital hearing aids didnt help as much as I had wanted. I did like them and they worked. My audiologist in Minneapolis is just fantastic. She was familiar with Sonovations and when they came out with the ImpaCt hearing aids, she let me know right away, and I tried them and everything changed -- my life changed for the better very quickly.
Beck: Were there any specific differences you noticed right from the beginning?
West: Yes - absolutely! The Sonovations were very crisp. They had the high pitched sounds I had been missing. I noticed that I had a recollection for sounds I hadnt heard in years. I didnt notice that I hadnt been hearing them, but I noticed when they came back! Sounds like water splashing, birds outside, overtones in music, and so many parts of speech that I hadnt heard since I was a child. Those sounds were recaptured for me, but presented to my ears at a lower pitch, so I could perceive the higher sounds.
Beck: Thats a good description. In fact, thats very much what they do. They use a technology called frequency compression. In essence, it transfers the higher pitches to lower pitches, virtually instantaneously. In other words, it changes the higher pitches, which your ear cannot hear, to lower pitches, which your ear can hear.
West: Actually, with my Sonovations, I have been able to resume my career as a musician and I am totally thrilled. Without this technology, theres no way I could continue to play the cello.
Beck: The hearing aids made that much difference?
West: No doubt, they changed my life. I can play the cello, I can teach and I can perform, its fantastic. In fact, I recently played at the governors state dinner for the president of Mexico. I am totally back and involved in music, and frankly, before I got the Sonovations, I was pulling away. Its great to be back. I can hear well in restaurants and movies again, and thats really nice. I feel like Ive got my life back. And, I truly could not be doing the work I am doing without Sonovations.
Beck: Your story is very inspirational. Thanks for sharing it!
West: Thanks for the opportunity! I am so grateful to companies that make excellent products. Sonovations makes amazing hearing aids and I certainly do rely on them. They have vastly improved my life, and they have allowed me to maintain my position in the profession I love.
