Your 2-Year Hearing Aid Check-Up: What to Expect at Your Annual Hearing Test
Two years into wearing hearing aids, you know a lot more about your hearing than you did when you first started!
You’ve had time to experience your hearing aids in everyday situations, figure out which environments are easiest or most challenging, and notice what works well for you. Your 2-year annual appointment is an opportunity to build on that experience.
During your appointment, your clinician will reassess your hearing, check the condition and performance of your hearing aids, and talk with you about how well they are meeting your needs. If anything has changed, your hearing aids can be adjusted to match your current hearing and listening preferences.
In this article, we’ll explain what happens at your 2-year annual appointment, what your clinician will check, and why regular follow-up is an important part of long-term hearing care.
Key Takeaways
- Your hearing can change gradually over time, even when you haven’t noticed a difference.
- Your clinician will update your hearing test and compare your results with previous assessments.
- Your hearing aids will be cleaned, inspected, and checked for performance and wear.
- Your devices can be fine-tuned based on your updated hearing and real-world listening experience.
- After two years of use, your feedback about challenging listening situations can help your clinician personalize your hearing care.
- A two-year checkup is also a good time to discuss hearing aid comfort, battery performance, connectivity, tinnitus, or any other concerns you’ve noticed.
- A change in your hearing does not automatically mean you need new hearing aids.
In this article
- Why is Your 2-Year Hearing Test Important?
- What Should You Bring to Your Appointment?
- What Happens During Your 2-Year Annual Hearing Test?
- Has Your Hearing Changed Since Your Last Visit?
- How Are Your Hearing Aids Performing?
- Will Your Hearing Aids Need Adjustments?
- What if Your Hearing Needs Have Changed?
- What if My Hearing Hasn’t Changed?
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Next Steps
Why is Your 2-Year Hearing Test Important?
By the two-year mark, your clinician has more information to work with than they did when you first received your hearing aids.
Your previous hearing tests provide a record of how your hearing has changed over time, while your experience wearing your devices gives your clinician insight into how you’re hearing in real-world situations.
Maybe restaurants have become easier, but group conversations are still challenging. Maybe your hearing aids work well most of the time, but you notice more difficulty when you’re watching television or talking to someone from another room. You may also have noticed changes in comfort, battery life, connectivity, or how often you need to adjust the volume.
Your annual appointment gives you the opportunity to talk about all these things. During your appointment, your clinician can:
- Reassess your current hearing levels
- Compare your results with previous hearing tests
- Check your hearing aids for wear, damage, and performance
- Professionally clean your devices
- Review how you’re using your hearing aids
- Make programming adjustments if needed
- Discuss any new concerns or listening challenges
- Determine whether your current hearing aids are still meeting your needs
The goal isn’t simply to see whether your hearing has changed. It’s to make sure your hearing care continues to fit your life.
What Should You Bring to Your Appointment?
There is no special preparation needed before your annual hearing test. The most important thing to bring is your hearing aids so your clinician can inspect, clean, test, and adjust them if needed.
It’s also helpful to bring:
- Your hearing aid charger
- Any hearing aid accessories you regularly use
- Your smartphone if you use it with your hearing aids
- Your health card
- Your insurance information if you’d like to discuss coverage
- A family member or partner if you’d like them to join you
You don’t need to change your usual hearing aid routine before your appointment. In fact, using your hearing aids normally can give you useful information to discuss with your clinician.
Ready for Your 2-Year Check-In?
Your annual hearing test is a chance to check in on your hearing, your hearing aids, and how well they’re working for you.
What Happens During Your 2-Year Annual Hearing Test?
Your appointment typically takes 45 minutes to an hour, depending on your needs and any concerns you’d like to discuss.
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Check-In and Hearing History
Your clinician will start by asking how things have been going since your last appointment. This may include questions about:
- Changes you’ve noticed in your hearing
- How often you’re wearing your hearing aids
- How well your hearing aids have been working for you and what improvements you’ve noticed
- Listening situations that are still difficult
- Changes in your lifestyle or daily routine
- Hearing aid comfort
- Battery or charging performance
- Bluetooth or connectivity issues
- Tinnitus or other ear-related concerns
After two years with your hearing aids, your personal experience is an important part of the appointment. Let your clinician know what is working well and what isn’t.
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Ear Examination
Your clinician will look inside your ears using an otoscope. This quick examination checks for things such as earwax buildup or other changes that could affect your hearing or hearing aid use. It’s painless and takes less than a minute per ear.
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Updated Hearing Test
You’ll then complete an updated hearing assessment to determine whether your hearing has changed. You’ll listen to different tones through headphones and respond whenever you hear them. You may also complete speech testing to measure how well you understand spoken words.
There are no right or wrong answers. Your responses simply help your clinician understand what you’re hearing today.
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Compare Your Hearing Results
One of the most valuable parts of regular hearing testing is being able to compare your results over time. Your clinician can look at your current hearing levels alongside your previous results and identify whether there have been any meaningful changes.
Hearing loss can progress gradually, so changes aren’t always obvious in everyday life. Regular testing can help identify those changes and determine whether your hearing aids need to be adjusted.
How Are Your Hearing Aids Performing?
Your hearing test is only part of the appointment. Your hearing aids will also be checked to make sure they’re continuing to perform properly.
After two years of regular use, your hearing aids have likely been through thousands of hours of everyday wear. Routine cleaning and inspection can help keep them working properly and identify potential issues.
Your clinician may:
- Professionally clean your hearing aids
- Inspect the devices for wear or damage
- Check the microphones and receivers
- Check rechargeable battery performance
- Test the hearing aids’ output
- Check your programming
- Test connectivity with your smartphone or accessories
- Replace filters, domes, or other maintenance components when needed
If something doesn’t feel or sound quite right, this is the time to mention it. Even small concerns, such as needing to turn the volume up more often or finding certain environments more difficult than before, can help your clinician determine whether an adjustment is needed.
Make the Most Out of Your Annual Hearing Test
Bring your hearing aids, charger, and any questions or concerns you’ve noticed since your last visit.
Will Your Hearing Aids Need Adjustments?
They may. If your hearing test shows that your hearing has changed, your clinician can adjust your hearing aids to better match your current hearing levels. Adjustments can also be based on what you’re experiencing in everyday life.
For example, you might find that:
- Voices sound less clear in restaurants
- You are turning the volume up more often
- Television is becoming harder to understand
- Group conversations require more concentration
- Certain sounds feel too loud
- Your hearing aids don’t feel as comfortable as they used to
Your clinician can use this feedback, along with your hearing test results, to fine-tune your devices. Hearing aid programming isn’t a one-time process. Your hearing and listening needs can change over time, and your hearing aids can often be adjusted to keep up.
What if Your Hearing Needs Have Changed?
A change in your hearing does not automatically mean you need new hearing aids. In many cases, existing hearing aids can be reprogrammed to accommodate changes in hearing levels. Your clinician will consider your updated hearing test, the performance of your current devices, and your everyday listening needs before making any recommendations.
If your hearing aids are still providing the right level of support, continuing to use them may be the best option. If your hearing has changed significantly, or your lifestyle and listening needs have changed, your clinician can explain whether different technology may provide additional benefits.
The important thing is that any recommendation is based on your current hearing and needs, rather than simply how long you’ve owned your hearing aids.
What if My Hearing Hasn’t Changed?
That’s great! An annual hearing test isn’t only about finding changes. It also helps confirm that your hearing has remained stable and provides another point of comparison for future appointments.
If your hearing hasn’t changed, your clinician can still make sure your hearing aids are clean, functioning properly, and programmed appropriately.
You may also find that small adjustments can improve your experience even when your hearing levels remain the same. Your preferences, routines, and listening environments can change over time, too.
Your Two-Year Check-In Is Also About Your Experience
After two years, you have a much better understanding of what you want from your hearing aids. This is a good time to think about questions such as:
- What has become easier? Maybe you can follow conversations more easily at home or feel more comfortable participating in social situations.
- What is still difficult? You may still struggle in restaurants, large groups, or when several people are talking at once.
- Has your lifestyle changed? A new job, more travel, increased social activity, or different hobbies can change the types of listening environments you encounter.
- Are you using all the features available to you? Your clinician can show you how to get more from features such as Bluetooth streaming, smartphone apps, listening programs, or accessories.
Your answers can help shape the next stage of your hearing care.
Keep Your Hearing Aids Working for You
Your day-to-day experience with your hearing aids matters. Talk to your clinician about what’s working well, what’s changed, and anything you’d like to improve.
Frequently Asked Questions
How often should I have my hearing tested after getting hearing aids?
Annual hearing assessments are generally recommended to monitor changes in your hearing and make sure your hearing aids continue to meet your needs. Your clinician may recommend more frequent testing depending on your individual circumstances.
Do I need to bring my hearing aids to my annual hearing test?
Yes. Your clinician will want to inspect, clean, test, and potentially adjust your hearing aids during the appointment.
Will my hearing aids be adjusted during my appointment?
If your hearing has changed or you’re experiencing difficulties in certain situations, your clinician may adjust your hearing aids based on your updated hearing results and feedback.
Do I need new hearing aids after two years?
Not necessarily. Hearing aids can continue to provide effective support for several years with proper care and maintenance. Your clinician can assess the condition and performance of your current devices before discussing whether an upgrade may be beneficial.
What if my hearing seems fine?
It’s still important to have your hearing checked regularly. Hearing changes can happen gradually and may not always be noticeable. Regular testing also gives you and your clinician a record of your hearing over time.
What if I’m having trouble with my hearing aids but my hearing hasn’t changed?
Your hearing aids may simply need cleaning, maintenance, troubleshooting, or programming adjustments. Let your clinician know about any issues you’re experiencing so they can determine what is causing the problem.
Next Steps
After two years with your hearing aids, your annual appointment is an opportunity to take a step back and look at the bigger picture.
How has your hearing changed? How are your hearing aids performing? Are there still situations where you struggle? And are your current devices continuing to fit your lifestyle? Your clinician can help answer these questions by looking at your updated hearing results, your hearing aid performance, and your experience over the past two years.
Book your 2-year annual hearing test today to keep your hearing, your hearing aids, and your ongoing care on track.
