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SSNHL with Sound Distortion / Crackling - Why??
Hi. I was hoping someone could help me with some information. I was hit with SSNHL on March 20th, 2020. I lost my upper frequencies (6k+) in my left ear. After a round of steroids and some time, my 6k has mostly returned, but not much else.
Beyond the hearing loss, I also have Tinnitus (which lately has disappeared from time to time!) and some weird distortion thing. I understand everything except the distortion. My doctors don't seem to quite understand what I'm talking about or they dismiss it as something that my "brain will adapt to eventually". Online I haven't been able to find much... so I figured I would try here.
So, what happens is that certain sounds will become distorted in my left ear. Almost as if they are coming through water or being distorted by a digital filter. The sounds are "cracked". It's almost always when there is a *background* noise - street noise, water running, music and then someone else is talking or making a sound. Then, the sounds become cracked/distorted/digitized. It varies from being slightly annoying to making it hard to understand the situation.
It doesn't seem to matter if there's "bounce-back" from walls or the volume of the noise. For example, talking to someone on speaker phone outside will almost always sound distorted, but inside they sound fine.
Has anyone else experienced this and understood what's going on?
Very many thanks in advance!
best and stay safe,
tom
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I have developed a sudden change in my hearing and your description (tuner between 2 radio stations) is exactly what it sounds like. I can hear someone talking but can't make out the words clearly due to the distortion. Their (and my) speech sounds like it has been filtered through an electronic device to distort it. I already wear hearing aids and have profound hearing loss above 1000Hz.
This is different and happened progressively over the past month or so. At first, I thought it was just a sinus infection or cold as I have had a lot of mucus, esp in the morning. But my sinuses have been pretty much clear for the past week. Planning to see an ENT this week to have this checked out, but based on the posts, I gather this may not likely be effective in identifying what has happened or provide an effective therapeutic.
Taking Motrin has made a small temporary improvement. I also take a Zn tablet and Vit D3 in the morning. Have noticed the problem is most noticeable in the evening. Linkage or just the effects of wearing HA all day? Virus effect?
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1 ReactionThis type of issue is so complex, and it seems that everyone experiences it differently. Tinnitus covers a lot of bases, but that has many variables and affects people differently.
Please let us know what you learn from your ENT.
This happened when water was running today — I heard static in the bad ear while the water was on. Have you learned if this gives any clue as to the cause of the hearing loss? Could it be the ear nerves/cells trying to reactivate?
My own voice sounds distorted eversince an ear infection in 2020. I'll get intermittent screech noises that last the fraction of a second. So many Drs don't care ... my problem was caused from a Dr. Not giving me an antibiotic in time... and now other doctors act like it's no big deal. I literally went from happy to feeling no joy... if my voice sounds like a broken speaker how can I enjoy a conversation... when I speak it makes me cringe and feel delated, depressed, and hopeless... I would never off my self but I don't enjoy ANYTHING ANYMORE! 🙁 I have a normal audiogram but tinnitus and a distorted voice... tinnitus I can ignore tinnitus but when my voice sounds distorted I CANNOT get used to this.
I want this problem to go away SO BAD! I was a happy person before this happened and now this condition makes it so I don't want to speak. I hear my normal voice simultaneously with: a very quick & high pitched screech, or my voice sounds fuzzy, crackley and only to my ears. This problem has literally taken all joy away from my life and all 7 ENTs act like: "hmmm I'm note sure what to tell you" ME: I'm not happy anymore and this makes me not want to speak Dr. I'm sorry about that I wish you luck. EVERY DR. IS NOT HELPING ME! I cried on the phone begging for help! NOBODY CARES! ONE ENT TOLD HIS NURSE HE DOESNT HAVE THE BANDWIDTH FOR MY PROBLEM (HE GRADUATED FROM AN IVY LEAGUE COLLEGE & STILL IS A HORRIBLE DR. I went to Johns Hopkins and the Mayo Clinic and they were both NO HELP!!!!
Sorry that I'm not any help but yes I know exactly what your talking about. I've suffered for years.
1 thing, I'm beginning too think it may have more to do with spiritual "warfare?". I been lied to so much from medical community that I keep an open mind
I have the exact same issue. Had OK hearing up through 6khz. Then I got really sick with Flu and a head cold a few weeks ago. My right ear dropped to moderate hearing loss above 1khz. All the sounds in and above that range now sound garbled… like underwater or people are gargling. It’s an electronic distortion. I did prednisone and steroid shots to no avail. It did return some of my hearing, but not all. Sadly the electronic sounding distortion remains. I’ve been led to believe that the flu caused a virus to attack my inner ear. That virus supposedly damaged the hearing cells in the cochlea to where they are sending mixed signals to my brain. The brain is interpreting them as distortion. Not sure I’m completely behind that theory, but it’s what the ENT has been pushing.
Research indicates that once the inner hair cells in the human cochlea are damaged, they will not heal or grow back. It's encouraging to know there is ongoing research in this area. That research has found that some animal species do regrow damaged inner ear cells. This is not the case with humans, but there is always hope that a cure is possible someday.
Meanwhile, cochlear implants, which can bypass the damaged cochlea in humans and stimulate the dormant auditory nerve which allows signals to reach the brain is possible.
We question what caused this cochlear cell damage in the first place. In many cases those cells are damaged by extreme noise which happens suddenly or in duration. It may also be caused by viruses and even genetics. Regardless, it doesn't usually cause total deafness. It causes distortion or the inability to hear in certain frequencies. And, it tends to worsen over time. The degree of severity is shown in audiological testing which should include word recognition testing, speech understanding in noise, etc.
There is always a hope for a cure sometime in the future, but the question becomes how long will that take to happen?
Has your ENT mentioned cochlear implants?
Based on your comments I plan to get an ENT appointment. When I listen to Sirius in the car it sounds scratchy and gravelly. I complained to Cadillac and even asked to listen to a car with the 20 speaker $1000 upgrade which sounded just as bad. It wasn't just Sirius. FM and Amazon sound bad. The service manager said "Sounds like a car radio." This is a very hard thing to explain to people because I didn't think there is a way to put a number on it like a hearing loss test. My son said maybe it is digital bandwidth of the music but he couldn't really say the car sounded bad. It makes Mamas and Papas sound like Janis Joplin. Maybe the E of ENT can find a fix for clear sounding music? My voice started sounding so gravelly people on the phone thought it was a bad connection. The T of ENT at UF said my vocal cords looked good and I just needed to use more air or get voice therapy.
I know exactly how you feel.
It is so isolating to not want to speak and to have whatever you hear distorted! No joy in life anymore. I was very active with a social life and involvement in my family life....no more.
Life has passed me by for three years. I have seen dozens of doctors who have no answers.
What are ALL of your symptoms?
What caused your ear problems?
How does your voice sound exactly?