I'm 43 and have had a hearing aid in my left ear for about three years.
I've lost the upper frequencies in both ears so, like a poster above, I struggle to hear women's voices although men's voices are much easier. I am also unable to hear the ending "n't" so the different between did and didn't, is and isn't, which is often the most vital part of the sentence! Now I am living in Germany and speaking German it is easier as the negative, nicht, is far more audible. Plus Germans speak more clearly anyway.
I was excited when I got my first hearing aid - until they stuck it in my ear. It is nowhere near any approximation of normal hearing; it is an aid, and does make a difference in some circumstances, but I remove it when at all possible. I can't use it when listening to classical music, for example. If on my own in the house (like now) I don't wear it. In very noisy environments it doesn't help much either. The place where it is useful for me is in environments with some background noise and where the light is a bit dim (so I can't easily lipread) and when I am talking to women.
One thing I have learned is that the brain does adjust to it so eventually it sounds better but it's still nothing like when I had a decent set of ears and as someone who loves music that is a shame. The choir that I sing with meets in a noisy echoey room so I cannot hear a thing if anyone else talks at the same time as the choir director; fortunately I am reasonable at lipreading and I have a friend at the choir who can tell me later anything I miss.
. I speak from first-hand experience.
