Coping with Mild Hearing Loss?

[Gl0w0ut]

According to the hearing test I had done last August, I had mild (meaning an inability to hear sounds between 25-40dB) hearing loss in my left ear. I didn't notice it to be perfectly honest. Up until today that is. While listening to my headphones I felt the volume in my left ear slightly decrease, which I feel has happened in both ears once tonight. Still, my hearing remain stable and in place.

However, my anxiety caused me to realize just how much of a gap there in between my damaged left ear and my healthy right ear. Now it's bugging me because I feel like I notice the stark difference all the time. I'm honestly not sure how to cope since it, almost like tinnitus, is current permanent. And to top it off, I'm only 23 years old (22 at the time of the test) and my hearing is that of a 36 year old. Who knows how bad it will be in 10 years time.

I'm just not sure what to do. I haven't been able to give up my headphones as I feel naked without them in public. And I like to keep it up load for the feeling of emersing myself in whatever song is playing. The difference just really bothers and depresses me, and I'm not sure what to do.

I refuse to wear a hearing aid and stem cell/gene therapy isn't yet fully developed.

What to do. I'm pretty sure the perceived drop isn't from SSHL, though its possible. The losses were only slight, but since developing anxiety over that my hearing feels like it is slightly muffled or lesser than before. Knowing my anxiety, I won't be able to erase it from my mind.

I'm too young for hearing loss this advanced.

 

[Luman]

You need to find ways of thinking differently about this. A CBT-based approach would be my preference, and there are many resources in print and online to choose from.

 

[Gl0w0ut]

You need to find ways of thinking differently about this. A CBT-based approach would be my preference, and there are many resources in print and online to choose from.

No thanks. CBT seems ineffective in my case.

 

[fishbone]

According to the hearing test I had done last August, I had mild (meaning an inability to hear sounds between 25-40dB) hearing loss in my left ear. I didn't notice it to be perfectly honest. Up until today that is. While listening to my headphones I felt the volume in my left ear slightly decrease, which I feel has happened in both ears once tonight. Still, my hearing remain stable and in place.

However, my anxiety caused me to realize just how much of a gap there in between my damaged left ear and my healthy right ear. Now it's bugging me because I feel like I notice the stark difference all the time. I'm honestly not sure how to cope since it, almost like tinnitus, is current permanent. And to top it off, I'm only 23 years old (22 at the time of the test) and my hearing is that of a 36 year old. Who knows how bad it will be in 10 years time.

I'm just not sure what to do. I haven't been able to give up my headphones as I feel naked without them in public. And I like to keep it up load for the feeling of emersing myself in whatever song is playing. The difference just really bothers and depresses me, and I'm not sure what to do.

I refuse to wear a hearing aid and stem cell/gene therapy isn't yet fully developed.

What to do. I'm pretty sure the perceived drop isn't from SSHL, though its possible. The losses were only slight, but since developing anxiety over that my hearing feels like it is slightly muffled or lesser than before. Knowing my anxiety, I won't be able to erase it from my mind.

I'm too young for hearing loss this advanced.

At 22 I had the hearing loss of a 55 year old. Life happens, things happen. My hearing was so bad, that my audiologist used to even mock me at times. Headphones don't help with hearing loss at all, you see the posts here and how @Michael Leigh advises against it. If you have a slight hearing loss, count yourself lucky because it can get MUCH worst due to age and abuse from other things.

I refused to wear hearing aids in my 20s and still will not wear it many decades later. I just try to read lips and I'll ask people to repeat themselves if I have to.

My hearing loss used to bother me a lot in my 20s but as i got older, It became less of an issue for me. As I seen much worst issues in my own life and lives of others. It still sucked having poor hearing, but i went to college with these damaged ears and still plan on going back.....

 

[Michael B]

You're young enough (and smart enough) to make the right choices now and reduce the chance of further hearing loss in the future. That means no earphones or headphones. Hard to do but your ears will thank you for it. I just wish someone warned me when I was your age.

 

[Michael Leigh]

No thanks. CBT seems ineffective in my case.

@Gl0w0ut

I have a degree of empathy towards you for I know you're going through a difficult time with tinnitus at the moment. When tinnitus affects a person in this way it can bring out the negative side of our character with time this can improve.

If I may say so, you are still fairly new to tinnitus and finding your way but unfortunately one of your biggest problems is that you don't listen. Your posts are well written and you're intelligent, but if you were to listen, to those that know more than you then you'd feel a lot better and tinnitus wouldn't feel so much like an up-hill struggle.

@fishbone @Luman and others have given you some very good advice but you haven't listened and I wish that you would. Reading all the tinnitus research data that you do gives you the false belief that you're equipped and know about this condition, but unfortunately nothing more could be further from the truth, as they don't teach a person how to deal with tinnitus mentally and emotionally because that what this condition is all about, if you want to succeed with it and carry on with your life.

It is your negativity that is holding you back and wanting a complete cure for tinnitus and therefore anything less is unacceptable. As you say you're just 22 and have a lot to learn about life if I may say so. I don't think your hearing is as compromised as you think. Start taking Gingko biloba preferably in tincture form and buy one of good quality. Price is usually an indication of this. GB often improves hearing it did for me that's why I continue taking it. Please reduce the level of your headphones and If it's possible, stop using them as I believe they are not helping your situation.

Get yourself some counselling as Luman has said. Once your stress and anxiety is under control I believe you'll feel a lot better and try and stop reading the research data on tinnitus because it doesn't help in the long term.

All the best
Michael

 

[Gl0w0ut]

You're young enough (and smart enough) to make the right choices now and reduce the chance of further hearing loss in the future. That means no earphones or headphones. Hard to do but your ears will thank you for it. I just wish someone warned me when I was your age.

I'll keep the volume lower but I'm not giving them up. At most I listen to them for an hour a day

 

[Michael Leigh]

I'll keep the volume lower but I'm not giving them up. At most I listen to them for an hour a day

Okay that's a start. Think seriously about getting some counselling and try and stop or reduce the reading on tinnitus research at least for a while. I believe you can improve and it's possible to have a wonderful future don't waste it by being miserable.

All the best
Michael

 

[glynis]

@Gl0w0ut ,
I have mild to moderate hearing loss in both ears and sever tinnitus that will never stop or go away due to the damadge from Menieres Disease and my hearing will still get worse.

I now wear hearing aids from morning till an hour before bed and do help.
I hate not been able hear sounds down stairs when in bed or be in a busy place without them in and find it hard to locate sound..
I wish you would try an hearing aid even if only around the house.
My youngest son is 22 and had his ear bones removed age 7 and hearing loss of 30-40 db in one ear but doesn't wear a hearing aid but does not have tinnitus.
I know how loud my ears are and struggle with tinnitus when my aids are not in and night time so I know just how you must be feeling with your sound and hearing loss .
It's my natural mum instinct that relly feels for you and know how my own son still puts his bad ear in danger around loud sounds and gigs.
Love glynis x

 

[Gl0w0ut]

@Gl0w0ut ,
I have mild to moderate hearing loss in both ears and sever tinnitus that will never stop or go away due to the damadge from Menieres Disease and my hearing will still get worse.

I now wear hearing aids from morning till an hour before bed and do help.
I hate not been able hear sounds down stairs when in bed or be in a busy place without them in and find it hard to locate sound..
I wish you would try an hearing aid even if only around the house.
My youngest son is 22 and had his ear bones removed age 7 and hearing loss of 30-40 db in one ear but doesn't wear a hearing aid but does not have tinnitus.
I know how loud my ears are and struggle with tinnitus when my aids are not in and night time so I know just how you must be feeling with your sound and hearing loss .
It's my natural mum instinct that relly feels for you and know how my own son still puts his bad ear in danger around loud sounds and gigs.
Love glynis x

I'll lose all of my left ear hearing before I wear a hearing aid at such a young age. Maybe its easier for someone who is older to have "pride" in them, but not for someone of college age who will be judged negatively in both business and social aspects of life for wearing one.

 

[Michael Leigh]

"pride" in them, but not for someone of college age who will be judged negatively in both business and social aspects of life for wearing one.

I understand how you feel. Behind the ear white noise generators look exactly like hearing aids and are quite large and very noticeable. I wear these at home but wouldn't on the street when I was on my TRT programme. To get around the problem, I bought two micro white noise generators that are very small and fit in the ear canal and not easily noticed. That was 20 years ago. I believe hearing aid/s with this design are now available.

Michael

 

[dpdx]

I also have mild hearing loss it sucks, life is over for me

 

[foliefortuna]

I'll lose all of my left ear hearing before I wear a hearing aid at such a young age. Maybe its easier for someone who is older to have "pride" in them, but not for someone of college age who will be judged negatively in both business and social aspects of life for wearing one.

I have friends an know people with hearing aids that I never noticed. Also most of the people that I know with hearing loss were born with it, so they were babies with the hearing of someone much older than themselves. That is life.

I can really relate to how hearing loss gets you down, I have had a fear of it since I was 10 years old. To have something wrong with any of your senses sucks. All diseases suck.

 

[Apolonia]

I have friends an know people with hearing aids that I never noticed. Also most of the people that I know with hearing loss were born with it, so they were babies with the hearing of someone much older than themselves. That is life.

I can really relate to how hearing loss gets you down, I have had a fear of it since I was 10 years old. To have something wrong with any of your senses sucks. All diseases suck.

I was Just Like you.. earbuds all the time in my ears... Don't do that... Wear earplugs.. I am 23 as well... I am very depressed but I am fighting with myself... I believe there are some hearing aids that you can hide... That cannot be seen....they go into the ear... Ask for those.... Headphones are the worst.... They are Like music Guns... I curse the day I put them in in ears... I use headphones but only when I need to and on a very very low volume... Listening to music is impossible

 

[Apolonia]

If I have to get a hearing aid I Will try to find some that can be hidden in my ear...

 

[Gl0w0ut]

If I have to get a hearing aid I Will try to find some that can be hidden in my ear...

I appreciate the advice but it is hard to give up music. It's such a simple pleasure in life that brings me joy. I do turn it up too loud because I want to feel immersed in the song. Obviously that was a mistake, but I always blasted in both ears, yet only my left ear suffering a devastating fate. Now that I hear the difference more it really does bother me, more so than the tinnitus. I don't want it to get worse and have to wear a hearing aid at such a young age, but I can't give up my music either.

I just don't know what to do.

 

[Apolonia]

I appreciate the advice but it is hard to give up music. It's such a simple pleasure in life that brings me joy. I do turn it up too loud because I want to feel immersed in the song. Obviously that was a mistake, but I always blasted in both ears, yet only my left ear suffering a devastating fate. Now that I hear the difference more it really does bother me, more so than the tinnitus. I don't want it to get worse and have to wear a hearing aid at such a young age, but I can't give up my music either.

I just don't know what to do.

Me too, I Just loved Being immersed on the song... For me IT was Just Like a drug... I miss the feeling... Music gave a lot of motivation... Do your hearing aids at least help you Hear music better? What is the feeling od having them?

 

[glynis]

@Gl0w0ut ,
Lovely to meet you with your photo.
I know how you feel with your hearing and understand you don't want to wear a hearing aid.
Try think of it this way !
If you have a hearing aid you then have a choice to give it ago when your on your own.
Im a identical twin but now I wear glasses and hearing aids and she doesn't.
I know its whom we are inside that matters and I know im the caring person who thinks of others and I would not want to be like her as I like me for who I am...
Love glynis x

 

[Gl0w0ut]

Me too, I Just loved Being immersed on the song... For me IT was Just Like a drug... I miss the feeling... Music gave a lot of motivation... Do your hearing aids at least help you Hear music better? What is the feeling od having them?

I don't have hearing aids. Even at mild hearing loss its not bad enough to warrant one. My good ear also helps compensate for its inability to capture certain information fed to the Superior Olive Complex, where the tonotopical map is made.

 

[Gl0w0ut]

@Gl0w0ut ,
Lovely to meet you with your photo.
I know how you feel with your hearing and understand you don't want to wear a hearing aid.
Try think of it this way !
If you have a hearing aid you then have a choice to give it ago when your on your own.
Im a identical twin but now I wear glasses and hearing aids and she doesn't.
I know its whom we are inside that matters and I know im the caring person who thinks of others and I would not want to be like her as I like me for who I am...
Love glynis x

I fear at some point in my life a hearing aid in inevitable. I hope in 20-30 years maybe gene therapy will be better and more affordable, being able to restore the ear's natural function. You need those cells to hair. Without them, not even a hearing aid can replace it.

I'm glad they work for you, but I don't want to wear one for both the social stigma and feeling of defeat to my hearing loss. I don't want this to weigh me down. Luckily my right ear is mostly in tact and can compensate for the fault of my left ear. Cochlear hair replacement is still in its infancy. Some animals can regrow dead hair cells apparently. Why humans always get screwed on the senses I'll never understand. Problem is, in animal models where they successfully regrow hair cells, the growing doesn't stop and destroys the cochlea.

 

[Apolonia]

I fear at some point in my life a hearing aid in inevitable. I hope in 20-30 years maybe gene therapy will be better and more affordable, being able to restore the ear's natural function. You need those cells to hair. Without them, not even a hearing aid can replace it.

I'm glad they work for you, but I don't want to wear one for both the social stigma and feeling of defeat to my hearing loss. I don't want this to weigh me down. Luckily my right ear is mostly in tact and can compensate for the fault of my left ear. Cochlear hair replacement is still in its infancy. Some animals can regrow dead hair cells apparently. Why humans always get screwed on the senses I'll never understand. Problem is, in animal models where they successfully regrow hair cells, the growing doesn't stop and destroys the cochlea.

IT is also possible that cells grow and can destroy the cochlea? OMG.. this is the first time I am hearing this

 

[Gl0w0ut]

IT is also possible that cells grow and can destroy the cochlea? OMG.. this is the first time I am hearing this

Its what my professor who runs the auditory perception lab told me. He recently developed tinnitus so he and I talk about it from time to time. I don't remember what he said, but he mentioned how in some animal research studies where they attempt to regrow the lost hair cells weren't successful because the growing never stopped and continued until the cochlea was destroyed. I suppose its why regrowth methods have been challenging to implement. I don't know how stem cell therapy has gone though. My understanding is that is different from the animal models.

 

[GregCA]

Now that I hear the difference more it really does bother me, more so than the tinnitus. I don't want it to get worse and have to wear a hearing aid at such a young age, but I can't give up my music either.

I just don't know what to do.

This may help you: https://www.nuraphone.com
I've built a similar system for my Bose headphones and it sounds much much better than music through my hearing aid. There are other similar solutions out there. Use your google-fu to find them.

 

[Apolonia]

Its what my professor who runs the auditory perception lab told me. He recently developed tinnitus so he and I talk about it from time to time. I don't remember what he said, but he mentioned how in some animal research studies where they attempt to regrow the lost hair cells weren't successful because the growing never stopped and continued until the cochlea was destroyed. I suppose its why regrowth methods have been challenging to implement. I don't know how stem cell therapy has gone though. My understanding is that is different from the animal models.

Well, that is not good... That applies to the progenitor cell activation right? Well, IT seems that this regeneration process Will most likey never happen... However, I hope that hearing aids Amd cochlear implants become enhanced so that people can Listen to music... Dunno if this is a Dumb question but I am wondering why can't there be some kind of transplantation of cochlea?

 

[Gl0w0ut]

Well, that is not good... That applies to the progenitor cell activation right? Well, IT seems that this regeneration process Will most likey never happen... However, I hope that hearing aids Amd cochlear implants become enhanced so that people can Listen to music... Dunno if this is a Dumb question but I am wondering why can't there be some kind of transplantation of cochlea?

Well again, I don't know the specifics of the study in question. Researchers have been looking at triggering the regrowth of hair cells that occur in some animals like birds I guess.

I do not know whether this would happen in humans, but I have to believe it could help. Gene therapy restored hearing in mice, though there were side effects (I only read the headlines). We shall see. I hope it works. Tinnitus or not, getting my lost hearing back would be great. I would hate to lose the ability to listen to music comfortably. That's the type of depressing thing that would actually kill me.

 

[Apolonia]

Well again, I don't know the specifics of the study in question. Researchers have been looking at triggering the regrowth of hair cells that occur in some animals like birds I guess.

I do not know whether this would happen in humans, but I have to believe it could help. Gene therapy restored hearing in mice, though there were side effects (I only read the headlines). We shall see. I hope it works. Tinnitus or not, getting my lost hearing back would be great. I would hate to lose the ability to listen to music comfortably. That's the type of depressing thing that would actually kill me.

I also don't care about tinnitus.. be IT cause by TMJD or neck injury or head injury, really don't care, but hearing loss is the worst... And I have that one so... My biggest problem is hearing damage and tinnitus only bothers me bc IT reminds me of hearing damage... I also have ear fullness and hyperacusis can kick in sometimes( but IT is far more better from what IT used to be)

 

[Tempest]

According to the hearing test I had done last August, I had mild (meaning an inability to hear sounds between 25-40dB) hearing loss in my left ear. I didn't notice it to be perfectly honest. Up until today that is.

I know this won't solve all your problems, but if you are on computer, you could try using an equalizer. There is a system wide equalizer called Peace which to my knowledge allows you to adjust different EQ settings for both ears so you can boost those frequences that your bad ear cannot hear well. It won't solve everything, but at least it will give you a sanctuary where you can feel normal for a short while if nothing else.

 

[Bobby B]

PC Are good but you would need a high quality amp and good tweeter to push the 10+ kHz sound in good quality to compensate for noise induced hearing loss

I bought a Fostex horn super tweeter, high end amp and play the cicadas at night at 60db all night to stimulate my high frequncies hair cells - these can go up to 30khz at 100db max and sound very nice

 

[GregCA]

PC Are good but you would need a high quality amp and good tweeter to push the 10+ kHz sound in good quality to compensate for noise induced hearing loss

I bought a Fostex horn super tweeter, high end amp and play the cicadas at night at 60db all night to stimulate my high frequncies hair cells - these can go up to 30khz at 100db max and sound very nice

Many "off the shelf" headphones have good enough frequency response curves to cover our hearing (~20 Hz - ~20 kHz). This site helps you compare them: http://graphs.headphone.com