An expensive hearing aid allows Sharon Stone to hear sounds she has missed for the past 35 years.
“It’s given me a more full life,” she said. “I’ve heard birds sing, bells ring and my floors squeak.”
The $7,500 hearing aid also lets Stone to hear the sound on the television and computer and to answer the telephone, allowing her to work at the Summerland Museum.
Stone had been looking for a suitable hearing aid for the past three years, searching on the Internet and contacting manufacturers of various hearing aids.
Her hearing aid includes a box which connects to the telephone, allowing her to make and receive calls.
The hearing aid does not just amplify all tones but works to bring in the high tones. Stone said 60 per cent of those with hearing loss have trouble with high tones.
The hearing aid is a wireless model which she compares to a Bluetooth cellular phone unit. It has a 10-metre range, which allows her to take calls throughout the museum.
While the $7,500 price tag is expensive, Stone said government funding is available.
To get the hearing aid, Stone worked with EATI in Vancouver, Open Door Group in Penticton and the Western Institute for the Hearing and Speech Impaired.
While she has had good success with her hearing aid, she said it will not work for all who have hearing loss.
“It’s still an assistant,” she said. “It doesn’t do miracles and it’s not for everyone.”
According to the Canadian Association of Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists, one in 10 Canadians has a speech, language or hearing problem. Among those over 65, that figure rises to 20 per cent and among those over 75, it is 40 per cent.