• Renee
  • New member
  • Offline
  • Registered: 2009-04-19
  • Posts: 2

Topic: SSHL

Hi, I was an active healthy 30 yrs old, whom laid down one night, both my ears plugged then started ringing, in the am my right ear had unplugged, but my left ear was still plugged and ringing. I have been diagnosed with idiopathic sudden sensory neurological hearing loss. The ENT I saw said there was nothing that I could do. From all that I have read this seems like it may be true. I still feel like there is something missing, does anyone know of cases where it was actually just something pluggung the inner ear. I know this is probably just wishful thinking though. I have 2 small children and I am not ready to not hear them laughing. Also, is there anyone else who has lost their hearing late in life and has has children, how did you cope. I am crying all day, and wonder how long it takes it will take until this medical issue becomes a mental health one ? Any tips would be great.

  • Larry
  • Administrator
  • Offline
  • Registered: 2008-11-21
  • Posts: 22

Re: SSHL

Hello Renee,

Sorry to hear about your sudden hearing loss. There's no good way to lose your hearing, but losing it suddenly has to be the toughest.

Has your ENT tried steroids? They have been effective in helping to recover at least some hearing in some cases. See http://www.hearinglossweb.com/Medical/C … ud/sud.htm for more information on that and on Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss in general.

Here are a couple of articles on raising kids when you have hearing loss:
http://www.hearinglossweb.com/Issues/Fa … ldamom.htm 
http://www.hearinglossweb.com/Issues/Identity/persp.htm

IT's not clear to me if your hearing loss is currently bilateral (both sides) or unilateral (one side). There are some pretty good solutions in either case, which I'll mention when I know which is appropriate.

Finally, and this is the best advice I can give you. It's critically important that you become involved with a group of other people with hearing loss. The largest organization with hundreds of local chapters is HLAA - see www.hearingloss.org and click on the "Locate Chapters" link to find the chapter nearest you.   

Smaller, but more focused on folks who lose their hearing as adults is ALDA - www.alda.org

And finally there's a wonderful online group that provides lots of support on a daily basis - www.saywhatclub.com

I can't emphasize enough that you should get involved with at least one of these groups right away.

Best wishes,
Larry

  • Registered: 2009-05-14
  • Posts: 34

Re: SSHL

I had this problem a couple of years ago. I went to a board certified ear doctor close to home and he told me there was nothing I could do about it.

I then called my regular ear doctor (who is an hours drive away) and he immediately prescribed steroids (prednisone). It worked with only a little resulting degradation of the high (above 8k frequencies)

In the past couple of years it has come back again and each time the steroids work.

I'm trying to figure out what lifestyle changes can either prevent or minimize the possibility of it returning, but so far I have read nothing on the Internet to help, and my ear doctor (who is world renowned) doesn't have any suggestions other than the normal, gingko, vinpocetine, exercise, etc.

Bob

  • Registered: 2009-05-15
  • Posts: 3

Re: SSHL

hi

any one know whether nano ear is having progress on hearing loss cure

  • Registered: 2009-06-21
  • Posts: 2

Re: SSHL

All,

Look into the possibility of auto-immune hearing loss. This is a condition that my ENT knows about and I'm not sure why other ENTs don't. It is a serious one I might add and my ENT hasn't taken it lightly as I see her every 3 months for hearing tests and to monitor my hearing.

Renee,

I'm 37 and have 3 girls age 12 and younger and you and I are way to young to loss our hearing. But if it is auto-immune everything I've read says that steriod treatment is the only way to preserve your hearing. So you might want to talk with your ENT about some blood work and also see a rheumatologist.

By the way my kids and husband are getting anoyed with me say huh all the time that I'm looking into hearing aids, as it is fustrating to hear some words and sounds. Wow are they expensive!! ouch

Erika

  • Registered: 2009-05-14
  • Posts: 34

Re: SSHL

I've had SSHL three times now. Each time recovery was a little less.

This is something I wish the medical profession could make more progress with (of course because it affects me as well).

This third time I've been on steroids for about a month and it finally seems to have gone away.

Hopefully I won't have lost too many more high frequencies.

Good luck to all.

If you have symptoms, get to it early, consider it an emergency, the quicker you react, the better your chances are for your ears to recover.

  • Registered: 2009-05-14
  • Posts: 34

Re: SSHL

I went to another ENT for a second opinion.

Looking at the audiogram curve and by the fact that it only got to one ear, he thinks it might be an allergic reaction instead of auto-immune. So he ordered a RAST blood test for the allergens known to affect the inner ear, and we are waiting on the lab results.

The first ENT never considered allergy, so I suppose it is always good to get a second opinion.

At least I'll know if it is or if it ain't when the test results come back.

Bob

  • Registered: 2009-08-22
  • Posts: 1

Re: SSHL

Renee wrote:

Hi, I was an active healthy 30 yrs old, whom laid down one night, both my ears plugged then started ringing, in the am my right ear had unplugged, but my left ear was still plugged and ringing. I have been diagnosed with idiopathic sudden sensory neurological hearing loss. The ENT I saw said there was nothing that I could do. From all that I have read this seems like it may be true. I still feel like there is something missing, does anyone know of cases where it was actually just something pluggung the inner ear. I know this is probably just wishful thinking though. I have 2 small children and I am not ready to not hear them laughing. Also, is there anyone else who has lost their hearing late in life and has has children, how did you cope. I am crying all day, and wonder how long it takes it will take until this medical issue becomes a mental health one ? Any tips would be great.

Renee, In the past four years I have also lost my hearing, My doctors can't give me a reason and I have seen the best specialists in the Tampa area.  Mine started out with my ears feeling stuffy, It went from the left ear to the right and back to both. I am completely deaf with out my hearing aids and hear very little with them.  I hear sounds but I have no speech comprehension at all.  My higher pitched sounds are gone completely and the lower if fading also.  I can't hear my own voice at all.

My doctors have tried steroids on me to no avail.  It is very frustrating because this world is a hearing world.  Losing your hearing is a life altering experience to say the least, Of course there are worse things that we could have, But this is something I can't accept because of the things I love to do, You need your hearing to fully enjoy them.

  • Registered: 2009-05-14
  • Posts: 34

Re: SSHL

Sorry to hear about your loss iamdeafnotstupid

IMHO hearing is more important than eyesight (although I'd hate to lose either one) because it isolates you from humanity.

Hopefully someone will come up with a way to regrow those hair cells soon.

Bob