Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss – my story
My name is Graham and I am 36 years young, married with two daughters under the age of two (lots of fun!) and in July 2009, I became deaf overnight.
This story actually starts ten years ago when for no reason and no explanation I lost the hearing in my right hear. After lots of visits to my GP and being told it was just glue ear!? I eventually got to see a specialist. To cut a long story short I was told that I had nerve damage and my hearing in that ear would never return.
This news affected me greatly in the short term but because I still had one good ear I adjusted quickly and managed to get on with my life.
Fast forwarding ten years to July 2009 I became ill with a virus, diagnosed as swine flu but no proof, and again over one night woke up deaf in my left ear. Well, this to me was a complete nightmare! I went straight to my GP and then straight to hospital where I was put on steroids and oxygen for a week to try and help. Nothing returned so as I was sent home now as a ‘deafened’ adult with a hearing aid that gave me some benefit with lip reading on a face-to-face basis.
On returning home I now had a whole new set of problems to face. Not only do I have a young family but I am a self employed Personal Trainer trying to run a business that bases itself on good communications skills. As well as training my clients I also need to be able to use the telephone for bookings and marketing as well as the usual every day requirements of running your own business. Well, there is help out there if you look hard enough. I was lucky enough to get a good hearing therapist who was able to get me in touch with social services, disability living allowance and access to work. (Check out my blog for the links to all these and see if they can help you). Apparently as a self employed person I can get all sorts of help in keeping my business going as well as helping me hear things at home!
Anyway……back to the hearing loss itself. Due to the history of hearing loss in my right ear and sudden loss in my left it was suggested that I look into the possibility of Cochlear Implants (CIs). I had already heard of these and basically said that if it would give me some help with my hearing then it was a ‘no brainer’. My specialist referred me to the CI team at Southmead Bristol Hospital and after a few chasing emails etc I got my first appointment in September 09. This was a consultation with an audiologist who ran through various hearing tests and speech tests with and without my hearing aid. From this they judge whether or not you meet the criteria to be allowed a CI.
Again, to cut a long story short I failed to meet the criteria because I was not deaf enough. Luckily, if you can call it that, I had had another slight drop in hearing during this time and was called back in for a retest in October. This time I was deaf enough and was immediately sent through to meet my CI specialist. I am now officially on the waiting list for a CI but still have further tests to do before they can officially confirm I am suitable for an operation.
The next test was scans on my ears, which were done just before Christmas. After that I have a balance test mid January and Speech, Language & Psychology test at the end of January. As I type this I can only speculate on what these all entail as they are in the future. My final decision appointment is on the 12th February 2010 and I am guessing that this is where I will discuss which ear to implant and what make of CI to go for etc.
The journey continues and I will update the DeafBlog with my story as it unfolds. If you wish to read my story and find out more about my deaf journey then you can look at my blog at http://grahammoxon.spaces.live.com/default.aspx
The journey into deafness and CI’s continues…
Comments
Hi Graham,
I am a 62 yr old grandma who suffers from classic Meniere's Disease. It affects the fluid in the inner ear is chronic and has many symptoms. All that can be done is to treat the sysmptoms. On December 22, I had the Baha implant surgery. I will not receive the device until March 22, but it the rod is touch with something hard I can hear it. I am very excited and can hardly wait until March. I wish you the best in your outcome.
Sincerely,
Bonny
Posted by: Bonny Wilson | January 18, 2010 09:33 AM
Hi Graham. I can really sympathise with you in your dilemma - no-one knows what deafness is like until it happens to them. Briefly, I have had glue ears since the age of around 42 (I am now 70) and after having gromets and t-tubes in both ears 13 times in the follwing 14 years I had a particularly awful bout of spinning(more awful than usual) and ended up with the cochlea in my right ear being destroyed.I lost all the balance in that ear and then shortly afterwards I lost most of the hearing in that ear. I was eventually given a hearing aid but it is very little use as there is nothing in the ear to convey the sound to my brain. My head is totally topsy-turvy but my brain has learned to cope with it (not much choice really). I hate to think what I will be like if it happens with the left ear. I have often wondered how people manage with cochlea implants. I once saw a telly programme of someone being fitted with one and I cried when I saw the joy on the person's face at being able to hear again. I wish you SO much luck in this and hope everything turns out well for you and your lovely family. Kind regards. Vera Perry.
Posted by: Vera Perry | February 7, 2010 11:10 PM
Finally found a cure for my disorder - so I'm sharing with as many people as I can in the hopes it will help.
In 2006 I suffered a 60db single-sided sudden sensorineural hearing loss, followed later by vertigo attacks and a diagnosis of Meniere’s Disease. I have since made a *full* recovery after suffering for 3 years. In my case these symptoms were the result a food allergy (which I have also recovered from).
I created a web site to document my own experience since it appears most ENTs have little idea about simple allergies (e.g. food, environmental) as one possible cause of significant & sudden hearing loss.
http://sites.google.com/site/joeyhorowitz/
It includes scans of my hearing tests & allergy results.
http://www.houseearclinic.com/allergies.htm - is an example of a medical practice that acknowledges the connection between allergies and hearing disorders. I am not a patient of theirs (wish I had found them 3 years ago!)
Posted by: Joey | February 12, 2010 11:54 AM
Hi Graham,
I am taking interest in the deaf culture and the complications of receiving a cochlear implant. I appreciate your post and am interested to hear more about your experience. I wish you the best of luck and hope everything works out for you and your family. Thank you again for your post.
Sincerely,
Kristina
Posted by: Kristina | February 15, 2010 06:30 AM
Pretty cool blog you've got here. Thanks for it. I like such topics and everything connected to this matter. I definitely want to read a bit more soon.
Sincerely yours
Posted by: Stranger | March 16, 2010 11:44 AM
I lost my hearing due to explosions in Iraq. I am now 25 years old and my heraing keeps getting worse. I am off for a scan soon to see if the explosions destroyed my Cochlea and that may be causeing the worsening of my hearing. Keep my in your prayers. Being deaf over night at the age of 23 was rough.
Posted by: Matt R. | May 2, 2010 04:43 PM
Truly interesting story as for me. It'd be just great to read more concerning such topic. Thanx for posting that material.
Posted by: Abigail SeriousCloun | May 11, 2010 10:04 AM