The Hearing Matters Podcast discusses hearing technology (more commonly known as hearing aids), best practices, and a growing national epidemic - Hearing Loss. The show is hosted by Blaise Delfino, M.S., HIS, and his father, Dr. Gregory Delfino, Au.D., CCC-A. Blaise Delfino and Dr. Gregory Delfino treat patients with hearing loss at Audiology Services in Bethlehem and Nazareth, PA. In this episode, Blaise discusses a writer’s journey to better hearing with Audiology Services director of communications Merry Sue Baum, BA.
The Journey Begins
Ms. Baum started wearing hearing aids at age 50. The audiologist fitted her with only one hearing aid, which wasn’t very helpful. After her husband passed away, she thought that perhaps she could have his hearing aids refitted to her needs. She called a number of audiologists, but they all told her buy new ones. Audiology Services was the only audiology practice willing to refit the used hearing aids. They put new receivers on them and reprogrammed them to her specific hearing needs.
An Expansive Career
As a writer, Ms. Baum needed to be able to hear very well. Her career was mostly as a writer at a medical university. An interview with a physician would usually only last about 15-20 minutes, since doctors are busy, and being interviewed for an article is at the bottom of their list of priorities. You get on one chance to interview a physician, so you need to be able to hear.
On the Go
When she wore only one hearing aid and went to a concert, a play or out to dinner, Ms. Baum would take it out. “It only amplified the noise around me,” she says. “I could hear better without it. Basically it was useless in those situations,” she says. “Now with two hearing instruments that can be adjusted in various environments, my hearing is enhanced, and the background noise is reduced. It’s absolutely wonderful.”
Moving Forward with Hearing Technology
Ms. Baum says she has always wanted to hear and was not concerned what others thought about her needing hearing instruments. She advises anyone who is suffering from a hearing loss to get hearing instruments. As an avid concert goer, she loves having her iPhone synched to her hearing aids. At a concert she can put the instruments on the music setting. That tells the microphones in the hearing aid to focus on everything around the user, which enhances the sounds of the music.
Fitting Your Brain with Hearing Technology
Most people don’t realize that we hear with our brains, not our ears. Without hearing aids, a person with hearing loss has to struggle to hear and to understand the sounds round him/her, which fatigues the brain. People with untreated hearing loss are also at higher risk for anxiety, depression, cardiac problems, diabetes, and a host of other chronic conditions.
All About Comfort
The first hearing aid Ms. Baum had was a custom in-the-ear model, which she didn’t like. “It felt like I had cotton in my ear,” she says. The behind-the-ear instruments she has now are so comfortable that she forgets they are in. She has gone in the shower or to bed with them still in her ears. There is a learning curve, however, Ms. Baum says it’s well worth the time it takes
You're tuned in to the Hearing Matters Podcast with Dr. Gregory Delfino, and Blaise Delfino of Audiology Services and Fader Plugs, the show that discusses hearing technology, best practices, and a growing national epidemic: hearing loss. Before we kick this episode off, special thank
you to our partners Oticon:
Life changing technology, Sonic: every day sounds better, Starkey Hearing Technologies: hear
better, live better, Redux:
faster, dryer, smarter, verified. On this episode. I am so excited to announce we have our very own director of communications here and Audiology Service, Merry Sue Baum. Merry Sue, welcome to the show!
Merry Sue Baum:
Thank you for having me.
Blaise Delfino:
It is such an honor to have you on the show. And of course, having the opportunity to work together for the past two years. Merry Sue, before you found our office, and before you even started working with us, we were your hearing healthcare provider.
Merry Sue Baum:
That's correct.
Blaise Delfino:
Now share with me your journey as a hearing aid user, because before you found our office, you were already wearing hearing aids.
Merry Sue Baum:
That's right, I started wearing hearing aids when I was 50. And at that time, they only gave me one, the audiologist that I went to said I only needed one. And I didn't really find that I could hear that much better. Because I only had one I didn't realize that that wasn't really the good way to go. So I lived with that for quite a while. And then my dog ate it and I had no hearing aid at all. So after my husband passed away, he had been wearing hearing aids that were very good. So I called around to all different audiologists in the valley. And nobody wanted to work with me using those hearing aids, they wanted me to buy new ones except for Audiology Services. And I called here and they were more than willing to help me refit them to my size and adjust them for my hearing needs. And that's how I became a patient at Audiology Services and I've had hearing aids from Blaise since then, and they're wonderful. They're absolutely wonderful.
Blaise Delfino:
I remember that day Merry Sue, when you walked
Merry Sue Baum:
Oh, absolutely. And most of my career was in the in and you came in wearing Starkey hearing instruments. And what we were able to do is because they are digital programmable, we put a new receiver on for you, got you sized up and then reprogrammed the hearing aids to your type and degree of hearing loss. Now, Merry Sue your journey not only wearing hearing technology, but your career is quite expansive. And here being the Director of Communications, you're able to implement your skills, you are one of the best writers I've ever met in my life, and share with us your career journey, and how and if your hearing difficulty may have affected some of the interviews you conducted and things of that nature. medical field, writing in the medical field. So to get 15 minutes with a doctor sometimes was difficult because they're very, very busy. So you only have one shot at it, and you better have your questions in line and know what you want to ask and be able to write really fast. So without hearing aids, you would miss half of the conversation, and you're not going to get another chance because these guys are really very busy. Being interviewed for the college's magazine is not a priority for them. They have patients to take care of and conferences and research and everything else. So you're kind of at the bottom of the list and you only get one chance. So I couldn't have accomplished what I did without hearing aids. When I knew that I needed them I didn't hesitate.
Blaise Delfino:
Merry Sue, it's really interesting because when you were first fit with hearing instruments, you were only fit with one hearing aid. Now you present with a severe hearing loss in the right and the left ear. Now I am unsure of what your hearing loss looked like when you were 50 years young. But what I know now is you have this bilateral sensory neural hearing loss and individuals with your type and degree of hearing loss often always struggle in noisy situations. So when you're only fit with one hearing aid and you struggle in noisy situations, you're not going to get the perceived benefit because when you wear two hearing aids, you're going to experience this term called binaural summation. It makes sound naturally louder by three decibels, but what the hearing aids are able to do is reduce overall listening effort and increase speech understanding and intelligibility. Tell me what your experience has been like when you go to a show or you go to to a restaurant and out to dinner with friends with your hearing technology.
Merry Sue Baum:
Okay, well back when I only had one, when I would go out, I would take it out, because all it did was amplify the noise behind me and around me and I couldn't hear what people were saying, I could hear better if I took it out. So it was basically useless in those situations. Now that I have two, and I have the ability to block out the background noises with the hearing aids that I have right now. It's wonderful. It's absolutely wonderful. And of course, when you can't hear you’re always looking at a person's lips. And when you're having dinner with someone, it's kind of difficult to, in some cases to figure out what they're saying, because you're looking at their lips for clues to add to the bit of hearing that you do have. So it's night and day.
Blaise Delfino:
Absolutely. And Merry Sue, I personally love the fact that you implement the use of your iPhone, with your hearing aids because you're able to increase volume from your phone and decrease volume, you can stream music. Merry Sue, you and I always have this conversation, individuals who present with hearing loss that do not move forward with hearing technology. Share with us your thoughts on that. And being a current hearing aid user, what would you say to those individuals who are on the fence with regard to moving forward with hearing aids?
Merry Sue Baum:
Well, the only reason I never ever hesitated, I wanted to hear what was going on. So I don't fit into that category. So I don't really understand why someone doesn't want to do it, my guess is vanity, or you don't want to admit that you're getting old or whatever the reasons are, but I feel that being able to hear what's going on is just so much better than worrying about what people think. And honestly, I think people that don't get the hearing aids and need them are probably more annoying. And people are thinking less of them. Because they keep saying what what what and having things repeated, or turn up the TV or turn up the music. So I think you're more annoying without them than you are with them. And I just think it's it's so wonderful to be able to hear in every situation. And you're right, I have them hooked up to my iPhone, that's another thing that I like, I don't have to hold the phone to my ear. So when I'm doing an interview over the phone, I can set my phone down, and I have two hands, I don't have to worry about holding the phone up to my ear. So that makes that part of my job easier. And I go to a lot of concerts. And I love to be able to use that setting
Blaise Delfino:
The music setting that we have for you. So just so you have greater understanding. And for our listeners tuned in, Merry Sue has a music setting that she can change on her iPhone. And what the music setting does is it tells the microphones and the hearing aids to be more so omni directional focus on what's all around you, instead of being an adaptive directionality. What I mean by this is that typically your general program that you'll have the hearing aid set to, the hearing aid is looking for speech, and it's filtering out background noise. Well, the concept behind your music program is that we want you to hear everything. So we want you to hear everything that's around you. You are an avid theater goer, for lack of a better term, you have an appreciation for the arts. So we wanted to make sure that we set you up with a program that was appropriate for your lifestyle, especially going to see shows and things of that nature. Merry Sue, when we work with patients we talk about not so much fitting your ears with hearing aids, but fitting your brain with the hearing technology. You've worn hearing instruments for quite some time. And when you go out to events, or even family gatherings, gatherings with friends, but whether it's a networking event, when you come home, of course you may be tired because it was a long day, but you don't feel as mentally fatigued.
Merry Sue Baum:
That's correct. That is 100% correct.
Blaise Delfino:
Tell us a little bit about that and what you've experienced.
Merry Sue Baum:
Well, you know what it feels like to strain to hear somebody speak or to hear noise or to understand what someone is saying and stresses you, it’s work. I mean, you don't feel stressed, per se, but it is exhausting because you have to work not only to hear the person, but understand what he's saying. And that can be difficult in some cases. Some people are very soft spoken. Some people I know, my son in law talks super fast. I have trouble understanding him when I don't have my hearing aid because he talks so fast. So it just makes your life so much nicer and so much easier.
Blaise Delfino:
I think you hit the nail on the head. We always want to drive the point home to our patients that we are fitting your brain. What's so interesting Merry Sue and you’ve been a team member of ours for going on three years, and you've met countless patients of ours and you've met patients that we just fit with their hearing technology or patients that have upgraded, we always drive the point home of brain hearing. And we're listening with our brain. So what's interesting is that individuals with untreated hearing loss are actually at an increased risk of cognitive decline, anxiety, depression, cardiovascular disease, rehospitalizations. And we are on a mission as a team to raise awareness of the importance of visiting a hearing healthcare professional, when it comes to the comfort of the hearing aids Merry Sue, because a lot of first time hearing aid users, they'll say, well, are these comfortable? I feel like they look big and bulky. What has your experience been like with the comfort aspect of wearing hearing aids?
Merry Sue Baum:
Well, I remember the first one was in the ear when the when I only had the one.
Blaise Delfino:
Oh, so you were a custom?
Merry Sue Baum:
Yeah
Blaise Delfino:
Okay, great.
Merry Sue Baum:
And I didn't like that, because it felt like when you put cotton in your ear, you know. I could hear better, but it felt like there was something in my ear. With the ones that I have now, the behind the ear, I forget that they're in. I've jumped in the shower a couple times with them in and I say, oh, my goodness, and I quick take them out. I've gone to bed with them in and then thought, oh, I forgot to take my hearing aids out. So I forget that they're there. Well, when I do take them out, then I know that they were there because I can't hear I feel like I'm underwater. Everything sounds like it does when you're underwater, when you put your head underwater in a swimming pool. There's a learning curve, there's no question about it. You have to kind of get used to them. But just like anything, once you do, it's wonderful.
Blaise Delfino:
And I always get so excited. And I feel so uplifted when you and I have these conversations, because you really do believe in the hearing technology. I mean, you are a product of the product. And it allows you to spread awareness of the importance of wearing hearing technology. What's interesting is that I did not directly grow up with someone in my household that had hearing loss. But both my grandfather's did and do have hearing loss. But working with an individual who presents with hearing loss like you and I have, there were a couple days where you may have forgotten the hearing aids. But what we, of course, is programmed to set up demo hearing aids because if you're picking up the phone and talking to patients. But what is so interesting is you are a different person, you personally when you're not wearing your hearing instruments to when you are. And what do I mean by this, you are more attentive to what's being said, and you don't listen so much with your eyes. I'm curious to know if you've noticed that, of course, you feel more confident when you're wearing the hearing aid.
Merry Sue Baum:
Oh, absolutely, yeah
Blaise Delfino:
Because you're not gonna miss anything really.
Merry Sue Baum:
And, you know, not even so much as missing something, but misinterpreting things.
Blaise Delfino:
Tell me more about that?
Merry Sue Baum:
Well, you know, there's just certain things that people say that can be taken a number of different ways. And when you can't really hear the intonations in their voice or whether their voice is going up or down when they're telling you something. For example, somebody might be teasing with you. And you don't take it that way. Because you don't really hear the intonation in their voice. So they'll have to end up saying, well, I was just teasing. I think that interpreting what people are saying is also a part of it, and understanding their words, the actual words. You're right, I am an avid theater goer. And I can often in the theater, if there's a line or two that someone on the stage is saying and it's maybe a bit muffled or something, if you watch and people will lean over to the person next to them. And you can see and they'll be saying What did he say? What did he say? And I just sit there thinking well, I know what he said!
Blaise Delfino:
I heard everything. So sit next to Merry Sue when you go to the when you go to the play
Merry Sue Baum:
And the movies the movies too. Same thing with the movies, people don't always get everything. You know, there's a lot of movies, especially because there's a lot of other noise going on. Like in an action movie, for example, James Bond, let's say you miss things because if you can't hear you're going to miss really important things and not really understand what's going on.
Blaise Delfino:
Absolutely. Merry Sue, you write our quarterly newsletter called Hearing Matters, share with our listeners, why we release the newsletter, what your experience has been like writing the newsletter, because this is something that you are so passionate about. And our patients love it. They really do. Whenever there's a new issue out there, everyone's taking a new issue of the Hearing Matters. So you are like I said, one of the best writers I've personally met and we're so blessed and excited to have you as part of the team and our hearing family. So share with us a little bit about the Hearing Matters newsletter that we release.
Merry Sue Baum:
I love writing it first of all, I love to write period. So that's been my whole career. So it's not a chore at all, for me, it doesn't feel like work at all. It's what I like to do. And what I do when I think about the lineup, and what we're going to talk about is like, keep our audience in mind, which is predominantly our patients, although we send it out and put it in other places, people can see it, other people other than our patients can see it. But that's our primary audience. So what I try to do is tell them the latest technology that's available, we always put a couple of fun facts in there, what's going on within our practice itself, what we're doing all of us really to continue to get better and better and better at what we do. We never stop. Nobody in the whole practice, ever stops thinking about ways to improve on what we already do.
Blaise Delfino:
You're absolutely right.
Merry Sue Baum:
And so I want people to know that that this is the place to come because no one just sits on their laurels around here, which is great. I mean, that's what makes it such a good practice. So that's the sort of things that I think about when I'm writing it. But I do like to make it a little bit fun. Sometimes I can find some fun research articles. For example, the last issue I think I put in about, they're using flies, yes to do research on hearing healthcare, which I think is amazing. And I think our patients enjoy reading that kind of thing to they absolutely tried to make it a mix of what I think they need to know and what would be fun. And also to let them know what we are doing as individuals.
Blaise Delfino:
Merry Sue, you are a current hearing aid user. And what's interesting is that untreated hearing loss is linked to over $1 billion in lost US earnings, and having the opportunity to work with you and to be your hearing healthcare provider. Number one, it's an honor, but it's also so uplifting for me, because you don't let your hearing loss stop you from doing what you love and doing what you're passionate about. I mean, it is absolutely incredible and inspiring.
Merry Sue Baum:
I'm sure there's a job out there where hearing is not all that important. But for what I do constantly interviewing people, I wouldn't be able to do it, I would not be able to do my job period, let alone do it well. And of course, we all want to do the best that we can when we're working, we want to produce the best product possible. And I couldn't do that. I just simply could not do that. And I don't understand why anybody would try when there's technology available to help you. And it really is very helpful. I mean, when I take them out, I just can hardly hear anything. And that's kind of upsetting. But then I think why but that's okay, because I can put them in right and be right on par with everyone else.
Blaise Delfino:
Merry Sue, for first time hearing aid users that were just fit with hearing aids, and are going through their acclimatization period, their their brains are getting used to all of these new sounds. What advice can you give those patients and those individuals?
Merry Sue Baum:
Hang in there, it's worth it. There's a learning curve for sure. And at first, it's kind of like, whoa, this is a lot for my brain to be taking in because your brain isn't used to having all those sounds. And so it's up there kind of going, whoa, what's happening, you know, but it all comes down and you'll be so grateful that you have them, just stick with it. Because it doesn't take that long. It didn't take me that long, maybe a week or so. And it's so worth it. Because you can hear to me, it's almost like a miracle. You can hear people and you couldn't before! It sounded like they were mumbling, I mean why wouldn't anybody want to be able to hear it? I will never understand why anybody would hesitate if they can't hear. It's like not getting glasses. Why would you not? If you can't see, you need glasses if you can't hear, you need hearing aids. And we're so fortunate that the technology is as advanced as it is at this point in time. I mean my goodness, hooked up to your iPhone and you can hear music and who would have thought I mean really fun hearing aid that was a mold of my ear to what I have now is just giant steps and I know it's only gonna get better.
Blaise Delfino:
You're tuned into the Hearing Matters Podcast with Dr. Gregory Delfino, and Blaise Delfino of Audiology Services and Fader Plugs, the show that discusses hearing technology, best practices, and the growing national epidemic, hearing loss. On this episode, we had Merry Sue Baum, who is the director of communications here at Audiology Services. Until next time, hear life’s story!