Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

General health

Mumsnet doesn't verify the qualifications of users. If you have medical concerns, please consult a healthcare professional.

Flip

1 2

Original poster

Anyone else have a mild hearing problem that gets them down? (whinge)

47 replies

Miaou · 22/02/2006 21:35

Although I would say it affects everyday life, it's not so bad that it stops me doing things - but I do get fed up from time to time. I have to ask the kids to repeat themselves, find it hard to hear from one room to another, and often get the wrong end of the stick. But where I really come unstuck is in social situations - I was at a do on Sunday and I realised when I came away that I had had "conversations" with people that basically involved me going "yes" "mmm" etc in what I judged to be the right faces, and watching their facial expressions to see whether what they were saying was happy/sad etc - ie not much of a conversation! Then if I got asked a question I would have to ask for it to be repeated which then looked as if I hadn't been listening...

Thing is I only have a problem with one ear, and it's only with low frequency sounds, which means that a hearing aid would be of no use because it would just amplify everything, whereas I just have problems picking out conversation from background noise.

Sorry, I know there is no solution to this, it is just nice to get this off my chest and it would be good to speak to other people in the same situation (if there are any!).

OP posts:

Chandra · 22/02/2006 23:59

and a tip that really works, when you don't hear what people is saying lower your voice, people speaks louder when they can't hear. It works like a charm!

Original poster

Miaou · 23/02/2006 08:55

oooh, that's a good idea! Will try that one! (the speaking quieter)

OP posts:

Kelly1978 · 23/02/2006 09:03

Geekgrrl is right abt hearing aids. Event he older ones had to be set for amplification of the right frequencies. I used them for years but stopped when I had an operation on my ears (cosmetic) and never got used to them again. They do make things sound very different and it is very hard to get used to.
I would second the lipreading idea. I lipread a lot. Since my deafness is congenital I picked it up naturally wihtout classes and I am very dependant on being able to see someone's mouth to 'hear'. I also need subititles on tv.
My family get fed up with repeating things sometimes. I find it is less irritating to them if I at least repeat the bit that I did hear so they jsut fill me in iyswim. social situations are difficult and it has taken me many years to get the hang of them, and it is a mixture of lipreading and vacant nodding that gets me through.
My loss is best described that I hear what a normal hearing person would hear underwater. So, it is quite bad, but I couldn't imagine having life amplified now. Dp complains about birds sqwaking, which I can't hear. I learn about new noises all the time - at the weekend I was told that gas hisses from a hob - I had no idea!! I still couldn't bear to hear normally though.

jac34 · 23/02/2006 09:15

Miaou,
I don't have a problem with hearing,mine is my sight.I have no sight in my left eye and quite poor sight in my right eye.During the Summer the sight in my right eye got worse for a month or so(luckily is has now gone back to normal).
I remember the doctor saying to me that if I had a broken arm,then I'd be wearing a cast and people would know there was something wrong and make allowences.If people can't see a problem, then they don't always understand(I'm not so bad I need a white stick).
I agree with those who say you should tell people, at least then they know your not just being rude.

brightstar1 · 23/02/2006 10:18

Blimey!!How come there are so many convo's going on in the pubs! no-one can hear anything anyone's saying LoL!
i've had this problem for years and have learnt to lip read (unknowingly). It can be v.embarrassing,get some strange looks when i've obviously nodded in the wrong place!
v.frustrating when i can't hear the kids properly. Hate going out,pubs etc.It does seem to be worse when there is background noise.

serenity · 23/02/2006 10:46

I went to see my GP about this last year as I was finding it increasing difficult to function at work (I work in retail, so lots of background noise) I have to get close to people to have conversations, and also have to watch peoples faces in order to follow conversations. Telephones are a complete nightmare, we've got a cordless one so I can leave the room, as any other noise means I lose the thread of the conversation completely.
I think it's made me quite shy and insular tbh, I've never been that outgoing anyway. I find it hard to break into new groups because half the time I have no idea what's going on!

Anyway, I went to see a specialist pretty convinced that I'd find some degree of hearing loss only to discover that it was in fact the opposite. My hearing is really acute, and I can't hear the normal stuff I want to hear because there is just so much other background noise going on. That one is just too weird to explain (and tbh I can understand why people might wonder how it is a problem anyway) so if I get into difficulties I just ask people to slow down as I have 'mild hearing problems' without being specific.

LadySherlockofLGJ · 23/02/2006 11:01

Kelly1978

Have you asked your audiologist to refer you for assesment for a cochlear implant ??

Kelly1978 · 23/02/2006 13:01

No, like I said, the idea of hearing normally would really not appeal to me! I don't see an audiologist any more, once I went off to uni I stopped seeing them. I've adapted to it well enough now, most people don't even realise I am deaf. I don't tell people if can get away with it.

geogteach · 23/02/2006 13:24

DS1 is deaf and he ranges from mild at low frequencies to profound at high frequencies the new digital aids are great in that they can be tailor to him, when he has difficulty with a particular sound (things like road diggers he finds unbearable) often if we tell the technician there are programmes she can change. For phones you can get ones with volume control 'connevans' are a company that provide loads of equipment modified for people with hearing loss - they have a website and are really helpful on the phone.

LIZS · 23/02/2006 13:31

Me too - possibly due to mumps . It was discovered when I was about 5/6 and not paying attention at school. Agree with those who say that it can be isolating and frustrating especially in social or work group settings where I have to concentrate really hard on one discussion to the exclusion of all else. I'm sure I apparently ignore people who start to talk to me out of my range and aren't standing in front of me to get attention. Instinctively I'll sit on the right of a room or on the corner at a table so I can hear the majority of what is happening and face others. I'm sure it has hindered me socially.

olivo · 23/02/2006 20:30

Miaou, i have a hearing problem which sounds similar to this - it started 5 years ago and i've had lots of investigation, scans etc but no conclusion! I tell people when I meet them and always sit strategically in pubs and restaurants etc (have often pretended that i've heard what people say etc though and got a funny look when I've replied! !)

Hope you get yours sorted out - I hadnt realised so many people suffered too! good luck. x

brightstar1 · 24/02/2006 10:36

wot did you say?.(sorry couldn't resist).

Has anyone had their ears syringed? know what it's like? Been thinking about it,but to be honest it scares the hell out of me.

spacecadet · 24/02/2006 11:32

brightstar, i live in fear of having my ears syringed as i get the spins.ugh. i had the wax sucked out once in hospital which was much nicer.

coppertop · 24/02/2006 11:39

Serenity - My dh has exactly the same problem as you. In lots of ways I think he suffers just as much from having hearing that's too good as I do with my deafness. It's worse at work where he can hear entire conversations from over 30ft away (open-plan office). He finds it hard to concentrate with all the noise.

Kelly1978 · 24/02/2006 21:51

I have hd a cold now and am almost totally deaf. Now this is when it does get me down. dp is in a sulk, but argueing is almost too much hassle cos I gotta lipread every word!

mousiemousie · 02/02/2007 17:50

Miaiou you need an ENT referral as it is likely whatever is affecting your hearing can be sorted out or at least there will be some help available.

This happenend to me and I turned out to have otosclerosis which is common in women age around 30. I had ops on both ears and have normal hearing again - but when I couldn't hear it really affected my confidence.

Please don't suffer it when there is help available

Original poster

Miaou · 02/02/2007 18:17

Gosh mousiemousie, fancy you finding this thread again after all this time! I clicked on it because I thought "oooh, I can sympathise with that" - only to find it was my thread

I never did go to my GP () - apart from the odd day when it gets me down I don't really think about it much atm. We have moved house since then and I do less socialsing now (if that's possible, lol!), so it's not so much of an issue. The one place I do tend to go out to is the social club and they don't play music there, which makes a huge difference.

However I did take people's advice on board and I am now more prepared to be upfront and say "sorry, my hearing's not great, can you say that again?" when necessary. I have a cordless phone so I can remove myself from background noise if needs be though I still struggle on the phone sometimes.

It was quite nice to read back through this thread - you are all lovely and supportive and though I am sad that so many of you have hearing problems (and some much worse than mine!) the empathy was/is much appreciated.

OP posts:

Polgara2 · 02/02/2007 19:05

Wow - glad this was resurrected - its kinda nice knowing that you're not alone isn't it - even though it's sad we're all suffering . Was recently diagnosed with sensorineural (sp) hearing loss - albeit mild it's distressing.
My conversation with consultant went along the lines of:

What's caused it? Don't know, you'd never find out.
Will it get any worse? Don't know come back in a year.
Can you do anything about it? No.

Gee thanks for that then!

Original poster

Miaou · 02/02/2007 19:25

Polgara - that's kinda what's put me off taking it any further - I couldn't bear to get my hopes up only to find there's nothing to be done! I'll probably soldier on now until after this baby is born then review what to do later in the year.

OP posts:

mousiemousie · 02/02/2007 21:53

Miaou please don't just soldier on without finding out if you can get this sorted out...for me I didn't realise how much it had dragged me down until I finally got the problem sorted...I had lost a lot of confidence without really realising how much.

Polgara, I am sorry to hear the attitude of your cosultant, doesn't sound like you had a very helpful experience

jenwa · 09/09/2007 21:14

Miaou
Just wondered how your hearing is now?
Reading threads on here as I have hearing loss and am now wearing aids.
Is it still the same and are you coping ok?

Chirpygirl · 09/09/2007 21:41

I didn't spot this the first time but Miaou, that's me down to a tee. I have total hearing loss at mid range which means that any background noise blocks everything.
It can come in handy as I can't hear DD when she screeches (wrong pitch!) but I also can't hear my phone half the time and also have to lip read to get by.
Everyone I know knows about this though so they are used to me asking them to repeat themselves. I even had my desk moved at work so I didn't have my back to people after some complained that I was ignoring them.
I did go and see a consultant but he said although a hearing aid would help it isn't necessary and to go back if it gets worse. That was 5 years ago, I had regular hearing test at work so I know it isn't getting worse but I cope with it so don't think of it as a problem, justa thing I have.

Flip

1 2