I recall hearing (so take this with a grain of salt), that part of the issue is when you start looking your hearing you stop exercising the skill of focusing on

I recall hearing (so take this with a grain of salt), that part of the issue is when you start looking your hearing you stop exercising the skill of focusing on a single stream of sound, such that when you get your hearing back you ability to do it has greatly diminished. Yes, directionality is an issue. But the brain post processing portion has also dwindled. So i guess getting a hearing aid sooner might be a good approach?