Thread: Sudden Hearing Loss

Back in March I had a common cold took one day off work and recovered on the long week -end.
Did a few DIY jobs around the house and enjoyed listening to my high end audio system before going to bed.
Woke up to a normal day and went to work looking forward to a planned Europe trip in April - long service leave after 30 years pulling the sled.

As I left the train station and walked my usual route to the World Trade centre along Spencer St (Melbourne) my hearing suddenly changed in my right ear.......

Traffic noise quadrupled in volume and my ear felt like it was connected to a long hollow resonant pipe. A very unpleasant experience.

Ar first I thought it was a blocked Eustacian tube from the cold..........but two days later I was diagnosed as having "Sudden Sensineural Hearing Loss" (SSHL)
Which I am sure you've never heard of!

It is rare but happens to about 25 people in Melbourne each week - no warning your hearing just evaporates.

My five month trip to hell began with loss of balance, dizziness 10 days on steroids (the only treatment) then the medical "merry go round" and the depressing news that a virus had Knocked out most of my hearing nerves in the cochlear causing permanent hearing loss.

Unlike progressive hearing loss, SSHL causes severe "recruitment" which means your threshold of pain is dramatically reduced across the lost frequencies. In simple terms (for me) normal speech is distorted and painful and I was so sensitive to low frequency sound I could no longer drive my old diesel landcruiser or cope with traffic noise. All of a sudden the City is too loud!

The planned Europe trip was of course cancelled and I was off work for 5 months learning to cope with hearing through a pipe with distorted with painful sound which I seem to be stuck with. As someone who is generally fit and healthy this has been a shock and life changing event. I can say this has been the toughest health challenge of my life.

The medical profession has no solution to this problem - other than future treatment via stem cell therapy which is probably 10 years away

But when I read about other people that have suffered total hearing loss in both ears from SSHL or accident and read about DJ's tragic hearing loss problems requiring a cochlear implant I realise i don't have much to complain about. Life can dish out far worse problems as many on this thread have reported.

So I have learnt to be grateful with what I have got and to try to make this bizarre problem recede. Of course my audiophile days are gone but I am still able to work and since September I am finally getting back into the workshop.

If you have good hearing, treasure it and protect your health as best you can because the world is a very different place without it.