I Developed SSHL and Severe Tinnitus on 4/3/2016

@Dominic1955

It is great to see your progress. I am really glad that your T is very improved along your hearing.

 

This is good news! There is hope. I do hope things continue to get better for you and that you enjoy that holiday.

 

Do you still take nortriptyline Dominic? I used to take that but the dry mouth was bad. It seemed to help my tinnitus though.

 

NO, I STOPPED ALL MEDS, I WAS TAKING 7.5 MG OF REMERON FOR SLEEP ONLY
I DID NOT NOTICE ANY DIFFERENCE WITH ANY MEDS I TOOK ( INCLUDING XANAX)
I THINK THAT WHATEVER CAUSED MY SUDDEN HEARING LOSS HEALED.
ITS ALMOST 3 WEEKS NOW AND I FELL SO THANKFULL !
DOM

 

Pleased Dominic, great news...

 

Hey everyone!
Still doing well, almost a month now!
Tinnitus is much less intrusive
Hearing is better
No dizziness or hypercusis
Hopefully will write a success story soon
If you just develop Tinnitus and sudden hearing loss hang in there it will improve!
Dom

 

My improvement lasted 5 weeks, symptoms are now back! Hearing loss and very LOUD tinnitus!
No explanation.

 

Now hypercusis is back!
10 months and feeling terrible again.
Is there anyone out there with SSHL and tinnitus who got better? Is it normal to have set backs of this magnitude?

 

Hi Dominic,
Sorry to hear that you are suffering again. I think many of us go through spikes, when tinnitus gets louder and more bothersome but it seems odd to me that your hearing loss fluctuates. Did the vertigo also return? If so, could be Meniere's?

 

@Lorac, I did not get the vertigo or the blocked sensation that I was experiencing.
For 6 weeks my
Hearing improved and the T was soft and manageable
Now for last 10 days my hearing dropped and my T LOUD, I also have mild hypercusis.
I did not do anything unusual
I think that I am not going to better and it's depressing
How are you ? Have you habituated?
Dom

 

I am thinking that I may repeat my MRI with contrast to make sure that I don't have a acoustic neuroma. My hearing loss is dramatic and my T is like a washing machine with a siren

 

The hearing loss in my left ear was sudden, profound and permanent, and with it came the onslaught of powerful pain and noise. It was like a wrecking ball to my auditory system and life as I knew it. Oddly, the sudden and extreme nature of my hearing loss might actually be my advantage in comparison to your situation, in terms of habituation. I don't expect any hearing and I do expect constant T and reaction to every noise. I have periodic spikes but I've decided those are just part of the equation and I ride them out. I don't like what this has done to my life but yes, I am habituating.
I don't know why your hearing comes and goes. It is probably harder to habituate to your changing situation. At least, I know the devil I am dealing with. I hope you find some answers. Good luck Dominic!

 

Try not to get too despondent. Maybe it's just a setback and things will improve again. My T sounds like a washing machine too. I've had it about 8 month. Sleep is still very difficult.

Just a thought... have you checked your blood pressure?

 

Well, I'm now 5 years in from SSHL and horrendous tinnitus. Its not better, my hearing aids help a little, I can hear better than when the TIA happened, (that was total loss in one ear, but it's come back slowly but very distorted, still is ), but my face is numb, ear feels full and ears screeching as I write. I'm vaguely off balance. HOWEVER, it's not this bad every day, I sometimes get a better day and I think depression is making it worse than it may be. There is no end to it, but we have to carry on, smile and live life to the best we can.

 

@Lorac, thank you for your reply. You are probably correct, I have 2 patients who develop sudden hearing loss had associated vertigo and are totally deaf and have habituated to the T in about 1 year. I still struggling and it's now 10 months
@AuntSally, my blood pressure and blood work normal. Do you have hearing loss?
Dom

 

@slipware, thank u for your reply. My symptoms are almost identical to yours. I never completely lost my hearing but I do have distorted hearing loud T always and then episodes of hypercusis and unsteadiness (I had two episodes of vertigo in last 10 months)
Would you consider yourself habituated?
Dom

 

No, I'm not habituated but I try to get in with it. Out of interest, I had a TIA, which caused my SSHL. Hence my tinnitus. I have a heart issue which caused the clot. Have you had your heart checked for AF?

 

I don't have any other medical issues except the Tinnitus and hearing loss
My MRI in April was normal, I repeated the MRI yesterday an I am waiting for results
Dom

 

Are you looking for acoustic neuroma on MRI?

 

Yes

 

My MRI was negative!
I guess that I have Ménière's disease or a variation of it
Still struggling with T and hearing loss
Occasionally hypercusis and dizziness
11 months on march 2nd and I do have occasional days where the T improves temporarily
Dom

 

We are the damned in hell. We just have to get on with it. Maybe the suffering will cleanse our karma.

 

It's now a year since my SSHL. I admit that there is an improvement since early March. My hearing is better in low frequency, my hypercusis much improved, my blocked feeling is gone, unfortunately my T persist but I seem to ignore it while working. Morning are the loudest!
I am spending less time on this forum.
Dom

 

Well that sounds like good news to me Dom. I was just wondering how you were the other day when I came across an older post. You sound like you are coping much better. How is the sleep? I meant to ask about your T sound a while ago. You said it's like a washing machine sound. Does that mean it's a pulsating kind of sound? Sorry to ask but mine pulsates and I don't like hearing my heartbeat, every change in rhythm, every skipped beat. The level varies. Louder in the morning. Quieter in the afternoon and I can relax and feel yay!!! Sometimes I loose it if I'm busy and in a noisy environment but mostly I hear it 24/7. I hate it.

 

13 months now and having a bad!!!!!!! Day

 

It's now 13 months since my sshl and tinnitus, I have not improved, still loud intrusive T and significant hearing loss with H, using hearing aid does not help much.
It's hard to continue to try!
Sorry that I am so negative
If anyone noticed an improvement after one year please reply
Thank you !

 

Hey Dom-

Sorry to hear of your current situation, and the seeming lack of progress. After 13 months, on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being full habituated, 1 being not at all, where are you?

mf

 

probably a 5?

 

Hey Dom,

I appreciate you like me want to be a 10! But 5 is better than 1 too. Are you aware of what is going on for you in your life when you are most unaware of your T/H? Do you journal? I had a "terrible" day yesterday, 10 n 10 all day till bed time, and I am still unsure what the cause was. I know one path is to look for exogenous indicators, like exercise, nutrition, environment, medications, but I do believe theres an ocean of reasons in the mind too. Ironically the day before, I had been to see the Ear specialist at Northwestern who was pretty negative, and it had been weighing on my mind....then I wake up at 10 n 10.

Which dial could you turn just a little bit to get that 5 to 6?

mf

 

The volume of the T is not changing,I find myself trying to pull my awareness away from the noise but it's a struggle. I tell myself it's just a noise but it's in my brain. I also still experience hypercussis.
I am able to work and concentrate on my patients but it's hard. By 5 pm I am exhausted, but my anxiety is gone and it's a plus.
I still take 0.25mgof Xanax to help with sleep, I have fan and sound machine at night. I usually end up awake at 4am
Dom