Hearing Aids- wear in parks or not

[thomasclan85]

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[Nanajo1]

I think you have to determine if your DD would better enjoy the parks with the hearing aids or will she be content with her level of hearing without them. I'm an adult, new to hearing aids and wore them for the first time to WDW last month. At first it was a little overwelming. I didn't realize how much noise I hadn't heard. But I adjusted and enjoyed shows without having to ask DH what I missed. I might try a test outing where you know the noise level and see how DD reacts.

 

[thomasclan85]

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[SueM in MN]

Thanks for the reply. Her hearing aids are self adjusting. We felt (her hearing doctor and us) that it would be easier for her since we wouldn't know what things sounded like to her and she doesn't always understand how to express herself. I guess I'll ask her doctor next month and see what she suggests but I'm leaning toward leaving them in the room. Thanks!

Besides the good advice you got and asking the doctor.......
You can always try leaving them in the room one day and another take them with you. What you can interpret of her reaction might tell you whether she'd be better off with or without them.
Also, you might want to arrange your day so that she doesn't have them on when you do attractions where you might be worried about them (thrill rides or rides where they might get wet).

 

[Talking Hands]

Personally I prefer not to wear my hearing aids in the parks. Too easy to damage, lose, etc. I would rather depend oninterpreters and assistive aids like handheld captioning and reflective captioning.

 

[thomasclan85]

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[Princess Nancy]

My DD has a mild loss. I found that at DW we definitely did not need the aids and infact we were a bit overstimulated and I actually found myself seeking a quiet place for her o unwind.

I did go to guest services and they gave me foam earplugs? Imagine that someone who needs aids needing earplugs. But it definitely helped.

I think part of it was overstimulation, but also there is so much to hear, it is overwhelming to many children. Oh I guess tha tis the definition of overstimulation isn't it?

Anyway, that's my 2 cents worth.

BTW, you can insure your aids, have you looked into it? Our aids are insured by Oticon for loss and damage. I think the price ranges from 100-300 dollars.

Best of luck.

 

[Brenle]

My DD has hearing aids as well. She's had them since she was 3. We have always used them at WDW. On the wet rides, she takes them off and I put them in a ziploc bag. And you're right, the parks are loud. But she needs to hear me in the midst of all the noise and commotion. Some of the attractions are too loud and she adjusts the volume on the HA manually. Since her HA are self-adjusting, that is a HUGE plus.

You know your child better than anyone so do what you feel is best. It will probably be a trial-and-error kind of thing.

As for Fantasmic, take advantage of the closed captioning. The speakers are right behind you so you can hear everything really well. I hope you enjoy your vacation.

 

[thomasclan85]

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[thomasclan85]

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[WoodysRoundup]

Two of our three children wear hearing aids. DS has a moderate to moderately severe hearing loss. DD has a mild to moderate hearing loss. Yes, they ARE expensive and we also paid for them ourselves. However, please do insure them. There will be accidents! DS took his shirt off while on the potty and his hearing aid fell in the toilet! He was trying to change quickly for school. There have been other accidents as well (both w/ our children and friends children with aids). We have some piece of mind knowing they are insured. I would strongly encourage you to have your child wear her aids at WDW. As we know, HI kids are super sensitive to loud noises even without their aids in. Hers are self adjusting. Let her wear them and experience Disney with the biggest hearing boost. She is not an adult so she is still soaking in sounds and information that she's never been exposed to before. We also carry ziploc bags for the water rides. I just put them in a small one and stash them in my purse. You could also have (DW?) put the hearing aid cases in her purse and put THAT in a larger ziploc bag. This way, they'd be protected from potentially being smashed as well. We just scoot off to the side of a ride entrance and safely put them away. Since your DD does not sign, interpreters wouldn't help her. Now that DS is a bit older and very verbal and reading, he tells me he would have never wanted to not have his hearing aids.....just my opinions. Please let us know what you decide. Have a MAGICAL trip!

 

[Talking Hands]

Woody'sRoundup,
You are wrong in thinking interpreters will not help a person who doesn't sign. In most cases they are mouthing the words as they are signing and you can speech read them quite clearly. Also there are oral interpreters who specialize in working with deaf and hard of hearing who do not sign. They mouth the words and substitute comparable words that are easier to see. At conferences I have had people come up to me and the interpreters after a session to say that they were glad they sat near me because they were able to speech read everything that was said and it was a big help.

 

[Brenle]

Lisbet,

My DD "reads lips" as we call it and it does help her when she can't quite hear what is being said, or when she's picking up bits and pieces. The closed captioning does help in situations like Fantasmic where the noise can carry and cuts out due to wind. We sit in the back, close to the spaker and she doesn't have a problem hearing and gets the CC as well.

 

[WoodysRoundup]

Woody'sRoundup,
You are wrong in thinking interpreters will not help a person who doesn't sign. In most cases they are mouthing the words as they are signing and you can speech read them quite clearly. Also there are oral interpreters who specialize in working with deaf and hard of hearing who do not sign. They mouth the words and substitute comparable words that are easier to see. At conferences I have had people come up to me and the interpreters after a session to say that they were glad they sat near me because they were able to speech read everything that was said and it was a big help.

I realize that interpreters can help a person who doesn't sign. My son looks at lips when people are talking as well. However, for a young child (that the OP mentioned has limited speech abilities) who just got her hearing aids, it was my OPINION (that's all) that given her age and new aids, the interpreters might not be as much help as actually getting the boost from her hearing aids. She has just a mild-moderate loss. With all due respect ,your hearing loss is much more severe than hers so you rely on the interpreters more than your aids in the parks. You stated that you leave yours in the room. But for kids with more hearing, the boost the aids can give them can make all the difference in the world. No need to get defensive or state that I'm "wrong". I fully respect your opinions and with my experience with two hearing impaired kids, I'd hope you'd respect mine. The OP was just asking for OPINIONS.

 

[Val]

My DD10 has moderate bilateral loss...she does wear her hearing aids to the park, but she turns them off on the "loud" rides or the portion of rides that she thinks are "scary" and she doesn't want to hear it! After many trips to the parks, and much help/advice from moderator Talking Hands, we have found the reflective captioning to be the best, but DD can read well now. Before she just got the "jist" of the show, but now she reads along (example: in Mickey's Philharmagic she turned to us and told us she NEVER knew Donald Duck said REAL words!). She signs some, and likes to catch the interpreted shows whenever possible, so we try and make those shows.

In general, we have found WDW and Universal to be VERY good. Busch Gardens was a disaster for her- she can't go on the rough rides because of her hearing condition (mondini's defect) and she was too BIG for the little kid rides. None of the shows at BG were interpreted or had captioning, so she and I won't be going back.

We ALWAYS take a water proof bag with us for the aids, AND we use the dry and store to dry her aids out each night. Once at Hilton Head she jumped in the pool with both her aids ON....and then immediately jumped out and ran them to me. I ran to the room and put them in the dry and store....and by George they worked! The dry and store global is pretty portable and worth its weight in gold! (dries out cell phones and ipods, too!) Also, we usually go in the summer, and it is hot and sweaty. We get covers for her aids that help resist moisture- you can find these at Harris communications or wherever you buy hearing aid supplies online. I find these really help.

I am surprised and excited to see so many HOH people on the DIS. It is heartening to hear about so many kids doing so well with hearing loss....it is a bump in the road, or a different path in life, and NOT a disability.

 

[SueM in MN]

The OP will need to decide which suggestions will be helpful and which won't work, so please no fighting.
Because the OP's child also has William's Sydrome in addition to a hearing loss, some suggestions that work well for kids without additional concerns may not work as well for OP's child.
From things I have read about people with William's Syndrome, about 50% have a fear of loud noises and some have hypersensitive hearing at certain frequencies, so those things might have an impact on the decision on whether or not to wear them. In this situation, the OP might just have to play it by ear (pun intended).

AND we use the dry and store to dry her aids out each night. Once at Hilton Head she jumped in the pool with both her aids ON....and then immediately jumped out and ran them to me. I ran to the room and put them in the dry and store....and by George they worked! The dry and store global is pretty portable and worth its weight in gold! (dries out cell phones and ipods, too!)

Is this the Dry and Store you were mentioning? It looks like a really clever solution to a problem!

 

[WoodysRoundup]

SueM in MN .......Yes, that IS the Dry and Store unit Val was talking about. It is wonderful unit. We also take it with us on vacation. It not only removes moisture, but also disinfects. In addition, it can fit more than one pair of hearing aids.

 

[SueM in MN]

SueM in MN .......Yes, that IS the Dry and Store unit Val was talking about. It is wonderful unit. We also take it with us on vacation. It not only removes moisture, but also disinfects. In addition, it can fit more than one pair of hearing aids.

thanks.
pretty cool little item.

 

[Val]

The dry and store has saved the day for not only our DD's aids, but many other items. It does tend to dry out the ear molds, so we have to replace those a little more often. Still, I put the molds in as well as the aids because I like that disinfectant property- our DD has frequent ear infections because of some of her middle ear problems....given that this exacerbates the inner ear stuff, anything we can do to cut down on the potential for infections is worth the extra cost of ear molds!

The dry and store really does travel well. The bricks you place for drying things out aren't very expensive, and in three years we have only had to replace the light once- after the unit was dropped and we BROKE the light. We have had other similar models, but we like this one best.

 

[SueM in MN]

Another thing that came up in this thread was captioning; there are several kinds available, based on the type of attraction, but you do have to be able to read to use any of the types of captioning. There is a link to the 'Hearing Disabilities' part of the WDW Guidebook for Guests with Disabilities in post #3 of the disABILITIES FAQs thread that tells more about the services available.