I've been putting this off for a couple of years. I'm sure my hearing is degraded -- I'm in my late 60s. So in my research about age related hearing loss, I came across this from the National Institute of Aging.

 

Quote

Signs of Hearing Loss
Some people have a hearing problem and don’t realize it. You should see your doctor if you:

 

Have trouble hearing over the telephone
Find it hard to follow conversations when two or more people are talking
Often ask people to repeat what they are saying
Need to turn up the TV volume so loud that others complain
Have a problem hearing because of background noise
Think that others seem to mumble
Can’t understand when women and children speak to you

 

Age-Related Hearing Loss (Presbycusis)
Presbycusis, or age-related hearing loss, comes on gradually as a person gets older. It seems to run in families and may occur because of changes in the inner ear and auditory nerve. Presbycusis may make it hard for a person to tolerate loud sounds or to hear what others are saying.

 

Age-related hearing loss usually occurs in both ears, affecting them equally. The loss is gradual, so someone with presbycusis may not realize that he or she has lost some of his or her ability to hear.

In that list of 7 signs, I can check "yes" to every item, except the TV sound thing because I don't watch TV. When I came to No. 7, having trouble understanding  women and children (higher frequencies, said a friend who's been through this), I said to myself, bingo! 

 

Re Presbycusis: I also cannot tolerate loud sounds such as screaming motorcycles on Sukhumvit and diesel noise from the big Michelin-man bedecked dump trucks. 

 

So, any recommendations for an audiologist, @Sheryl or others? Thank you. 

 

If you are in Bangkok I suggest you go to Saint Louis Hospital on Sathorn. They have several clinical audiologists on staff, the most experienced of these seems to be Ms. Phakawan Srijan

 

https://saintlouis.or.th/doctor_search/result?utf8=✓&doctor_name=&doctor_depart=57eb7c57047882000100058f&doctor_skill=&all=all&commit=search

(in google chrome translation it comes up as "Mr" Pakawan Srichand - same person 

 

Update: No one answered the phone at St. Louis, despite calling 6 times in an hour and a half. Not even an answering machine.

 

I gave up and then spent quite a bit of time researching my options. Ended up with Assoc. Prof. Dr. Permsarp Isipradit who has a few bookable hours at MedPark and at Bumrungrad. One of his specialties is hearing loss. 

 

After a chat and an ear cleaning, it was time for the sound booth and audio specialist. Very boring.

 

Turns out my right ear has lost some ability with high frequencies, the left ear not so much. The doctor said there's nothing vital to do now since my hearing decline is not too steep. << My words as it was a bit hard, as usual, understanding mask-muffled speech. The doctor's English was fine and I felt very satisfied with his explanations.