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Posted on 01/27/2012 1:28:07 PM PST by olepap
I like shooting skeet, 5-stand, and sporting clays. Unfortunately, my hearing is deteriorating, especially in my left ear. I can now barely hear women and small children. My wife is encouraging me to get hearing aids so I can better understand her instructions.
I am now using foam inserts and cheap noise canceling headphones when I shoot. I wonder if shooting is going to make my hearing even worse. I would hate to give it up.
If anybody has any experience on the topic, I would like to 'hear' about it.
My wife likes to shoot, and I was concerned she was losing her hearing, so I did a simple test. She was in the kitchen cooking dinner, so I stood out in the dining room and said “Honey - can you hear me?” in my normal voice. No answer.
So I walked slowly till about 10 feet from her again - still no answer.
So I crept up to about 5 feet from behind her. “Honey can you hear me now?”
“For the THIRD time - YES I can hear you, now leave me alone and let me cook dinner!”
Protect your ears. I’ve got high frequency hearing loss from a summer I worked in a pulp mill as a kid firing an 8 gauge industrial shotgun without adequate protection.
At the very least, get yourself some decent ELECTRONIC EARMUFFS
My Dad had the same problem. In his case, the doctor said that no amount of hearing protection would help,the recoil of the gun alone would cause increasing hearing loss with each shot. Now he won’t shoot unless there’s a really nice deer in his sights.
Good luck to you, and maybe ask a good ear doctor.
Look at the NRR (noise reduction rating) on your muffs and see how they compare with others on the market - buy the quietest ones you can find. Make sure that the cups seal well around your ears and your shooting glasses aren't interfering there.
You might look into the custom-molded reusable plugs, too. Those are usually a bit better than foam (take it from me and my Tinnitus).
Of course, I'm not married, either. ;)
/johnny
We just got the Esteem material! Thanks. However, it is $30,000 per ear and it is so new that insurance does not yet cover it—probably a year or two. It is subject to damage with any head blow of some kind and has a 70% chance of working after implanted in those who tested eligible for the procedure. 70% and $30,000 per ear and out of pocket makes one stroke their beard for awhile first, huh? :)
Thanks. :) Rita
Routine exposure to any loud noise will have a negative affect on anyone's hearing. The difference is how your hearing is currently and whether or not the damage is permanent.
Based on what you posted, it is impossible to tell if the damage is temporary or permanent. The best way to find out is to go without firing a weapon or exposure to any loud noise for a month and see how your hearing responds. If you notice improvement, the damage is temporary and the use of hearing protection is warranted to protect your hearing. If no improvement occurs, the damage is likely permanent and you would want to visit a hearing specialist to see what remedies are available.
As far as what kind of protection to use, the foam ear plugs are better than nothing, but not much. You will do yourself a world of good to purchase a set of Mickey Mouse-type hearing attenuators that provide substantially better protection or to use the noise cancelling hearing protectors another poster suggested.
If you want to be able to hear your grandkids without them having to yell themselves hoarse trying to talk to you, the sooner you address this issue, the sooner you take the necessary steps to protect one of the best gifts God gave us. Good luck!
I would recommend using both an ear plug and electronic muffs from now on while shooting. All high noise hearing damage is both permanent and cumulative. I other words it never gets better and any further damage just makes it worse.
I like the S&W ear plugs that WalMart sells. Widner’s, Midwest, Brownell’s, Sportsman’s Guide all sell electronic muffs. Harbor Freight has a very cheap version at about $15 while other electronic muffs can go to several hundred dollars.
I would also use the electronic muffs if you hunt. Several have amplification of soft sounds and “clip” noise over 80db so you can hear animals but the firearm sound is deadened.
I am over 50% hearing loss and wear hearing aids. First pair I got ripped off by a dealer. Please pay close attention to this advice it will save you several thousand dollars. Go to an audiologist. Hearing Aid stores usually do not have an audiologist but rather a licensed hearing aid dispenser who does their testing and hearing aid set up. An audiologist can more accurately determine nerve damage, do a much more accurate test, and you will get a much better idea of what type of hearing aids you need to deal with your specific loss. The Audiologist will set the hearing aids accordingly. It may take several trips to the audiologist too get them where you ar comfortable with how they work and that is normal.
If you are an honorably discharged Vet you may qualify for hearing aids through V.A. at a steep discount or no cost too you depending on income. Your hearing loss does not have to be service related. That is where I got my second and much better pair from.
If a dealer has a licensed audiologist doing the actual testing and set up of the hearing aids you are likely safe. If not? I do not recomend it nor would I go the cheaper route of buying a pair say from Walmart or CVS etc and having an audiologist set them. Let the Audiologist help you in choosing what you need.<{> I researched my first set or rather the dealer though and still got burned. It was through an Audibel Dealer who made promises technology could not keep. I was refunded a portion of the cost months later but still got stuck with less than I needed features. In short I asked for several specific features that I paid for, was promised, and did not get.
I started out with behind the ear type and now use In The Ear type which I like better. Behind the ear the hearing aid is behind the ear and a tube goes from the receiver to an ear mold going into the ear. If that tube comes loose the reciever drops and you have too look for it. They are also more likely to get water from rain etc. In The Ear type in entire hearing aid is one piece and is right at the ear canal entrance. There is also one that goes deeper in the canal I don't know too much on them.
Digital type is a must as is a feature to deal with sudden loud noises and an automatic volume level feature. Those functions are almost a must. As for just going the cheap route and buying an amplifier? You can do your hearing more harm. A hearing aid is designed to amplify in your hearing loss range and deliver all sound at a safe level.
News for the hard of hearing and the Navy Port of Call recruiting commercials are my two favorite SNL skits. LOL
His doctor knows his stuff. The human skull is also part of your hearing. Low frequencies basically can not be stopped by hearing protection and will travel through the body. A good example is the Sub Woofers many kids have in their car. You hear them or the thuds long before you see the car. No matter how hard you stop up your ears you can not escape the sound. Those kids will pay dearly and likeky so will some manufactures years down the road.
Wearing both plugs and muffs when shooting will slow down hearing loss greatly, but won't completely prevent it.
When in the AF, a firearms instructor told us he had to leave the career field due to hearing loss, even though he used the double hearing protection. And, those were the days when our M-16's were using a 22 LR adapter for qualification, not nearly as loud as 223. But he heard thousands of those little "bangs" every day, for years.
You have achieved total freedom!
Noise canceling headphone will reduce constant noise at 300 hz by about 10 db, neither of which is applicable or usefull for reducing the noise of gunfire.
Try wearing the foam plugs with over the ear hearing protection (muffs).
Check out NRA Store (online) or Bass-Pro Shop, or visit your local Wal-Mart. Save what hearing you have left.
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