As wonderful as hearing aids can be, many of the communication problems that people encounter when they have hearing loss go beyond what's happening with the ears. Even with an improved input coming from your hearing aids, the brain has a lot of important work to do when it comes to what we call "hearing," especially in more difficult listening environments such as noisy restaurants. In fact, despite significant improvements in technology in the past several years, the ability to hear in situations with background noise continues to be one of the biggest challenges for hearing aid users. Fortunately, there are some new avenues of help. The LACE program (Listening And Communication Enhancement) is a computerized listening training program designed to be completed at home. It consists of twenty 30-minute sessions that train the brain to improve at listening in background noise, listening to rapid speech, listening when there is one competing talker, auditory memory, and filling in missing words. The program automatically adjusts to your level of difficulty as you proceed, and ongoing results are uploaded to a central website that is accessible by the audiologist. A number of studies have demonstrated that patients who complete LACE training derive additional benefit from their hearing aids.
For more information on LACE, visit their website at www.neurotone.com, or call the office and speak to Dr. Resnick (212-752-3373).
I'm sure a number of deaf people have already tried this program. It's definitely worth a try, since many studies have proved its effectiveness. Good thing such programs are made, especially since it can be done at home.
Posted by: Rebecca Kavel | 02/22/2012 at 01:42 PM