How do people react when they see a young person wearing hearing aids?

I have a moderate hearing loss in my right ear and a mild one in my left. I have had a hearing impairment my whole life (I'm 18), do to a genetic defect. When I was younger I had these dreadful, heavy, uncofterable BTE hearing aids that I refused to wear. Instead I opted to go around asking people to repeat themselves and turning up the volume on things. My finac茅 and I were talking about it, and he finally convinced me to go back to the audiologist. She tested my hearing, and recommended the Oticon Delta hearing aid. They were pricey, but she assured us (finac茅 and I) that it would greatly improve my life, and so we ordered them. They are kind of funky, they are white and have orange flowers on the casing (I think the patter was called In Bloom?) and have a translucent tube. They are small. I was just wondering, if you wear hearing aids, how has it improved your life? Are you glad you bought them? How do you think people will react if they notice a young person wearing hearing aids?

I'm a but worried that they will think I am 'disabled' or they will treat me differently. Or that they will think I did it to myself with an IPOD or something.

I have a genetic defect that causes hearing loss too. My mother and grandfather have/ had it too. My mother wears two hearing aids - one stronger than the other.

I don't wear any much to the dismay of most people I know. I had behind the ear ones for awhile, but I found them just too uncomfortable and stopped wearing them after about 3 years. Now I have no health insurance and can't afford them.

I was a young woman when I wore them and no one ever made fun of my hearing aids and they were pretty awful looking.

Don't let pride prevent you from wearing them. And don't let pride prevent you from accepting your status as a person with a disability. When you go to college, get a job, etc you may find that your disability will require that you ask for some accommodations. You may find you need a particular telephone compatible with your hearing aids to work. You may need extra visual cues in a classroom so you can hear everything that goes on.

I too had to have hearing aids. It seemed as though every year that passed, I found myself saying "what" and "Can you turn that up" until people around me started to become irritated with me. I finally went in for a test and was prescribed hearing aids. No one treats me any different. I have the little behind the ear with the clear tube as well and I am so thankful I can hear the fridge running, birds, and Harley's again. I was really missing out.

I don't use hearing aids; anyway..... it depend on where you live or where you at.
Some will say why is he/she wearing that stuff?
Some will say , " Oh, that will help them to hear better"
Some will say " Is he/she working for fbi?"
I know what you are talking about but ignore them , don't let them bother you.
Good luck.

I have a kinda friend who wears really noticable hearing aids. She is 18 now but has been (as is my understanding) wearing them for most of her life.

Nobody really gives her a hard time. When people first meet her they kinda go "Oh" but that's it.

But she never doesn't wear them because she says they help her heaps.

In ways dear you are disabled,nothing to be ashamed about..and I am sure seeing someone with a hearing aids,don't make people think different of you...

In fact,just in the past few month my hearing has gone really bad and I have to ask people to repeat themselves...I am not worry about what people would think of me...I am more worry on how much this will cost...

What are prices these days???and can you get a decent one without spending your nest eggs...

these days nobody is free from problems ; and that doesnt excludes young people ;
so I think this days its not a great deal

plz help me with my Q&A:
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?...

people wont take any notice or think anything different of you because you have and aid!
i swear!!
my sister has one and she is the most popular girl in school and nobody thinks she cant do something because she has an aid.

It just depends on whether the person is nice or mean if they said anything to the young person who is wearing hearing aids. As for myself, I would say nothing if I noticed a person wearing hearing aids.

i worked doing speech theraphy at an elementary school and there was a girl who wore a noticeable hearing aid. I never noticed anyone ever giving her any trouble about it.

i have no problem at all nor do most people there just cures Hun my boy Alex wears hearing aids because he has very poor hearing and if people dont like it dont look that's my opinion

My best friend at school had a hearing aid,she went through total hell with her ears.
Nobody ever said anything about it.

I see people with hearing aids all the time and don't treat them any differently. I am actually less prone to annoyance when they ask me to repeat something because I know that they probably weren't just focused on something else.
If you are still apprehensive, wear your hair down.

I hate to break it to you , but you ARE disabled because you have a hearing loss and you need hearing aides. And that my friends is a perfect example of someone with a disability dissing others with disabilities because she doesn't want to be associated with an impairment.

Frankly I never get close enough, being visually impaired , to notice if someone is wearing a hear aide or not. I've taught hearing impaired children and they are as is anyone else with a disability a person first who can not hear.

You have a wonderful caring fiancee, treasure him , who worries more about your welfare than apparently your vanity allows you to.

Who cares if a hearing aide is purple with pink and green spots , if it helps you HEAR better , who gives a damn what people think or say. My dear you have a lot of growing up to do and many lessons to learn.

I went to school with someone with a hearing aid and the only thing that was different about her was that when the teachers taught, they had to wear a clip on micro phone. The kids never gave her a problem.

I also has a guy in my history class that was toally deaf fin 10th grade. he was very well liked and always had an interpreter. We always had a fun time learning signs.

I get curious about why a young person wears a hearing aid, but would never ask until I knew the person better. Little tots don't intrige me, I think that is from birth. Someone your age coming into my home, I would have the nerve to ask why you wear them. After your answer of being genetic, I would maybe ask if someday you may never hear at all. If it was degenerative or not. As cute as yours sound, I probably would think it was some new gadget the kids were wearing, think nothing else of it. Then I would never ask unless you were my granddaughter. Some people get irritated from having to repeat themselves, especially in a working envionment, so I'm glad to hear you have cute hearing aids to save you that hassle of people. I don't wear hearing aids yet, but if I ever do, I want some with flowers or birds on them. I think it sounds so less obvious than those plain skin colored ones. Thanks for telling us about them.

My husband had progressive hearing loss from early childhood due to Vestibular Aquaduct syndrome and now only has about 11 percent hearing in one ear. He cannot use any of the top hearing aid models of today as they are not powerful enough to give him any true sound at all. He actually speaks quite well. However, the hearing aid he wears is quite visual to others and people certainly do not make comments. It does enhance his hearing somewhat, but noisy places bother him a lot. He also reads lips quite well, so he doesn't have to ask people to repeat themselves too much.
Good luck to you.

I currently wear hearing aids and have worn them for years. I've went through 8 of in the ear type. Now I am getting 2 new ones and the specialist recommends I get behind the ear ones this time. Recently I noticed I was having to turn the TV up louder even with having the aids turned way up. The audiologist said I have fluid behind the eardrums. Now I have to have tubes inserted to help drain the fluid. He said I have a profound hearing loss and the behind the ear type will help me to hear a whole lot better than with the in ear type.
I think any person who reacts strangely to someone (no matter their age) wearing aids is either not compassionate or they don't understand. My little niece asked me once what I had in my ears and once I explained it all to her,then she understood. Now when she sees another person wearing them,she thinks nothing of it. Sometimes you have to explain the reason why you have them in your ears. I have never heard of the type you are wearing. I couldn't imagine having something that is funky looking in my ears,but as long as they help you to hear better,Bravo!! I pray I will be happy with my new behind the ear ones. Mine cost $2,500

I'm mild deaf in both ears and I'm a hearing aid wearer (Behind-the-ear canal) I'm 15, 16 this year.

I've also had hearing impairment all my life, the audiologist didn't know, they thought I had glue ear until it came to the point i was actually mild deaf in both my ears.

I'm still wearing my behind the ear canal hearing aids, they are uncomfortable and made by Siemens. but at the end of the day, I still can't afford in-the-canal hearing aids, so i've still got to put up with it until I can eventually afford it.

It hasn't really improved much in my life, but I'm able to hear people who are behind me sometimes if i concentrate on it, and I'm glad they're there for me, they're on the NHS, so they're free!

However, I personally don't think anyone would react to a little child wearing one, but as for me, i started wearing them when I was 14 in 8th grade, and I ALWAYS have to wear my hair down because I'm not used to people looking at me and asking me questions all the time, my friends are so supportive, but usually, i have to keep taking them out when Im talking on the phone because i find i can hear better on that. I'm proud to be me, I don't care what judgmental comments i have to put up with :] Also, I'm short sighted, because I lipread, without my hearing aids or glasses, I can't hear people from further distance.

Mine was caused by my mums excessive alcoholic drinking, so it was a birth defect.
Hope this helped, and thanks for your story.

I work with a lot of people your age who wear hearing aids. I dont see anyone pitying them for wearing them. Now a days with so many people having the iPod buds in their ears, people dont seem to see or care if the person has a hearing loss. Then again I am a hearing person who works in a Deaf society. But I dont foresee any problems.