Sudden Hearing Loss with Tinnitus

Hello,
I am 39. Pretty healthy and I have never really had issues with my hearing. One week ago I woke up with sudden hearing loss. It felt like I just slept on the left side of my head strange and my ear was plugged. But it didn't go away. The next day the tinnitus high pitched ringing with a little fuzz started. I saw the doctor that day who diagnosed it and quickly put me on a 10 day regimen of Prednisone (60mg/day). I saw a specialist on Friday who tested my hearing. Right ear was normal, left ear was 35% only hearing low tones.

The prednisone really really really sucks for a number of reasons no one really wants to know about. The specialist is getting me off it because he tells me its not that effective. I am really hoping the hearing returns. But that I think I can deal with.

It's the ringing...... It is just debilitating. I don't know how people deal with it. I don't know how I am going to deal with it. Being in a room full of people, or a large store like Home Depot is really tough. The distortion I hear with the ambient sound of the store. It's hard to hear people talking to me at all unless I am directly paying attention to them. Ugh.

I know there is no clear relief or answer. I just wanted to reach out and see what others have done and see if anyone had any advice.

Thanks for your time
Dan

 

Hang in there. The beginning is always horrible, but it can and typically does get better. You can help this process A LOT by trying not to give a fu** -> your brain doesn't learn to associate the sound to panic and distress.

 

Hi Daniel,
I had sudden hearing loss in left ear too, a couple of years ago. Mine is permanent but too early to know if you will regain some hearing. I am keeping my fingers crossed for you.
I had difficulty with large stores at first. I wore earplugs and sounds seemed distorted and so loud! Now, I can be in these stores with no plug and no problems. I do have to pay closer attention to people in order to communicate in loud stores and similar venues. I have to rely on more visual signals but I get better at this as time rolls along.

 

Prednisone sucks donkey balls. I'm allergic to the stuff. Wish I wasn't because I believe my auditory nerves are inflamed right now. My lousy ENT just shrugs and tells me to take Aleve for the pain. Gotta love it.

At any rate, hang in there Daniel. It will take a few months but eventually you'll find your way.

 

Is it too late to have a dexamethasone injection into your middle ear?

 

This happened to me 4 years ago. Instant complete deafness in my right ear.
Had the steroids, not sure if they made a difference. Had the MRI, I had a blood clot, so I know what caused my tinnitus, which followed pretty soon after the episode. I have got some hearing back, it's distorted, and I have hearing aids. I can cope with the hearing loss, it's the T gives me some grief. It's not JUST a a noise, that too is manageable, even though it very loud! It's the strange feeling in the ear, I guess fullness, balance issues and a general feeling of feeling slightly "off". Hard to describe.

I don't give up, and nowadays sometimes I have a good ear day, and this weekend I actually had two in a row!! It's not that I was ignoring it, it's that I listened and it was quieter! Now, it's back today after a car journey, with a vengeance, but I'm hopeful that I may have more quieter (let's face it, it's NEVER actually quiet), days. When it comes back as it has today, it's like a sledge hammer hitting the senses, but I'll get there, and so will you... Good luck!