Thomas recently upgraded to the Signia Pure Charge&Go IX hearing aids, which feature the company’s all-new RealTime Conversation Enhancement solution to offer a substantial improvement in conversational ability for patients in noisy group settings.
Iselin, NJ – November 28, 2023 – When Nashville-based meteorologist Meaghan Thomas is asked about her journey with hearing loss and hearing aids, her eyes light up as she explains how a fortuitous work-related earpiece fitting and hearing test with a local hearing care professional (HCP) changed her life forever. The hearing test confirmed what Thomas had long suspected and avoided: nerve damage was reducing her hearing ability – and the most effective solution was to start wearing hearing aids in her early 20s.
Nearly a decade later, Thomas has learned to take pride in wearing hearing aids and has become a fierce advocate for eliminating the false perceptions and stigmas that discourage people from seeking hearing-related healthcare. Thomas now splits her time working as a meteorologist for Nashville’s WKRN TV studios and running her non-profit foundation, The Heart of Hearing, which was founded in 2021 to spread awareness and fundraise to provide hearing aids for young professionals who can’t afford them.
“It’s been a long journey from getting my first hearing aids in 2014 to where I am now, and my goal is to ensure that regardless of a person’s age, abilities, location, culture or finances, they have the resources needed to equip themselves with effective hearing care,” Thomas explained. “Living with hearing loss can cause insecurity and anxiety due to persistent communication issues and the impact they have on relationships, but when a person can regain or improve their communication and feel confident with who they are, it makes life so much easier.”
Meaghan has been partnered with Signia since 2022 and has experienced how the brand’s commitment to innovation has made a sizable difference in her ability to hear clearly, confidently communicate with others, and socialize easily in noisy group conversations.
“The experiences I have today with my new Signia Pure Charge&Go IX hearing aids show just how far the technology has advanced. My hearing has never been better, and they’re so comfortable that I forget I’m wearing them – they’re also virtually invisible to those around me,” adds Thomas.
Hearing The Difference with Signia Pure Charge&Go IX
Following her fitting with Dr. Randi Yontz, AuD and Dr. Hannah Kostrzewski, AuD, of Aspire Audiology & Hearing in Nashville, Thomas has experienced first-hand the unique difference top-quality hearing technology makes with the new Signia model she uses – which leverages Signia’s brand new Integrated Xperience (IX) platform to tackle one of the hearing aid industry’s greatest challenges: hearing in noisy environments.
“In Meaghan’s role at WKRN TV studios, as an entrepreneur, and in her personal life, she requires hearing aids that support a range of dynamic sounds environments,” said Dr. Yontz. “Signia Pure Charge&Go IX has made an immediate and exceptional improvement in her daily conversations and personal confidence – it’s rewarding to see the difference that better sound quality and ability to hear conversations from all directions, not just in front of her, has made.”
The Integrated Xperience (IX) platform is built on Signia’s groundbreaking Augmented Focus™ split processing technology, which processes speech and background noise separately to create a clear contrast between the two, empowering the new RealTime Conversation Enhancement solution that analyzes, augments and adapts in real-time to ensure optimal auditory perception of dynamic noisy conversations.
Reflecting Thomas’ experience, a study focused on speech performance in a group conversation scenario found that Signia Integrated Xperience provided a significant improvement in speech understanding, with 95% of participants experiencing greater hearing clarity with Signia Integrated Xperience compared to without.1
Enhanced Sound Provides Clarity of Purpose
Like many people, Meaghan Thomas’ path to better hearing was not clearcut. Beginning in childhood when she watched her father’s lifelong struggle with hearing loss and hearing aids, her later teenage and early adult years involved battling hurdles of self-doubt, insecurity and avoidance. Now that she has overcome all of these challenges, she feels compelled to share resources and support with those navigating similar journeys through hearing loss.
“I’ve always been very public, but not about my personal insecurities,” she said. “I think advocating for more awareness and dispelling the perceived stigma around hearing aids is a big part of my purpose, and is why I’ve been given this very public platform through social media. People often don’t want to admit they need help, or even that there is anything wrong. I probably could have begun using hearing aids earlier and improved some of my experiences, and I want to help others break through existing barriers to accept that hearing aids can significantly improve their everyday life.”
For more information about the Integrated Xperience platform and currently available hearing aid models, click here. For a demo video on how Integrated Xperience works, click here.
To learn more about The Heart of Hearing click here.
To watch Meaghan Thomas’ video testimonial click here.
About Signia
Signia is one of the world’s leading hearing aid brands. We aim to enhance human performance through iconic innovations and consumer-friendly designs that shape the hearing health market. Since its launch in 2016, Signia has regularly brought innovative, industry-leading solutions to the market and is a pioneer in rechargeable hearing technology.
In addition to highly innovative hearing aids, Signia also delivers tools and apps to increase customer interaction and engagement at all levels of hearing aid management. Signia, and its hearing care professionals, enable hearing aid wearers not just to correct hearing loss but to gain an edge — to Be Brilliant.
