We are delighted to announce that we raised £450 for Hearing Dogs for Deaf People at our Quiz Night last week. Held at the South Buckinghamshire Golf Club, the event was great fun and very popular, with eight teams competing for the luxury prize of a Fortnum & Mason hamper.

We kicked off with an interesting talk by Mike & Clare Coote, dedicated volunteers for the charity, who gave us an insight into the commitment of taking on a puppy and the training guidelines that go with it. Their delightful Hearing Dog puppies Cooper and Hedley, pictured below, also attended the event.

The charity provides the invaluable gift of independence, confidence and companionship to more and more deaf people. Hearing Dogs receives no government funding and relies on the generosity of members of the public, trusts and companies to continue its important work.

The winning team, “The Old Crocks”, won the Fortnum & Mason hamper, donated by Signia Hearing Aids. We look forward to seeing them bid for the champion title once again at our next Quiz Night in the Spring. Look out for further details.

Today we came across the Ambient Sounds Spotify playlist put together by the British Tinnitus Association (BTA), and we think you could find it helpful.

A popular way to tackle intrusive tinnitus is to give the brain something else to focus on which draws your attention away from the tinnitus sound but doesn’t have to constantly and actively stimulate the brain like talk radio or music does. The playlist has 31 tracks, playing a mix of ambient sounds for you to try. With track titles such as River and Rain in the Forest, Whispering Winds over the Pines and Small Waves Hitting Beach, there may be something there that could help alleviate your tinnitus sounds.

Tinnitus Spotify playlist – how to play it

The BTA recommend that you play the tracks at a volume just below the level of your tinnitus. You’re not trying to drown out the tinnitus – this way your brain will be actively choosing to listen to the music and push your tinnitus into the background.

Just click on this link or the button below to go directly to the Spotify playlist. If you already have a Spotify account, it will ask you to log in first and then you will see the playlist. If you don’t have a Spotify playlist, it will prompt you to sign up.

We’d love to hear your feedback on the playlist, so please feel free to give us your comments below.

Tinnitus – more information

Did you know we hold a regular Tinnitus Support Group for people living in the Marlow or Farnham Common areas of Buckinghamshire? Visit our Tinnitus Support Group page to see details of the next event near you.

You can also visit our Tinnitus Explained page to find out more about tinnitus. 

And you can also visit our Tinnitus Management page to learn some of the methods we can use to help with your tinnitus symptoms.

Finally, if you’d like to book an appointment for a tinnitus hearing check or talk to us about tinnitus, please get in touch.

Our hearing is incredibly important, from listening to your favourite song to hearing your loved one’s voice on the phone, it’s part of our lives. But unlike the dentist or the optician, many people don’t think to get their hearing checked until they notice a problem. At Help in Hearing, we believe that your hearing should be looked after as well as any other part of you. So when should you get your hearing checked?

Age

As we get older our hearing can start to get poorer but with regular checks and proper attention, it’s important to keep an eye on it. If you’re aged under 45 then a hearing check at least once every two years can be a great start to looking after your hearing proactively. If you’re over 60 then it’s worth having hearing checks more regularly, and our hearing specialists can advise you on how often is best for you to visit based on the results of your hearing check.

Exposure to noise

If you’re a professional working in a loud environment then it may be worth getting your hearing checked more regularly to make sure your hearing hasn’t been affected. Working in areas like live music, performance, construction and many others can leave you more at risk of hearing loss. Our expert audiologists can offer you a full consultation and understand the risks to hearing you have encountered. They may be able to suggest measures to protect your hearing in the future and will do a full hearing test to get a picture of how your hearing has been affected.

You’re noticing hearing loss

It’s always better to look after your hearing proactively but if you’ve been noticing issues with your hearing then it’s best to see an audiologist as soon as possible. If you’ve been having the television or the radio turned up so you can hear it and others think it’s loud, that might be a sign of hearing loss. If you sometimes miss words in conversations or you struggle hearing on the telephone, then this is another sign that you should get your hearing checked.

When should you get your hearing checked?

At Help in Hearing, we are dedicated to providing the very best hearing advice for you. If you think it’s time for you to have a hearing check-up, contact us to book now.

Find out what to expect if you come to us for a hearing assessment.

Aside from the odd infection and build-up of ear wax, it’s easy to view our ears as fairly simple organs. Though many people don’t realise it, other parts of your body can have a direct impact on the state of your ears. Here are three seemingly unrelated issues that are among the causes of hearing loss.

Smoking

No surprise here. If you’re a smoker, you regularly hear how bad it is for you from friends, family, doctors and even cigarette packets. Though the most glaring symptoms are in your respiratory and cardiovascular systems, smoking can also contribute to hearing loss.

The harmful chemicals in tobacco smoke are detrimental to your inner ear’s ability to transmit vibrations to your brain, and the more you smoke, the more damage you’ll cause to your ear. Though you’ve probably heard this a million times before, second-hand smoke will have the exact same effects on those around you.

Overeating and under-exercising

Being overweight places you at risk of many different problems, from circulatory trouble to diabetes to heart problems. Though many aren’t aware of it, all of these health issues have been linked to hearing loss. One 2013 study from the US Brigham and Women’s Hospital found that women with higher body mass indexes were 17% more likely to experience some form of hearing loss.

The study also established that non-strenuous physical activity, such as walking for at least two hours per week, lowered the risk of weight-related hearing loss. Of course, this is just one way body weight affects your health – it’s never too late to establish some healthier habits!

Not having regular dental check-ups

Perhaps the most surprising habit that can lead to hearing loss is taking a blasé approach to your dental health. When you don’t keep an eye on your pearly whites, it can allow harmful bacteria to get into the bloodstream, clogging and constricting the arteries that carry blood to the brain. This can cause interference in the way your brain receives signals from your auditory nerve. Poor oral health can also increase your risk of heart problems, diabetes and stroke, which have all been linked with hearing loss.

Causes of hearing loss – where to find out more

If you’d like to know more about how to protect your hearing, or if you’d like to have a hearing check-up, please contact us. 

Or you can learn more on our Hearing Protection web page.

Our latest Tinnitus Support Group meeting at Marlow’s Liston Hall on March 19th was a huge success. The advertising for the event created such an unprecedented amount of interest, we ended up having to turn people away!

Mr Chris Aldren, the local ENT Consultant, gave a talk titled “Why do we have Tinnitus?” covering aspects of the ear anatomy with a detailed presentation that gave the audience a clearer understanding of the causes of Tinnitus and the various treatment methods. Gilly Wright, the Support Group facilitator, commented: “The maximum attendance figures show how much interest there is in Tinnitus. I am very grateful to Mr Aldren for finding the time to talk to us and so delighted that the Marlow group is taking off like this.”

Next meeting: 10.30 am Saturday April 7th, Liston Hall – an Introduction to Tai Chi (limited spaces available).

To book a place please get in touch or call us on 0345 222 0579

To see other future dates of our Tinnitus Support Group, please visit our web page.

We are supporting World Hearing Day, which will be held on 3rd March 2018. The aim of World Hearing Day is to raise awareness on how to prevent deafness and hearing loss and promote ear and hearing care across the world. This year’s theme is:

Hear the Future

This year’s focus will be on:

• Rising prevalence of hearing loss globally
• Importance of appropriate preventative actions to stem the rise
• Need to ensure access to rehabilitation services and communication for people with hearing loss

Hear the Future is vital: in the last five years hearing loss has risen from the 10th to the 4th largest global disability burden.

World Hearing Day Events

If you are holding an event or activity to mark World Hearing Day, do share photographs on social media with the hash tag #worldhearingday. You can also register your event on the World Hearing Day website, where you can also download posters and other marketing material.

We are pleased to introduce the Oticon ConnectClip, which transforms your Oticon hearing aids into a wireless stereo headset! Make and receive hands-free phone calls from any modern smartphone. Listen to music in stereo from your tablet or laptop. ConnectClip transforms your Opn hearing aids into a wireless headset, making everyday connections for family, friends and business activities easier and more practical. 

ConnectClip is an intermediate device, which wirelessly connects Oticon 2.4GHz wireless hearing aids through Bluetooth to most mobile phones. ConnectClip further doubles as a remote/partner microphone for improved 1-to-1 speech understanding in adverse listening situations.

Headset for mobile phones

ConnectClip can be paired with most mobile phones through Bluetooth, in effect turning the hearing instruments into a high-quality headset. Sound from the mobile phone is streamed wirelessly directly to the hearing aids, while the ConnectClip’s directional microphones pick up the wearer’s voice.

Headphones for music

Audio/music from a Bluetooth-connected mobile phone, MP3 player, etc., is streamed directly in stereo to both hearing aids.

Remote/Partner microphone

The ConnectClip works in a special mode as a remote/partner microphone for improved intelligibility of the speaker wearing it, either at a distance (up to 65 feet), in a very noisy environment, or in a combination of the two. 

PC/Laptop/Computer

It can at times be difficult to pair/connect directly to a computer’s built-in Bluetooth. To overcome any issues, ConnectClip can be used with the BTD800 USB dongle for easy/hassle-free connectivity.

ConnectClip – where to find out more

Visit our Oticon Opn hearing aids page to find out more about the new ConnectClip, as well as the Opn rechargeable hearing aid and connecting to Internet devices with your Opn.

If you’d like to make an appointment to discuss the Oticon OPN, please get in touch.