Ear plugs/Mic feed back

I have bought some earplugs that are called hearos and they are the kind that are like a cone with grooves in them and they are supposed to work well but I never can get them to work right. I am a singer guitarist and I never can hear myself clear enough. I dont like earplugs because it takes away the sound that I need to hear to know we sound good. But my ears hurt after practice and I dont want to loose my hearing. What should I do?

Also by the way, I have horrible feedback in my practice room, what can I do? No matter how far I try to the mics from the speakers it feedsback, and I need to have the speakers aimed somewhat at me so that I can hear myself. Please let me know what you know. THanks

As far as feedback goes, there's not a lot you can do in an enclosed space except either turn the speakers away or get yourself a more directional mic.
If you have access to an EQ, you might be able to dial out the frequency that keeps feeding back too.

For earplugs, you'd need to get used to using them... just keep using them until you learn how to compensate. Either that or turn down the monitors.

You're right to be concerned about ear damage btw. I had a major scare a coupla years ago when I let loose with a really loud guitar solo. I damaged my hearing so bad, I thought I'd screwed it up permanently. (if ya wanna majorly freak yourself out, try going around for a few days not being able to hear simple stuff like the sound of your own footsteps or the sound of your fingers rubbing together right next to your ear. It scares the crap outa ya)

I would look into custom silicon earplugs that are molded for your ears! I have a mate who has them (mine should be ready in a week or two) and apparently they are really really nice. I have some Elacins that sound similar to what you have...three layers of silicon, in a cone shape, each layer is like a thin skin...? I really like them...they really attentuate the sound nicely! like a mixing desk in my head.

I know custom-made ear plugs are expensive(mine set me back the eqivalent of aboput 150 USD,) but I'd pay way more than that for my hearing...wouldnt you?