r/HearingLoss

Hey r/HearingLoss,

I’m nervous to post this, but looking for others who might relate to this experience or have gone down a similar road.

I’m 49M and for years I've been working really hard to hear in certain environments — meetings, open offices, phone calls. I'm constantly leaning in, lip reading, cupping my ear, maxing out my headphones. I recently realized I wasn't hearing my toddler call out for me through a closed door while sitting right outside her room. That was a wake-up call.

I also have:
- Three distinct types of tinnitus: a constant low-level whooshing (like an empty room), a persistent faint high-pitched tone (like a TV powering on), and occasional loud episodic spikes that resolve in a few minutes
- Hyperacusis — loud sounds are physically painful
- Morning ear fullness that resolves through the day
- General listening fatigue that's genuinely exhausting

I've now had two full audiograms — one 8 years ago and one yesterday — both completely within normal limits. 100% word recognition both times, even though my day-to-day experience of sound is significantly impacted.

My audiologist referred me to ENT and I'm going to ask for OAEs, ECochG, and a proper speech-in-noise test (QuickSIN) since neither audiogram included those. Hidden hearing loss, endolymphatic hydrops and Audio Processing Disorder are on my radar as possibilities.

For context I have a 20-year background in the performing arts so significant cumulative noise exposure, and I have a confirmed hypermobile connective tissue disorder which apparently can affect the auditory system too.

Has anyone here had a similar experience — normal audiograms but real, significant symptoms? Did you eventually get a diagnosis? What testing actually found something? Would love to hear from people who've been through this.

Thanks 🙏

Hello Reddit,
I’m going to try to make this as short as possible with as much context as I can so it’s not the longest post ever made.

I (F24) have been married to My Husband (M31) for a few months now (congrats us).
We have been together for five years, lived together for 4 years.

About a year and a half ago (3.5 years into the relationship) I ruptured my left eardrum, and since then I have had some slight hearing loss. Nothing that seems too noticeable, but I definitely catch myself saying huh a lot more. Mind you this has been going on for a year and a half now and every single day I have to tell my husband “I cannot hear you.”

90% of the time when I can’t hear him I can hear that there is sound happening, but I cannot make out the words that are being said. Even when he is driving and I am in the passenger seat (my bad ear facing him). And I wouldn’t say he is a soft spoken person either.

Obviously, there’s a learning curve when somebody loses some hearing and I feel that I have given him plenty of time to adjust his volume so that I can hear him, but a year and a half later I still find myself having to tell him every day…multiple times a day that I cannot hear him.

I have tried gently, reminding him I can’t hear.
I have tried sitting down with him and having a short discussion with him on how I can’t hear him.
I have tried sitting down with him and having an extensive conversation on how I cannot hear him.
I have tried catching a small attitude with him when I cannot hear him. (example being: he’s speaking at a volume that I cannot hear - I sigh to indicate that I am frustrated and say “I cannot hear you”.
I have tried telling him that if you speak at a volume, I cannot hear. I am not going to respond to you. (And to be clear i’m talking about the instances where I can hear the sound of his voice, but I cannot hear the exact words that he is saying)

And before anyone paints him as a man who simply couldn’t give a damn he is one of the most genuinely kind people I have ever met in my entire life.
I feel absolutely loved by this man. He takes care of me when I’m sick. He has been there for me through all of my mental health struggles through my physical struggles through my family things. We have been through a lot together and we both always come out stronger and better for each other. There have been many things over the years that we have “changed” about ourselves to adapt better for our relationship (nothing crazy just normal relationship stuff ) so “change” isn’t exactly something we’ve never been through. so this honestly is coming as a shock to me that we are having an issue like this.

Now onto the part where there’s a good chance I am the asshole.
A couple of months ago we are getting ready to go out with some of our friends, and he is in the kitchen, putting some dishes away while I finish up my makeup and hair in the bed room. (Slight context, our apartment is about 1700 ft.² and it is very slender so the kitchen is at the very beginning of the apartment and the bedroom is on the opposite side of the apartment. As far as it could possibly be with about four walls between.)

As I’m in the bedroom watching TV window open continuing to get ready, I can hear a very faint voice coming from someplace not the bedroom, I do assume that it is My husband, but my thought process is if he’s actually speaking to me, he will come into the bedroom and ask since he knows I’m still getting ready. After about five minutes, he enters the bedroom and says “could you not hear me” to which I reply “no I did not the TVs on and the window is open. I didn’t hear you.” to which he said “well I was asking you to come here to help me and I’ve been waiting for five minutes.”

We are kind of going back-and-forth for a bit about how I just simply couldn’t hear him and I’m trying to gently remind him that I cannot hear him sometimes and that if he needed me, he could’ve come into the room to ensure that he was heard. And we’re not exactly arguing but it isn’t a gentle conversation. And at some point, I got completely fed up with the conversation and yelled “I have been telling you for a year and a half every single fucking day that I cannot hear you and you refuse to speak any fucking louder”

To which it becomes than a full-blown argument, he’s upset I’m upset and no one is willing to see anybody’s point of view. And at some point, I start just crying because I am absolutely exhausted and start trying to explain why I am so frustrated. I try telling him that it is extremely frustrating to me that I have not been able to hear him for a year and a half and I have been asking him to speak up so that I can hear him . And I try to ask him to put the shoe on the other foot if he was asking me to do the same thing multiple times every single day he would be just as frustrated as I am . I tried to explain Having to tell the person I’m choosing to spend the rest of my life with that I cannot hear them and that It needs to change because I cannot do that every day for the rest of my life. (Not that I’m going leave him but doing that would be absolutely exhausting)

I feel that I have given ample time for him to adjust the level of his voice so that I can hear.
I feel that I have started with a gentle reminders and slowly ramped up my aggravation and I was getting absolutely nowhere. It was not getting any better after a year and a half it really truly felt like there was absolutely zero change.
And still months later, I feel that I have exhausted every possibility and still I’m having to tell him that I cannot hear him.

So I felt screaming at him would finally open his eyes to how frustrating it is for me and maybe he would finally put some effort in to speak up.

So I just need to know am I the asshole for yelling at My Husband/ also wanting some advice on how to proceed?

Thank you for your candor!

In the last week, i began experiencing an odd distortion in my right ear. When I hear anything, be it music, or someone talking, I can hear sort of an echo of whatever sound I’m hearing but in a low, muffled vibration. It’s like hearing someone play the radio on the other side of a wall where you are really just hearing the bass or low register tones.

I went to my primary doctor. She didn’t see any wax build up or signs of infection. She prescribed Sudafed and Flonase, believing it could be congestion from allergies.

It doesn’t feel like allergies so I’m a bit concerned. Hoping it’s not some type of permanent hearing loss. Anyone have experience with this?

I’ve been wearing hearing aids for 6 months for mild to moderate hearing loss.

Had a hearing test 2 years ago that put me just under borderline and then one 6 months ago with enough hearing loss to warrant getting hearing aids.

My loss in 18 months has been between another 10-25+ decibels depending on where you look on the chart.

How much hearing are each of you losing each time you are tested and is this now a downward spiral like wearing glasses - which for me gets worse each time I go.

F55

Hi, I am posting this for people who experience fluctuating low and mid-frequency hearing loss, or who have been diagnosed with (or suspect) cochlear hydrops.

In the spring of 2024, I experienced a drop in hearing in my left ear, losing a bit of my low-end (bass) hearing. The doctor misdiagnosed it as ETD (Eustachian Tube Dysfunction), but now I highly doubt that. With a bit of Flonase treatment and some immunomodulators, my low-frequency hearing in the left ear somehow recovered over time.

In the spring of 2025, I suffered a very severe drop in my right ear, again in the low and mid-frequencies (up to 1Khz, but this time the losses were highly severe. I lost up to 65dB in some frequencies, and a ton of other symptoms emerged, such as glossopharyngeal neuralgia, trigeminal neuralgia, occipital pain, and all sorts of other issues. I felt like something was growing inside, pressing on everything. Both my doctor and I suspected a tumor. A 3-Tesla MRI ruled out this diagnosis. The doctor then told me it was SSHL (Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss) and that I should get a hearing aid. However, I somehow ruled out this diagnosis because my hearing would fluctuate at times. I had good days and bad days. I noticed that stress was a factor that worsened things, as was standing up (orthostatic position).

A fortunate accident, however, made me realize what the trigger was. One day, my back was hurting incredibly bad! I took several tramadol pills, reaching dosages that are highly unrecommended for human consumption. When they kicked in, my hearing suddenly dropped again in my left ear. That’s when I knew! It's from the Tramadol! It frustrated me that the doctor had dismissed this theory (or rather the doctors, as I went to two of them). Both of them disconnected the link between the hearing loss in my left ear and the one in my right ear! I didn't! I realized there was a common cause, whatever that might be. Keep in mind that during this entire time, I was constantly taking betahistine and vinpocetine. Another trigger that worsened this issue was smoking. And I mean that kind of smoking, not nicotine.

Once I made the connection between the hearing loss and Tramadol plus smoking, I decided never to touch either of them again. Never! Within two weeks, my hearing was already improving, but there were some stubborn sub-bass frequencies that wouldn't open up no matter what I did (I am referring to frequencies that are not measured on a standard audiogram, but which I could test at home as a former music producer). I mean frequencies like 40 Hz and 63 Hz—standard audiograms only go down to 125Hz and 250Hz (as I noticed is common in the USA). After two weeks, however, even those super-bass frequencies recovered.

Day by day, I feel slight pops in my ear and the exact opposite effect of when I lost my hearing. Meaning, while before I felt like something was growing in there like a tumor (most likely the pressure of my endolymph in the inner ear), now I feel as if something is "drying up," shrinking, and no longer pressing on my nerves. Last night, I listened to music the way I used to for the very first time. My audiogram values are now better in some frequencies than they were even before I lost the hearing in my right ear.

I am posting this because I want to draw your attention to the fact that if you happen to have a vice or use certain substances, they can lead to hearing disorders like the ones I had. Along with the hearing loss, I also had diplacusis dysharmonica, as well as tinnitus—both central tinnitus (in my head, like a buzz or a jet flying in the sky) and in the affected ear. I went through many sleepless nights and ended up a psychiatric patient due to insomnia. Now I feel better nervously, and I see I am no longer as depressed. Sleep helped immensely.

My doctor prescribed a combination of Coaxil, Zolpidem, and an antipsychotic called Seroquel. I felt the biggest improvements in my sleep from Seroquel. I didn't take Seroquel constantly, but rather from time to time, whenever Zolpidem would only give me 2–3 hours of sleep before waking up. I can safely say that the Seroquel treatment, in my case, helped improve my hearing.

Other things I changed in my life besides quitting tramadol and smoking: I no longer eat salt, I am more mindful of stress and try to avoid such situations as much as possible, I sleep more (induced by medication), and I try to reduce carbohydrates and sweets in general (though it's hard). Other adjuvants and supplements I took during this entire time: B-vitamin complex, NAC, L-Arginine, Coenzyme Q10, Vitamin E, Selenium, etc. I am just listing these supplements; I don't know how much they helped, but they probably protected my inner ear from the damage caused by inflammation.

In conclusion, my cochlear hydrops was caused by toxicity. It seems my body cannot tolerate certain substances, and I will keep this in mind. I wish you all good health, and may you be spared from other problems.

One morning in 2017 I suddenly lost a good portion of my hearing. As a note, I don’t have any history of extended exposure to loud sounds or anything like that. I went to an urgent care who sent me an audiologist and ENT. They did a hearing test and just went, “yep, you lost your hearing, you can get a hearing aid if you want.” I ended up randomly getting my hearing back just a month or two later and was fine for about a year, in 2018, when I lost a lot of hearing from the same ear. Again I went to the audiologist & ENT, and that time they did a few things - an MRI (negative), a Ménière’s disease test (negative), and sent me to a rheumatologist and an otoneurologist (both found nothing). Everyone basically said, “I dunno, but you can get a hearing aid!”

The only thing of note that happened between then and now is several spells of terrible vertigo in 2023, some lasting just a few minutes, some lasting 1-2 days. I saw my primary doctor about that, she showed me a movement that shakes the crystals loose in your ear (? I’m probably not relaying this correctly) and gave me nausea medication. The movement didn’t help, but the vertigo ended up stopping.

I just lived with my hearing loss until a few months ago, when I noticed it was getting harder to hear certain people/sounds. I can no longer sit with someone to the left of me and have a conversation - I just can’t understand anything they’re saying. I also started having pain in my left ear. Back I go to the audiologist & ENT, they confirm my hearing did get worse and my processing is very poor now as well. The ENT said he’d send me for an MRI (with contrast) and if that showed nothing, then my only option was a hearing aid. While waiting for my MRI, I started researching Acoustic Neuromas and really felt like that may be my issue.

Well, I just got my MRI results back, and they’re normal. I know how stupid this sounds, but I’m upset. The ear pain is still there and is at times very intense (although for just a few seconds at a time). I’ve been having headaches (concentrated in my brow, between my eyes) as well.

Are there any other types of scans I could request, or is the clear MRI the end of it? Is seeking a second opinion worth it? I’m not a hypochondriac or a person who experiences much health anxiety, but this is starting to cause me a lot of concern. I don’t want the doctor to just give me a hearing aid and give up on me. I’m terrified of losing my hearing in my remaining good ear.

What was it that made you go “i gotta get this checked”? Ive been speaking to some people with hearing loss lately and also after reading what other people describe hearing loss as in this sub, i feel like i have too many of the “symptoms” people often mention.

I don’t wanna worry myself with something that could be nothing, but up until a few months ago, i thought everybody had blur after a certain distance and lights feeling like they’re “too strong” was normal. Only after i went and got an eye test did i realize all the symptoms ive had the entire time were never normal and i was surprised to see how much of a difference glasses really made.

That was a bit off topic but what im tryna say is im worried that i might’ve had hearing loss so long that makes me think this is normal just like how i thought blur was normal till i got glasses and felt what “normal” was actually like. I do plan on getting my ears checked soon, but for now i want to know, especially in people with mild hearing loss, what made you decide that a checkup was necessary and how much of a difference did you feel when you got hearing aids? (or whatever other treatment there is for hearing loss, i dont really know how its treated).

Hey all, I have been going through a lot since the past 2 months, but honestly I think this started back in 2023.

Around mid August 2023, I woke up one day feeling like my right ear was not like before, like slightly muffled or less natural. It was devastating because my right ear had always felt like my “good ear”. I went to an ENT and did a hearing test, but it came back normal. I was extremely confused because something clearly felt different.

Over time I developed this coping mechanism where whenever I went outside, I would pinch my nose and suck air inward to reduce background sound and make conversations easier. Weirdly it helped, and life became manageable again.

Then around 15th February this year, things got worse. Suddenly I felt like I had to put effort into understanding speech, especially softer speech or conversations in noisy places. I started my first job on 26th February and was terrified about how I would manage conversations and my career.

I went to another ENT. They found wax in my left ear, cleaned it, and did another hearing test. Again normal. Around 10 dB across frequencies in both ears. I was shocked because my hearing absolutely did not feel normal, especially in noisy places like cafeterias.

30th March: another hearing test, again around 5–15 dB.

18th April: after a cold, another ENT found mild conductive hearing loss in both ears, worse on the left. At this time my left ear genuinely felt extremely blocked, like cotton was stuffed in it. I was prescribed mucinac and told to do Valsalva many times a day.

Eventually I felt like Valsalva slightly improved the left ear muffled feeling. Then on 2nd May I had another hearing test and it was again normal, around 5–10 dB.

At this point I completely stopped trusting audiograms and started feeling like maybe I was “cheating” the tests somehow.

Then on 3rd May while coming home from office, I suddenly got a loud low-pitched tinnitus in my right ear and everything went quiet for a few seconds. It recovered quickly, but afterward I felt like my right ear became slightly weaker permanently.

Did another audiogram on 7th May. Again normal, 5–15 dB both ears.

Since then I’ve had multiple transient tinnitus/muffling episodes. Initially everything felt shifted toward my right ear, but now everything feels more centered or even slightly shifted left.

Then yesterday (16th May), while out with friends wearing earplugs, my right ear suddenly muffled again, but this time without tinnitus. Afterward it never fully felt the same again.

The weirdest part is:

• speech in quiet at home is mostly okay
• but soft speech, speech from another room, or people talking while facing away is harder
• noisy places are difficult
• music feels flatter and distorted at higher volume
• bass/ambience/warmth of the world feels missing
• everything sounds like I’m listening through phone speakers sometimes

I also now have high-pitched tinnitus in both ears.

Another important thing:

• I constantly do Valsalva / ear popping throughout the day
• I can trigger clicking sounds in my ears/jaw
• there is also a low motor-like hum sometimes that changes with pressure and often disappears after naps/sleep

I genuinely don’t know what is happening anymore. I’ve had multiple normal audiograms but my hearing perception feels completely altered and my quality of life has dropped massively.

I get the technical explanation online, but in real life usage… what’s the difference? Like if someone with mild hearing loss used both, would they really notice a big difference or is it more subtle?

I get so confused on this drug.. is it only meant for Ménières ?? Or is it possibly available (if available) for people who suffer from SSHL, &/ or tinnitus ?? I read conflicting answers..

Like it couldn’t hurt to try for tinnitus/ SSHL right?? At times i wonder is i was misdiagnosed. But two ENT’s said SSHL..

Man, i really hope this thing is available to market in 2026/-2027.. & i hope it would be available for us who have SSHL/ tinnitus :( we also deserve some relief.. i wish there was something we could do to get things rolling more urgently..

Hi,

Yesterday (May 17) at 12:04 PM, I suddenly developed a clogged/full feeling in my left ear together with a massive spike in tinnitus. It came completely out of nowhere while I was lying in bed scrolling on my phone.

At the same time, I noticed a very clear change in hearing in my left ear. Sounds like touching blankets and pillows sounded different and muffled compared to my right ear, especially higher frequencies. I was not completely deaf, but ear felt like I had water in it.

I do get short episodes of ear fullness + a loud tinnitus tone 1–2 times a week in either ear, but those always disappear within 10–40 seconds. This time, the symptoms lasted.

After around 2–3 hours, the fullness very slowly started improving, and over the next 7–9 hours my hearing gradually recovered. By the time I went to sleep, the fullness had improved by about 75%, but the tinnitus was still screaming loud.

Now, around 24 hours later, my hearing feels almost back to normal (maybe 85-90% restored), and the tinnitus has also improved somewhat compared to yesterday, though it is still louder than my baseline.

I’m wondering how this kind of progression should be interpreted, and whether this could still be sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) despite the partial recovery.

I know steroids are often recommended quickly in suspected SSNHL cases and that early treatment is considered important. It’s now been about 24 hours since onset.

How would you interpret this kind of progression, with gradually improving hearing but lingering elevated tinnitus?

Last week I had audio test in which they detected low frequency, hearing loss and ENT is suggesting ear injection . However, I don’t know what the risks are and how effective the injection could be so looking for advice. the problem is only in one ear. Has anybody taken the ear injection? Does it work? What are the risks and is it painful? My ENT is suggesting three injections followed by another audio test. By the way, what happens if I don’t treat it at all?

Genuinely asking because I suspect the answer is yes and nobody talks about it honestly.

I'm HoH ((severe high frequency loss, two hearing aids) and I've been reading a lot about how DHH students manage in higher education. The official answer is always "CART service" or "use an app." But from what I can tell, even with CART you're stuck reading a plain text feed in one browser tab while the actual lecture is happening somewhere else on your screen.

What I want to know is: in practice, when you're in a fast lecture and you have to choose between following the content and writing something down, what do you actually do? do you catch up after? do you rely entirely on the transcript? do you just accept you'll miss things?

I'm asking because i think the tools that exist right now are designed around a fantasy version of this problem, not the real one. Happy to be proven wrong.

My daughter is 2yrs old and has had hearing aids since she was about 8months. She failed the routine hearing test after she was born, and the doctors did several repeat tests within the first few months, all of which she failed. Its been a rocky road with getting her to actually tolerate wearing the HAs, but she's finally starting to go close to 9 hours daily with them on.

What I'm looking for advice on is her speech. She's been followed by not only audiology, but also speech therapy, her entire life. Now, I'm fully aware that her speech is going to be delayed due to her hearing, and I'm okay with that. The struggle is with her speech therapy.

Now, I by no means expect my kid to talk in full scentances for atleast another year, but I'm at a loss on how I can help her learn more words and sounds.

Whenever, we go to ST or try to do activities at home to practice sounds, she completely refuses to participate. We started with things like simple animal noises 'moo, bah, meow,' etc. But no matter what we try, she won't make a single sound. Even just during daily life, she's so reluctant to speak that she's started to pick up ASL from some of the shows she watches, and has started teaching them to us instead of trying to use her words.

Idk, I'm just at a loss. I'm hoping that there might be some parents on here that have/have had similar situations, that might be able to give some advice.

Hi everyone! I just joined Reddit specifically to connect with people in his community. My hearing has been declining slowly over the last 10 years. I haven’t had a hearing test since I was a child, mainly because I know going to get my hearing checked would confirm what I already know. I have a hearing test scheduled for next week, but I am dreading the possibility of the official diagnosis of hearing loss.

I studied ASL and deaf studies in college because I work with children and love the idea of being able to communicate with children in sign language and helping deaf children feel understood. I have a moderate knowledge of sign language still, as it’s been about nine years since I graduated…so, I have been struggling with the decision to get hearing aids. I am pretty good at reading lips, as this is what I have grown accustomed to doing in social situations, but when it’s with more than just one person, I feel so lost in conversations. I also work with children and it is getting increasingly more difficult to hear my coworkers talk to me over the excessive noise in the classroom.

I would love to hear from someone in a similar situation and how you cope with your hearing loss. I should probably wait until after my appointment to make this post, but I wanna go into the appointment with confidence and knowledge. I think hearing aids could help me, or I could lean more into my current knowledge of sign language and embrace the beautiful community of signers I grew to love and respect. I would love some advice or encouragement from people in this community. Thank you in advance ❤️

Hi
I'm a 23 M and I've recently been diagnosed with Otosclerosis in my right ear. For the longest time I have been suffering from profound hearing loss in my left ear (which was formally diagnosed when I was aged 12) but have had normal hearing in my strong ear without facing any issues or like strong tinnitus. Since the past year (2025-26), I've been facing higher than normal tinnitus that had been diagnosed by my ENT and was wavering with intensity as the year went by. But off-late, I've been facing difficulty with conversations as well as grasping sounds that I could earlier hear (like the ticking of the clock, light rain outside when the window is closed); Somehow it still got resolved with a combination of steroids and antibiotics. However since March '26, I've been complaining of the same muffled hearing and it led to a diagnosis of Otosclerosis being the main culprit leading to a 20dB conductive hearing loss in my right ear. This coupled with profound deafness in my left ear has led me to go a little crazy but also curious as to finding anyone who is going through the same or similar condition. I hope it's resolved or at the very least can be adapted to go through normal living. Thank you for listening/reading through a bit of my rant!