Hi everyone,
I want to start by saying that I've read through this forum and seen the struggles many of you are going through. It truly breaks my heart. I hope you are doing okay today.
I went out shooting last Tuesday with a buddy and brought some earmuffs to protect my ears. Everything was going normally until I had finished up and started packing. As I was walking back to put things away, I foolishly took off my ear protection, unaware that my friend was still firing. Before I could react, I got the full impact of a 9mm handgun blast from about 15 feet away.
My ears were ringing loudly for two or three days afterward. Thankfully, the ringing has quieted down a lot, but I've been left with a stuffy, full feeling in my left ear that still hasn't gone away after a week. I've called several ENTs and audiologists to try to schedule an exam, but the soonest appointment I could get is about four weeks out. In the meantime, I've been reading through this forum anxiously and hoping my ears aren't permanently damaged, even though I know they likely are.
I already had very mild tinnitus from years of listening to loud music, and from a couple of past incidents when my foam earplugs either weren't fitted properly or fell out at the worst possible moment. I seemed to have gotten lucky with just temporary threshold shifts in those cases, but this time it feels like the final straw.
The tinnitus isn't terribly loud, but I notice it at night or when I focus on it. It's much quieter than it was immediately after the incident. I'm definitely going to be much more careful from now on and will double protect my ears during any loud activity. Still, my anxious fear now is whether I could develop hyperacusis or experience worsening or changing tones in the coming weeks, which I've seen happen to others. The continued fullness in my left ear is especially concerning.
I took a hearing test using my AirPods, and it seemed normal, but I've been avoiding loud sounds and haven't used earbuds since, trying to give my ears time to heal. I just hope I haven't caused significant damage.
How likely is it that things could get worse over the next couple of weeks, or is what I'm dealing with now (hopefully) the full extent of the damage?
I want to start by saying that I've read through this forum and seen the struggles many of you are going through. It truly breaks my heart. I hope you are doing okay today.
I went out shooting last Tuesday with a buddy and brought some earmuffs to protect my ears. Everything was going normally until I had finished up and started packing. As I was walking back to put things away, I foolishly took off my ear protection, unaware that my friend was still firing. Before I could react, I got the full impact of a 9mm handgun blast from about 15 feet away.
My ears were ringing loudly for two or three days afterward. Thankfully, the ringing has quieted down a lot, but I've been left with a stuffy, full feeling in my left ear that still hasn't gone away after a week. I've called several ENTs and audiologists to try to schedule an exam, but the soonest appointment I could get is about four weeks out. In the meantime, I've been reading through this forum anxiously and hoping my ears aren't permanently damaged, even though I know they likely are.
I already had very mild tinnitus from years of listening to loud music, and from a couple of past incidents when my foam earplugs either weren't fitted properly or fell out at the worst possible moment. I seemed to have gotten lucky with just temporary threshold shifts in those cases, but this time it feels like the final straw.
The tinnitus isn't terribly loud, but I notice it at night or when I focus on it. It's much quieter than it was immediately after the incident. I'm definitely going to be much more careful from now on and will double protect my ears during any loud activity. Still, my anxious fear now is whether I could develop hyperacusis or experience worsening or changing tones in the coming weeks, which I've seen happen to others. The continued fullness in my left ear is especially concerning.
I took a hearing test using my AirPods, and it seemed normal, but I've been avoiding loud sounds and haven't used earbuds since, trying to give my ears time to heal. I just hope I haven't caused significant damage.
How likely is it that things could get worse over the next couple of weeks, or is what I'm dealing with now (hopefully) the full extent of the damage?
