So sorry to hear of your situation. If you haven’t already I still recommend getting a second opinion as to options from a large academic medical center’s ENT unit. The academic types are more likely to be aware of all the cutting edge diagnostics and treatments. That’s based on my experience and I hope you are fortunate enough to find a solution. Good luck!
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.
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Hearing aids... I have had the best from Oticon, Phonac, and Widex. Widex Moment is without a doubt far better than the others for music (there is a newer Widex that I have no experience with). That said, there are a number of considerations. Hearing aids and their setup by audiologists are singularly focused on voice in conversations, universally to the detriment of natural sound. They have a pronounced boost in the 2-5k range to help resolve words. There is also noise suppression, sound compression, and feedback suppression, all of which destroy natural sound. Even with Widex hearing aids, one must find an audiologist who is willing to work with you to create a setting that will reproduce music as naturally as possible. Remember, all of their training has been focused upon resolving voice. It can be difficult to get them to understand your particular needs. Rant over. Good luck! |
@arafiq, like most of the members here I think, I too have unilateral hearing loss in my left ear. I was diagnosed with Ménière's disease, one of the common symptoms of which is low frequency hearing loss and tinnitus, both of which I have. It is not complete loss of hearing but is low frequencies are down significantly. The tinnitus is not bad, but it is there. It is ironic to me, given that listening to music on a high quality system has been my source of enjoyment and relaxation for over 50 years, and now, with my system in great shape, my hearing is down in one ear. I think like most of us, I also have typical age-related high frequency hearing loss, probably exacerbated from too many concerts in the 70's. I think that for the most part, most of us here are at least 55+, and so aging and hearing loss go together. I still obsess about my gear, not my ear, but still, I wonder about whether using the Widex has the potential to restore some of the beauty of my system or degrade it. I will probably experiment with it and see. Good luck on your condition! |
I suffer from Ménière’s disease and take diazepam when dizzy and Betahistine dihydrochloride daily. I also have a hearing aid on my left side (Phonax), which is an amazing device. All ENT’s are not the same. Find a specialist - an otologist, and find a good one. I had one ENT who wanted to drill in behind my ear and remove my inner ear which would have made me 100% deaf on that side. I told him no thanks and never went back. I found an otologist who prescribed the drugs listed above. When I got sick (flu) many years ago my hearing on the affected side dropped by one third to a half. Had I immediately seen the otologist rather than waiting I may have not suffered such a devastating and permanent hearing loss. Lesson learned: do not wait, not even for a few days, see a specialist immediately, preferably one who performs inner ear surgery as a primary function of his/her practice. |
There isn’t any study about the effect of Artificial Electronic Sound (AES) yet. And it’s difficult for me to describe this new field. Below is my video that shows the natural sound system (my system). Showing AES systems is meaningless since all others are AES. Test your system to hear AES effect. My natural audio system.
I wrote all systems sound "harsh/bright". I think "harsh/bright" in this case is not accurate words. There isn’t words for it since no one knew (or talked) about this new subject (AES). The more correct words can be confused, vague, broken sounds. May be you want to name it after you are able to hear AES. I exhibited my system in The entertainment audio show >10 years. I’ve heard all so called "World’s best sound systems" in many audio shows I attended. None of them are sounded natural like my system. You may not hear your system sounds harsh, but your ears might be in numb mode due to protection mechanism of your body. Your system must sound more stimulus to over come your numb ears. You can be sure by recording your system sound. Mics (machine) don’t lie.
Human ears adopt to the sound it’s hearing at that moment. After hearing my natural sound system for a while, I hear normal natural sounds (dog barking, people’s voices, etc.) normal. I feel good and comfortable. After hearing AES audio systems for a while, I hear the regular natural sound as weird and distant (opposite feeling of immersive state). And I feel dizzy, dilated eyes (bright), brain fog (feeling dirty, not fresh), some aches on stomach and some muscles pains, aggressive ears ringing, etc. Yes. every things degrade with age. I’m >65 yo and my ear problems are cured with the natural sound. I recommend you try to listen natural sounds only to help your ear condition (if you have ear issues). You won’t lose any thing listening the natural sound only. Alex/Wavetouch audio |
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