It is not as rare as it used to be to see someone who is over the age 100. At Resonance, we’ve had several clients over the age of 100 decide to get new hearing aids and recently, at one of our clinics, a 103 year old decided it was time to start wearing hearing aids for the very first time. Why start now? The primary reason was the need to hear family and friends. 

This client is not alone in postponing the decision to address their hearing; most people with hearing loss delay getting hearing aids. What is remarkable is the age at which the client finally decided to try them. When someone discovers they have hearing loss, one response I hear from time to time is: “I’m not sure how many years I have left, and I don’t want to invest in hearing aids.”  

Hearing is important throughout the lifespan, developing at about 20 weeks of gestation and thought to be the last sense to go before death. Our sense of hearing connects us to our environment and to the people in our lives. Social connectedness contributes to a high quality of life and is an important factor for longevity.

As a clinician, fitting hearing aids to a 103-year-old requires a different approach than fitting hearing aids to a 63-year-old. It is a much more difficult task. Although starting earlier with amplification is better for everyone involved, we are pleasantly surprised at the success we’ve achieved thus far with this client. It turns out that, when it comes to hearing better, ‘new tricks’ can be learned at any age.