Nerve related hearing loss

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My hearing loss was strange. About two years ago I woke up with no hearing in my right ear. My left ear was fine. This past December I woke up with no hearing in my left ear and minimal in my right. The ENT has no idea. A Brain MRI did not show anything. Why would the hearing loss switch ears? I now have hearing aids.

I experienced nerve related hearing loss as a young adult (age 22), and I am now 69. Hearing never returned. Vertigo for months afterwards. Chronic tinnitus for decades.

@gailelease1 How are your hearing aids working?

It's interesting how hearing loss stories vary. A reminder that much more study and research is needed in this field.

It wasn't that long ago that researchers believed nothing would ever be available to help with hearing loss. We were told to 'just live with it and plan to be deaf eventually'.

Being 'deaf' isn't all that easy for people who have had typical/normal hearing. It can be devastating. I was told to learn sign language back in the day. Yeah, right?!! So WHO am I going to 'talk' to with sign language??

So thankful for advocacy and support groups that came on the scene in the early 1980s that encouraged more research and development. While hearing instruments and cochlear implants are not perfect, they are far better than they were 40 years ago. They will continue to improve as long as people who need them keep advocating and educating.

I feel like a broken record sometimes, but will continue to encourage people with hearing loss to tune in to and support The Hearing Loss Assn. of America (HLAA) http://www.hearingloss.org And also learn from The Hearing Health Foundation, Inc. http://www.hhf.org A newer resource that has a lot of excellent information is The Center for Hearing Access. http://www.centerforhearingaccess.org

It pays to know what is available in hearing help before buying costly hearing instruments. There is a lot of misinformation. Advertisements on TV and in magazines talk of miracles that happen with their products. YOU are the only person who will know how much hearing aids help or don't help when you try them. The people who sell hearing aids don't always share all the pertinent information about options with their customers. It helps when those who need hearing help are informed about potential products. It pays to check out those information resources listed above. Some of the information they provide may sound complicated. It pays to take time to learn. Think about how you approach other purchases like appliances, cars, TVs, etc. Those available today have options we should know about before a purchase, right?

I have hearing loss in my left ear due to a fungal infection years ago that was treated with an anti fungal medication. Gradually I noticed hearing loss which is getting progressively worse over time. This infection happened in 2001. I now have a hearing aid for my left ear but it’s very frustrating because I can’t hear voices out of that ear. Everything is garbled. My hearing aid gets adjusted but nothing helps. Because I can hear normally out of the right ear it’s very frustrating. I wish someone had a hearing aid that could help.

On Sun, Jul 19, 2026, 12:50 PM Jane Suliga wrote:

> Thanks! Will try and thinking I won’t mind it in coffee!😙
> Sent from my iPhone
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> On Jul 19, 2026, at 12:18 PM, Sandra wrote:
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> https://youtu.be/KPigGh9_gbU
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@julieo4
My hearing aids work pretty well. They are Jabra.

@carolineanne54
From what I have read you should use both hearing aids so that both sides get signals to your brain.

@carolineanne54 You may want to ask your provider about cochlear implants. They are doing more now for people with single sided hearing loss.

Not sure what kind of provider (audiologist, hearing instrument specialist, over the counter seller, ENT) fit you with the hearing aid you're using. Regardless, a reality is that while some hearing aids do help with clarity, most amplify sound. That 'clarity' thing is not as good as we'd like it to be. The quality of the fitter of the product is very important. Did your fitter use real ear measurement to see if the product was working when you were using it? Ask about that.

Did your provider mention anything about assistive technology that goes beyond hearing aids? Did they mention bicross hearing aids that bring sound from the deaf side to the hearing side?

Cochlear implants work with add on assistive technology too. They bypass the damaged cells in the cochlea and stimulate the auditory nerve that sends signals to the brain for interpretation. Only mentioning this to encourage you to ask questions and do some research. There is hope out there.

Some good research points are: http://www.hearingloss.org http://www.hhf.org

Julieo4

@gailelease1
You may need a CT scan of the temporal bone(s).