How long did it take before you went from HoH to full deaf?

x-posted from r/Deaf because I didn't get any response there

I (22/M) had normal capacity of hearing since birth until last november where an incident involving fireworks got me diagnosed with early conductive hearing loss and Air-Bone gap (A-B gap). I can only hear audio ranges from 50 dB on the left ear and 40 dB on the right ear (This was during last year, it's much better now though, I couldn't hear anything on my left ear if I closed my right ear back then. I haven't taken an audiogram test since last December so these readings might not reflect current day scenario). When I asked my doctor whether this condition will progress into complete deafness his reply was "it all depends upon how you act and how careful you are, also don't use headphones". So I didn't consume any form of audio for the following 4 months, this includes watching TV, YouTube/Anime on mobile and absolutely no headphones. I didn't even make audio calls. But heh we are all humans and we need a little bit of entertainment in our lifes don't we? So I watched a little bit of anime here and there during April and May of this year (without headphones). But whenever I consume media with audio for a prolonged time I feel a sensation of ears getting 'blocked/popped' (sorry for my ignorance I'm very new to the world of HoH). So I stopped watching Anime for another 2 months then again resumed watching Anime on TV this July. It went fine for the most part but last night I again felt that 'blocked/popped' sensation. I know noise is my enemy but I need a little bit of anime to make me laugh when I'm stressed or depressed. So this got me wondering how much time do I have till I become completely deaf. Has anyone here been in the same situation as me? How long did it take you before you went complete dead? Sorry if my post was ignorant or offensive. My intention is not to offend anyone, I have very little medical knowledge and very new to the HoH world so some of the terms I mentioned here may be incorrect. English is not my first language so forgive me if there was any incoherence. Thanks in advance!

2 comments

Alienmonkey

•

Responding but my hearing loss is not quite like yours.

I don't know that I'll ever be fully deaf, but I would say that I enjoy subtitles quite a bit. It let's me watch TV without sound, because to hear what the voice track is saying I have to crank the volume and even then I'm not always great at understanding what is said.

It's harder than listening to music, I think because like you said there are so many other sounds mixed in.

With music I do try to check in, I have a few songs with some bass frequencies that I can hear, and if I can't, I need to see the doc quickly.

I have friends that work in industrial jobs and have full loss in one side or the other, in their 30's / 40's. They each manage differently but the time to full loss for them was determined a bit by how and what they were working on.

And from a hearing perspective, car washes are the worst. The noise and frequency is the most harsh thing I encounter in daily life the doesn't have a volume control.

Also, hearing aids do help me make sense of words the right way. Worth it if you can get them.

I know I didn't answer your question directly but wish you the best on your journey and your message was not offensive at all. Would not have picked up that English was jot your first language, doing well there.

Cheers!

NeedAnswerForEyePain

•

Thank you so much for your reply! It gives me a general idea. I'm currently doing an MBA and thinking of working in the tech industry in a management role. I've already declined job offers which required me to wear headphones most of the time, so I think I should do fine. But it's just the fact that I can't enjoy any media with audio as I used to do once anymore which hurts me the most. I'm a big audiophile, movie buff and a gamer. I love listening to audio in depth. I have 2 Sony Walkmans and specialised Sennheiser and Sony headphones. I have a large home media collection in CD, VCD and DVD formats. I have a quite nice collection of PS2 games which I love to play. I can't accept that I can't enjoy any of these things in their full glory anymore. Sometimes I think "fuck it" and watch Anime with audio on TV even though I know I'll get that "blocked/popped/fullness" sensation in my ears. But sometimes I think I should preserve my ears for more meaningful things. I'm only 22 and I have a long life ahead, I can't become deaf at such an young age. If I was 60 I wouldn't bother much. I still need to hear my future wife's voice and future kids voice. Sorry if this reply sounded like a rant I got a bit emotional.