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Sudden Hearing Loss and Impact on Music Enjoyment

This post is partly a cautionary tale and partly me looking for advice from fellow audiophiles who might have been through something similar.

At the end of January this year, I had a sinus infection that seemed to affect my left ear. One morning I woke up and noticed that my ear felt muffled and my hearing wasn’t quite right. At first, I assumed it was just my sinuses acting up. I tried wax-removal drops and even did some irrigation, but nothing improved. My doctor then prescribed a course of steroids, thinking it might be related to fluid buildup.

Unfortunately, things got worse. I gradually lost almost all hearing in that ear, and there was a lot of distortion as well.

I eventually saw an ENT specialist and an audiologist, and that’s when I learned that this was most likely Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss (SSHL). Apparently, if the correct treatment is started within about 72 hours, there’s a chance the hearing can be saved. After that short window closes, the loss is often permanent. I really wish I had known that earlier when I first contacted my doctor.

So if anyone reading this ever experiences sudden changes in hearing, please don’t wait—get to an ENT immediately. The treatment window is extremely short.

Now that I’m starting to come to terms with this, I’ve begun researching options like hearing aids and cochlear implants. That leads me to my question for anyone here who has experience with either.

As audiophiles, we tend to listen to music a bit differently—we focus on details, tone, timbre, soundstage, and all those subtle nuances. For those of you using hearing aids or who have undergone cochlear implant surgery, how has it affected your ability to enjoy music? Does music sound very different? Were you able to reconnect with it in a meaningful way? As you can imagine, this is both stressful and sad that I won't be able to enjoy the one hobby that has become such an important part of my life.

I’d really appreciate hearing about your experiences. Feel free to share here, or send me a DM if you’d rather keep it private.

arafiq
macg19
1,386 posts
 

@larsman 

Why avoid CostCo? For the reason you stated, I called my local CostCo and spoke with the "audiologist" who apparently knew little about the brands they carry or how the compare to the competition, nor did she know about any of the apps features (like music mode), so I sure wouldn't trust that person to perform a reliable hearing test.

I went to a brick and mortar audiologist, got a free hearing test in exchange for listening to their sales pitch and gave that to the online vendor to program rather than doing an online/remote test.

If you do use CostCo, the Rexton Reach is virtually identical to the Signia (both are from WSA) and the app is probably identical.

You could also validate a CostCo hearing test by getting a "second opinion" for free. 

YMMV.

 

larsman's avatar
larsman
3,165 posts
 

@macg19 - Wow, that was a pretty poor audiologist if she didn't even know about the apps features. I'm lucky as my Costco audiologist has 20-some odd years of experience and is even a musician, and we worked together on tuning up the apps to my liking. The big disadvantage of them for me is you have to make an appointment a couple weeks in advance; other audiologists see me much faster, but I pay a premium for that - it's a trade-off! 

macg19
1,386 posts
 

@larsman Lucky indeed. 

I do think it is important to look at the design of the device ensuring it supports multiple dome styles and sizes. It appears some do not, at least not like Rexton/Insignia do.

Fully open domes allow the maximum amount of unaltered sound through, which in my case is exactly what I was aiming for. May not be the best solution for everyone though.

larsman's avatar
larsman
3,165 posts
 

@macg19 - Hi again - I've never used domes, I've always gotten custom ear molds made. Not sure how much regular audiologists charge for that, but for Costco, it's about $60. I would like to hear how it would sound with some of the natural sound getting through, though. 

macg19
1,386 posts
 

You might be pleasantly surprised!

I was sent open, closed and everything in between so got to experiment)

Alternative would be to have them drill tiny holes in the custom molds (an audiologist suggested she could do this if I wanted but she charged $8K for devices and service contract)

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