Your audiologist fine-tunes your hearing aids. A guided listening program can help you train how you listen.
Getting hearing aids is a big step, and for many people, it makes an immediate difference. Sounds become clearer, conversations are easier to follow, and everyday life feels more connected again.
But it’s also common to notice that some situations are still challenging.
You might find that:
- conversations in restaurants are still difficult
- group discussions take more effort
- fast talkers are harder to keep up with
- watching TV is better, but not perfect
If this sounds familiar, it doesn’t mean your hearing aids aren’t working. In most cases, they’re doing exactly what they’re designed to do – improving your access to sound.
The missing piece is often not the ears, but how the brain processes what you’re hearing.
Hearing vs Understanding
Hearing aids help make sounds audible. They amplify and clarify speech so it reaches your ears more effectively. But understanding speech, especially in complex environments, relies on your brain. It has to:
- filter out background noise
- focus on the voice you want to hear
- fill in gaps when speech is unclear
- keep up with the pace of conversation
Over time, when hearing loss is present, the brain can become less efficient at these tasks. Even after you start using hearing aids, it can take time to rebuild those listening skills.
That’s why many people say, “I can hear, but I still struggle to understand.”
Training Your Listening Skills
This is where auditory training comes in, often delivered through a Listening and Communication Enhancement (LACE) program.
Rather than changing your hearing aids, LACE AI Pro focuses on improving how you process sound. It’s a structured way of helping your brain get better at handling real-world listening situations.
Think of it like physiotherapy, but for listening.
The goal isn’t perfection. It’s to reduce effort, improve clarity, and build confidence in situations that currently feel difficult.
Hear More’s Approach to Auditory Training
At Hear More Audiology, we offer a guided listening program called LACE AI Pro, designed to help people get more out of their hearing aids. It runs on your smartphone (both iPhone and Android), so you can complete short, structured exercises at home or wherever it suits you.
These exercises are designed to target the same challenges people experience day to day, including:
- understanding speech in background noise
- following rapid or unclear speech
- improving auditory memory and attention
The program adapts to your performance, gradually increasing the level of difficulty as your skills improve.
Importantly, this isn’t about adding another device or replacing what you already have. It’s about helping you get more out of your current hearing aids.
What Kind of Difference Can It Make?
LACE isn’t new. It’s based on over 20 years of research into auditory training, with numerous published studies showing improvements in listening ability across different situations. LACE AI Pro builds on this foundation, using updated technology to deliver the training in a more accessible way.
People who complete the program often report that listening feels less tiring and more manageable.
You may notice:
- less effort needed to follow conversations
- improved confidence in social settings
- better ability to cope in noisy environments
It’s not an instant fix, and it doesn’t replace your hearing aids. But for many people, it helps bridge the gap between hearing sounds and understanding them.
Is It Right for You?
Not everyone needs auditory training. But it can be particularly helpful if:
- you’re still finding certain situations difficult despite wearing hearing aids
- listening feels effortful or tiring
- you want to build more confidence in social or noisy environments
Hearing aids are the foundation, but ongoing support and training can make a meaningful difference in how you experience everyday listening.
The Next Step
If you feel like you’re hearing better but not quite understanding as well as you’d like, it’s worth having a conversation.
Hear More Audiology can talk through your specific challenges and whether a guided listening program like LACE AI Pro could help you get more out of your hearing aids. Book an appointment.
