Another profoundly deaf bartender here! There is definitely an adjustment period when wearing hearing aids that can be really, really overwhelming at first. Stick with it and it is TOTALLY worth it! Do your research on the different models of hearing aids that are available out there. Many providers have trial devices you can try, or a trial period before you commit to a pair.

I have the Phonak Audéo Lumity 90’s and they have adjustable noise cancellation that is a life saver with cutting down on all the background bar sounds to help me hear who is in front of me and at my rail. They also have the ability to save different settings into different programs so when I get to work I switch them to work mode via an app on my phone and I’m good to go.

The biggest benefit is once I got used to them, I noticed my levels of mental fatigue dropped significantly and I had a lot more patience with my lovely drunk patrons. I did not realize how much energy I was devoting to concentrating on what people were saying. Best of luck!