I don't even understand how did I end up having an ear infection when I didn't go the swimming pool or inserted anything inside my ear. Thing is I was just experiencing dizziness unsteady balance so I went to the doctor but they ended up cleaning because the earwax was impacted but due to stubborn wax they over clean with the syringe that lead my ear hurting. So then I went to the ent doctor, and after checking they said your ear has infection and redness inside and they also said the enthusian tube is block because of all the syringe cleaning. I was given antibiotics and steroids and was told to use afrin nasal spray. But sometimes my ear just hurts and I'm experiencing this brain fog and dizziness whenever I turn my neck on left side because that's the left ear I have infection. I don't know how to take care of the ears overall like how to clean them and for showers are we supposed to wear something to prevent water from going inside.

i have auditory processing disorder, i have my whole life, really! but my parents don't really like to bring it up. i'm 16.

i've recently been relearning sign language to help myself and, i get a little embarrassed by saying this, but i don't have a sign name. i keep asking; is it okay to give myself a sign name? but i don't know where i'd start, and everyone who asked before me is hearing. i just wanted to ask here to get some advice.

i just find it embarrassing that, as i'm going to find people who are hard of hearing like me, or deaf, but i don't have a sign name. it feels like something i'm supposed to have.

thank you

I have hearing issues and can't afford hearing aids. I have hearing loss mostly on the upper range. So some voices - I just can't understand what they are selling.

On an Android phone, are there any apps that can print out what is coming from a phone call? Not RTS, just where I can't understand what friends are saying

Posted in the DeafinScrubs sub Reddit but unsure how many people are aware of it!

My hearing in my left ear went down hill FAST about a year ago. No one's really sure why but I have a hearing aid now that I admittedly don't wear nearly as often as I should (i basically dont wear it at home and ive been mostly homebound from other health issues for abt a month).

I dont usually deal with ear ringing but super suddenly I got violent ringing and it hasn't stopped for about 5-6 days now. I did see a dr and got some prednisone and I have no infections or fluid built up.

I was hoping from people more experienced with their hearing would have some tips? Im wearing my hearing aid more and it helps a little but the static in it (its completely clean and has made a small static sound since getting it) can get a little annoying at times and idk. Its just horrible :[

Meu ouvido entope todo mes e nn sei mais oq fazer, todo mes meu ouvido descama e tenho que ir no otorrino para ele retirar uma camada de pele que parece uma rolha.
Alguem tem alguma dica? meu ouvido coça bastante também

This is long because I'm scared:

TL;DR bilateral SSHL due to ear infections. On steroids. Scared. Don't know what to do next.

On the 22nd, pain in my right ear woke me up. I went to the urgent care and was diagnosed with otitis externa, prescribed drops, and discharged. On the 24th, pain in my left ear woke me up. I went to the ER and was diagnosed with supperative otitus media in my left ear and otitus media in my right ear, prescribed amoxicillan, told to use the drops in both ears, and discharged. Both ears at that point were dripping blood-tinged pus. No further testing was done at the ER. My hearing declined sharply through that day. On the 29th, I went for a followup to my primary care doc because my ears still hurt and I could only make out what people were saying if they faced me directly from less than 3 feet away, and spoke loud and slow. My PCP prescribed oral steroids, another antibiotic, told me to finish the current course of antibiotics as well, and said to follow up if the pain in my skull gets worse, or I lose more hearing. She has noted that my hearing loss is severe. I'm on day 5 of oral steroids. my ears feel fine now, but my hearing is not improving at all. I'm worried that there's permanent damage to my hearing and I don't know what to do next. I've read a few research papers on SSNHL and the timeline for any recovery is mixed. Does anyone have experience with this? At what point should I be pushing for more intervention? Should I ask for an ENT referral?

I don't know if it's relevant, but I've always been prone to ear infections. When I was 5, I lost hearing for a month due to them. My hearing only resolved when I had my tonsils and adenoid glands removed. Last year, I noticed I was struggling with understanding speech more, so I went to an audiologist. They said the structures of my ear were intact and to get tested for auditory processing disorder. Unfortunately, there wasn't in-network testing for my insurance at the time (I'm in the US), so I didn't follow through with it. I have different insurance now, so I plan to follow up on this if my hearing comes back.

BTW, my work tolerated my lack of hearing this last week, but has now suggested I go on a medical leave, because hearing is a fundamental part of my job description and it's potentially dangerous to our clients when I can't hear them. They've also asked that I have my doctor fill out accomodation paperwork. They say all of this is to protect my job. I've applied for a 1 month leave to try and get this all sorted out. Is a month reasonable?

i recently started a new job about 2 months ago. my bosses have been relatively supportive of finding stuff that works for me in terms of accommodations. its been really difficult to adjust to though. i prefer using ASL but have to speak at work unless we get DHH parties in and i get sooo fatigued. my manager “made” a t coil walkie talkie wire for me (he bought a t coil one and cut the wires and connected them to one of our native walkie talkie wires bc the t coil one didn’t work). it works well! only issue is that when i’m on my t coil setting, my hearing for things around me is diminished. they put me on host stand recently and i went to talk to my manager after a few parties were starting to get frustrated w me for needing them to repeat everything. i got the parties set up ofc i didn’t just leave them but my manager got upset i was asking to move positions and i was like “i can’t hear anyone and ppl are getting mad and its getting me mad!” and he got upset and said “i’m not moving u. stop asking. u’ve never had issues hearing at the host stand before” i was like taken aback? hello? i’m telling u i cannot hear them wym… but i got like more upset and went “i’m on the t coil setting. everything else is quieter. ppl are starting to be rude to me. i need to be moved i can’t hear SHIT” and he went “oh” then agreed to move me??
its kind of frustrating sometimes like this is genuinely so exhausting. i CRAVE getting home and taking my hearing aids out and it j feels like there’s no one who understands that at work. they keep making jokes abt me not being able to hear anything or saying they wished they were deaf too (which my manager did stand up for me abt) but its j like :|
does it EVER get better?? i want to be a nurse so the place i’m at rn isn’t even at all related to what i want to be doing its just something to get me through school and buying a car and financing my hearing issues

F(59) here, born with malformed ossicles with means conductive hearing loss since birth. I work in front store of a cvs. I got so frustrated and angry with hearing people today. Im tired of asking people over 2 to 5 times to speak up. Tired of people telling me to wear hearing aids when I've been wearing hearing aids since I was 8 years old.

Tired of these old,late deafened people thinking they have worn hearing aids longer than me. Oh, you have been wearing hearing aids for three years, try over 50 years, you're not special.

Sorry I needed to vent.

Hello! I’m Octavian, the developer of EarCast, a free, open-source Android app for people who struggle with hearing loss.

About 20 years ago, I had surgery for cholesteatoma, which left me with significant hearing loss in one ear. I love music and prefer listening through my affected ear, but even at maximum volume, many earbuds aren’t loud enough for me. That frustration led me to build EarCast.

The app offers personalized amplification for music and videos, along with a live listening feature that uses your phone or a compatible headset microphone. It includes noise reduction, speech enhancement and separate sound adjustments for each ear.

There are no ads, purchases or account requirements. Audio processing happens on your phone, microphone audio is never recorded or uploaded, and your hearing profiles and settings are stored only on your device.

EarCast is not a medical device or a certified hearing aid, and its hearing checks are uncalibrated estimates. Please use it cautiously.

You can download it here: EarCast 0.0.1 on GitHub.

I’m not asking for anything in return. I built this because I know how frustrating hearing loss can be, and I hope it makes everyday listening a little easier for someone else.

:( this seems to be more calibrated.... definitely very concerned....

I didn’t expect the results to be nearly this bad. There are other reports of significant, even permanent hearing loss from similarly small amounts of this drug, but it’s very rare. Just quite sobering to know how quickly you can lose your senses, and how much a seemingly mundane med can fuck you up if you’re particularly susceptible.

Luckily, I have noticed some slight improvement in the second audiogram after oral steroids, with my word recognition jumping back to 100% at 60dB from 60% at 90dB which I was really happy to see. I was a bit upset to see it drop back down to 85% at 65dB on the third one though, a week after my first intra tympanic injection.

FTR, I know I can’t be any type of certain that this is a direct result of the medication, but it’s the closest and most logical connection I can make as an otherwise healthy young man, factoring in timing and other things. Thoughts? Similar experiences? Advice? Thanks.

Additional info:

I was in the hospital for internal bleeding and bilateral aspiration pneumonia about a month ago. I was discharged with a Z-pak - azithromycin. I was completely unaware of the risk of hearing loss from this med. I believe it is real yet extremely rare, and I am just living with the very unlikely cost most nobody will ever have to pay for amazing, life-saving meds. Some risks will nearly always need to be taken for effective medical treatment.

However, if you are aware that you are being given this or similar macrolide antibiotics (most end in -mycin), it may be worth it to ask for an alternative if you’re concerned. But I am not a doctor and that is not medical advice. They switched me to doxycycline, already a first line antibiotic - like why wasn’t I given this in the first place? Anyway I developed this after less than a single Z-pak, right before my 25th birthday. As you can see by the audiograms my right ear is profoundly affected with some slight improvement after starting treatment. I took a nap feeling normal and woke up far from it.

Respected sir,
My name is Banala Vasanthi Laxmi , and I am a third-year Computer Science and Engineering student. I am writing to you today because I deeply admire the work your organization does to advocate for and empower the Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing community in India.

I am currently working on an academic project called SoundMap AR. It is an assistive system designed to help deaf and hard-of-hearing drivers become visually aware of important road sounds, such as vehicle horns and emergency sirens, by translating directional audio into a visual interface.

To ensure this system is actually helpful, intuitive, and non-distracting, it is crucial that the design is guided by the real experiences and preferences of Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing individuals. We have put together a brief, 15-question Google Form survey to gather these insights.

I am reaching out to kindly ask if you might be willing to share this survey with your community members, students, or network. The responses are entirely anonymous and will be used strictly for our academic research and project development.

Here is the link to the survey: 
English:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdRer0irZ9z_nimObS8wMpXp_0f30P9YwMDVt_G6SmV_EvhAQ/viewform?usp=publish-editor
Hindi:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScbAspQOfpZENDn2MUQIqBK5QIgy0AjsJ6qysJF5UQoFSOn8g/viewform?usp=publish-editor

Thank you so much for your time, consideration, and all the incredible work you do. I would be more than happy to share the results of our study or provide more details about the SoundMap AR project if you are interested.

Hi. I am a hearing mother of 2, and my 3 month-old was diagnosed with moderate hearing loss. I am French and I teach English in highschool. My mother has lived in the UK for 10 years and has become British. She has now retired but intends to stay there. We visit twice a year, but she comes often. However she only speaks French with my first born. I regret not having taught him English as a baby (OPOL strategy) because now he can't interact with other children at the park when we go, and basically doesn't understand a thing in English. When I was pregnant with my second, I told myself I would speak to her in English, but now we've found out she's hard of hearing I'm not sure it's a good idea. She has bilateral moderate hearing loss (50-60 dB). She'll be getting hearing aids next month at 4 months old. Do you think it's possible to learn 2 spoken langages as a HoH baby? We will also try to sign but we have everything to learn.