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hearing loss after shooting range, is it permanent?
So i went to a shooting range yesterday, and stupidly didnt wear hearing protection. shortly after it was pretty hard to hear quiet noises, i had it in both ears, but more in my right, after about an hour, my hearing got a bit better, my hearing was back to normal in my left ear but still not back completely in my right. it sounds like my ear is stuffed up, if that makes sense. like i can hear things, even quiet things pretty well, it just seem like the pitch is off slightly on some noises. that and i have a ringing noise in my right ear.
its now been about 20 hours, and my hearing seems slightly better than last night. but very slightly if anything. and something strange is if i plug both of my ears for maybe 10 seconds or so, then unplug my ears, it seems like i can hear quite a bit better, like pretty much normal hearing in my right ear, left ear is fine. ive heard from friends who experienced the same thing that it can last a couple days before it returns to normal. i just want to make sure i shouldnt be worried about more permanent hearing loss, or if i should go see a doctor. i dont feel any pain or anything.
any advice is greatly appreciated!
its now been about 20 hours, and my hearing seems slightly better than last night. but very slightly if anything. and something strange is if i plug both of my ears for maybe 10 seconds or so, then unplug my ears, it seems like i can hear quite a bit better, like pretty much normal hearing in my right ear, left ear is fine. ive heard from friends who experienced the same thing that it can last a couple days before it returns to normal. i just want to make sure i shouldnt be worried about more permanent hearing loss, or if i should go see a doctor. i dont feel any pain or anything.
any advice is greatly appreciated!
One thing I can tell you, if the "buzzing" you are experiencing is related to some ear damage/hearing loss, it will probably settle down or disappear over time... after my sudden hearing loss I developed an extreme and annoying sensitivity to loud sounds in my good ear; stuff like that can happen as your brain tries to adjust to bad or diminished input from the damaged side. I thought it would never go away, but it did, although gradually, by fits and starts, and over maybe two or three years.
My elderly aunt had an ear surgery and kept hearing two particular songs in her ear for months afterwards. It drove her crazy, but it calmed down and is now almost entirely gone.
Your brain does compensate for certain types of injuries, it just may take awhile. Don't assume you will be having this annoying problem forever; probably not. And hopefully you haven't lost a significant amount of hearing. (And clearly you have learned the hearing-protection lesson. :) Good luck!
My elderly aunt had an ear surgery and kept hearing two particular songs in her ear for months afterwards. It drove her crazy, but it calmed down and is now almost entirely gone.
Your brain does compensate for certain types of injuries, it just may take awhile. Don't assume you will be having this annoying problem forever; probably not. And hopefully you haven't lost a significant amount of hearing. (And clearly you have learned the hearing-protection lesson. :) Good luck!
Thanks for the reply,
I looked up recruitment and i think, and hope thats not what im experiencing. from what it sounds like with recruitment it can be hard to understand words, words can seem jumbled, and when recruitment occurs you perceive sounds as twice as loud, which isnt happening.
My ear does seem a tad more sensitive than normal though.
I was discussing this with my parents yesterday, my dad is a doctor and mom was a nurse so i trust their opinions a bit.
We are thinking there might be swelling in the ear, which is either causing unequal pressure, or just the swelling alone is causing the buzzing/ blown speaker sound.
My mom who scuba dives a lot said she gets the same type of thing that has lasted a couple days, where there is unequal pressure, and things sound muffled, like you're listening through a door, and there is a buzzy sound to a lot of noises.
ive experienced the same thing after swimming, but it usually recovers in minutes, hours at most. ive never given much attention towards it because i know its not serious.
swelling would also make sense because for maybe 10 minutes or so after shooting i didnt notice the buzzy sound, then it became noticeable, so that would the time it took to swell.
swelling or unequal pressure would also explain why when i plug my ear then unplug it, there is a split second where it doesnt seem to happen.
so anyway, im hoping its just swelling, my dad said it should take a week, maybe 2 to go away. if its unequal pressure, it should go away sooner as the ear gets less swollen, if the symptoms im having are from swelling alone ill just have to wait and see. im still seeing an EMT doctor today, ill definitely bring this up and see what he thinks.
i took some benedryl, as well as put vics in my ear and by my nose last night, and when i woke up this morning, i hardly noticed it, but i was not talking very loud, now that ive talked a bit today and had people talk to people, its still there, but it seems like its a little bit less. like it takes a tad louder sound to happen, and when it does happen its not as severe. hopefully this is a sign of recovery.
id still like any advice anyone can give, its not over yet and im still kinda freaking out, since im not 100% sure. the buzzing while talking and listening to music makes it annoying and bothersome to listen to music, people, or even talk myself. the thought of having to live the next 4/5th's of my life being annoyed by sound is not a good thought to have.
One things for sure i definitely learned my lesson, i wont even think about shooting without hearing protection again, its not worth the risk.
I looked up recruitment and i think, and hope thats not what im experiencing. from what it sounds like with recruitment it can be hard to understand words, words can seem jumbled, and when recruitment occurs you perceive sounds as twice as loud, which isnt happening.
My ear does seem a tad more sensitive than normal though.
I was discussing this with my parents yesterday, my dad is a doctor and mom was a nurse so i trust their opinions a bit.
We are thinking there might be swelling in the ear, which is either causing unequal pressure, or just the swelling alone is causing the buzzing/ blown speaker sound.
My mom who scuba dives a lot said she gets the same type of thing that has lasted a couple days, where there is unequal pressure, and things sound muffled, like you're listening through a door, and there is a buzzy sound to a lot of noises.
ive experienced the same thing after swimming, but it usually recovers in minutes, hours at most. ive never given much attention towards it because i know its not serious.
swelling would also make sense because for maybe 10 minutes or so after shooting i didnt notice the buzzy sound, then it became noticeable, so that would the time it took to swell.
swelling or unequal pressure would also explain why when i plug my ear then unplug it, there is a split second where it doesnt seem to happen.
so anyway, im hoping its just swelling, my dad said it should take a week, maybe 2 to go away. if its unequal pressure, it should go away sooner as the ear gets less swollen, if the symptoms im having are from swelling alone ill just have to wait and see. im still seeing an EMT doctor today, ill definitely bring this up and see what he thinks.
i took some benedryl, as well as put vics in my ear and by my nose last night, and when i woke up this morning, i hardly noticed it, but i was not talking very loud, now that ive talked a bit today and had people talk to people, its still there, but it seems like its a little bit less. like it takes a tad louder sound to happen, and when it does happen its not as severe. hopefully this is a sign of recovery.
id still like any advice anyone can give, its not over yet and im still kinda freaking out, since im not 100% sure. the buzzing while talking and listening to music makes it annoying and bothersome to listen to music, people, or even talk myself. the thought of having to live the next 4/5th's of my life being annoyed by sound is not a good thought to have.
One things for sure i definitely learned my lesson, i wont even think about shooting without hearing protection again, its not worth the risk.
P.S. You might want to get a hearing test, so you will have an idea what your hearing level is now, and see if you have any permanent loss. That might spur you to be very conscientious about hearing protection in the future.
I wonder if the "blown speaker" effect is recruitment, something that can happen with hearing loss.
I wonder if the "blown speaker" effect is recruitment, something that can happen with hearing loss.
There is nothing a doctor can do for noise-induced hearing loss. With that noise exposure, you have already permanently damaged some of your hearing cells. They do NOT regenerate.
I hope your hearing continues to get better this time, but don't ever count on it coming back after such exposure. Wear your hearing protection ALL THE TIME. Even ONE episode of noise exposure can PERMANENTLY damage your hearing to some extent. The louder the noise, the shorter the time it takes to kill those cells, and the damage is cumulative over time.
Think of it this way, ear protection now is way better than hearing aids later! :)
I hope your hearing continues to get better this time, but don't ever count on it coming back after such exposure. Wear your hearing protection ALL THE TIME. Even ONE episode of noise exposure can PERMANENTLY damage your hearing to some extent. The louder the noise, the shorter the time it takes to kill those cells, and the damage is cumulative over time.
Think of it this way, ear protection now is way better than hearing aids later! :)
so i think i can describe this a little better after "analyzing" it all day. the ringing sound is still there, doesnt seem to have gotten better. its better since the hour of so after shooting, but about the same as it was that night and this morning. but sometimes i dont notice it at all, like it goes away and comes back, but part of that might be mental.
there is a raspy/ blown speaker sound in my right ear when i talk at a normal level, when i drove today, i tried to drive in the same environment that i did yesterday after shooting. the volume at the same level. and i seem to notice the blown speaker sound a little more when im talking than others, the louder i talk, or the louder the radio, the more it seems to happen.
there is a raspy/ blown speaker sound in my right ear when i talk at a normal level, when i drove today, i tried to drive in the same environment that i did yesterday after shooting. the volume at the same level. and i seem to notice the blown speaker sound a little more when im talking than others, the louder i talk, or the louder the radio, the more it seems to happen.
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