On Wednesday I went deaf.
It's not a permanent situation (I hope) but it is severe in that I am unable to hear anything at all unless it is held next to my ear and is very loud (my phone on full volume is just about audible but I can't hold a conversation easily). I cannot, for example, hear the living room television on full volume. I can't hear the kitchen television if I put it 1 metre away on full volume. I can't hear traffic coming near me if I'm on a pavement. I can't hear the warning beeps in the car.
I have always said that one should never assume anything about a person until one has experienced what that person has experienced. That can be anything from depression to the pain of childbirth or in a man's case a kidney stone.
At the moment I have become acutely aware just how much my life would alter if I were profoundly deaf. Because I will hopefully only be deaf for about 10 days I don't have the anxiety of what life would be like if I were permanently deaf. However, it's definitely a good insight into what deaf people have to endure.
It's not pleasant but we get by.
ReplyDeletePS I hope your deafness problem does get rectified quickly so that you can enjoy your coffee mornings again.
DeleteThanks, JayCee. My next appointment is 13 May but I'm hoping that it clears before then.
DeleteIt is a terrible thing. I have it occassionally but now I know to get my ears de-waxed regularly so I am lucky it isn't permanent. During the deafness for me it is not possible to join in conversations let alone start one and gradually I just sink out of the way of everyone. I also find it hard coping with how my voice sounds in my own head if I do speak so that is another reason why I don't speak. I hope your 10 days of deafness goes quickly.
ReplyDeleteRachel, I used to have them de-waxed regularly and then they stopped because apparently there had been cases of people claiming it had caused their tinnitus (and wanting compensation of course). Then I was told last week that they have reversed the policy so I went but the wax was so hard when she tried it simply pushed it further in. I'll go regularly in future. I can't have a conversation which is annoying because a friend from Glasgow will be on the Island and we've arranged to meet. I think that will be cancelled. Days race by these days but I bet the next 8 days will be the slowest ever.
DeleteThey do it by suction here now. The last time I went the girl had to get help. Some are better at it than others.
DeleteI'm very sorry to hear this Graham, it must have been quite upsetting. I did have some slight hearing problems a while ago and a good ear-syringing did the job very efficiently. My wife is a bit deaf and has recently invested in some hearing aids. She now hears everything with a very tinny sound, and isn't sure if it's any better or not.
ReplyDeleteCro, I've never had a problem before and I'm working on the basis that this will be all over a week tomorrow.
DeleteGood. Fingers crossed!
DeleteA steep learning curve...and hopefully this will be temporary
ReplyDeleteThat's my hope to GZ.
DeleteIt is very odd when your hearing suddenly disappears. I hope you'll be back to normal very soon.
ReplyDeleteJanice it was unexpected and sudden and I hope the reversal will be successful a week on Monday.
DeleteQuite a shock I am sure, Graham. I don’t have great hearing, but I have not had these episodic deaf periods. I have made an appointment for a hearing test and expect that sometime soon I will be wearing hearing aids, especially when I am out birding. As the ratio of older people to younger people seems to steadily increase, hearing aids are becoming as common as eyeglasses! Hope your temporary loss is short-lived.
ReplyDeleteDavid, it was quite a shock to be honest. However, I'm a fairly phlegmatic chap.
DeleteVoice and hearing have to get exercised daily. If you live alone, try to speak out/read out for a while on a daily basis.
ReplyDeleteDuta, I'm fortunate in having family and a friends and a very busy social life. My main problem is trying not to talk. I dare say that the next few days will be quieter than usual.
DeleteI'm sorry you have this trouble and hope it clears up soon, Graham. Do you know the cause and can you avoid it in the future?
ReplyDeleteI pick up my new hearing aids tomorrow and hope they will make my life easier.
Ellen, it's solid wax. When they tried to clear it the plugs simply moved further in. So I have a strict regime of warm olive oil and I go back for a good flush out a week tomorrow. Good luck with your hearing aids. My Mum had them in her '90s and said the best thing about them was being able to turn them off!
DeleteSo sorry Graham, do hope that you and your doctor know what has caused this and it can be resolved quickly.
ReplyDeleteMy husband is profoundly deaf and has explained how incredibly isolating an experience it was until he got the right hearing aids.
Jayne, it's simply very hard plugs of wax. As I explained above they were pushed further in when they tried to flush them out. They now need to be softened before the next try. Until this episode my hearing was excellent.
DeleteI hope that whatever is causing your deafness, can be resolved quickly. I can't imagine how frustrating this must be for you. Xx
ReplyDeleteThank's Jules. Next attempt at flushing them out is a week tomorrow and in the meantime I have a lot of warm olive oil to put into them.
DeleteSorry that this has happened Graham but I wonder how come you are so sure that the deafness is only temporary? I hope you are right and I shall be praying to the Greek goddess of hearing on your behalf. Her name is Echo. Her name is Echo.
ReplyDeleteMy hearing was perfect until a few weeks ago when people noticed that I wasn't hearing things. I went to have them syringed but the wax was so hard it push the plugs further in. Now I have a regime of warm olive oil until a week tomorrow and then they will try again.
DeleteHoly cow. That would be a shock! I hope it resolves with your doctor visit.
ReplyDeleteMe too!
DeleteAlthough I've ever experienced deafness, I can empathize with you about not holding conversations with anyone. When I had cancer, some thirty years ago, I lost my voice for a full year and it was so hard trying to communicate with anyone. I hope you will soon be hearing things again.
ReplyDeleteMargaret, your experience must have been awful. Not just the loss of your voice but cancer in such an area. I am expecting all to be remedied on my next visit to the nurse.
DeleteHope it gets sorted. I've occasionally suffered from this, although never for so long and only in one ear at a time. They gave me some goo called Ceranol (?) to put in to soften it, but it smelt awful. Have since found Otex much better - it bubbles away in your ear as it uses oxygen to break down the plug.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Tasker. I shall get some Otex.
DeletePrayers and well wishes your hearing will be good before long
ReplyDeleteThanks, Maywyn.
DeleteDisoriented is a good word. I wear hearing aids and since I'm a birder, it's hard to tell the direction the sound is coming from.
ReplyDeleteRed, as a birder that must be very irritating.
DeleteThat must have been very alarming until you found out the cause and received treatment.
ReplyDeleteAndrew, it's been a very "interesting" week. Hopefully by next week everything will be back to normal.
DeleteThat must be awful for you, Graham. Can't imagine you doing you without lively conversation. I have trouble with ear wax - because of very narrow canals I'm told and I now have them cleared every six months. They use a suction thing that makes very loud squeeks and squalls in the ear but only takes a few minutes. I always prepare by using warm olive oil. If I don't get it done I can't hear at all even with my new fancy hearing aids.
ReplyDeleteHope the waiting time passes quickly.
Pauline, it's even more irritating this week because an old friend from here who's lived in Glasgow for years is visiting tomorrow for a week (fortunately staying with another friend). She has just spent 6 months touring the world including 4 months in New Zealand. She is also a very close friend of Wendy and Martin. I'm hoping that by Wednesday I may have regained at least some hearing.
ReplyDeleteThey say deafness is very isolating so I'm glad you have every expectation that it's a temporary thing. I look forward to your update when everything is audible!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Kylie. I'm looking forward to it too!
DeleteI had to read this twice before I could hear it. Lesley
ReplyDeleteLesley, that's given me a good morning smile. Thank you.
DeleteSuddenly going deaf sounds (!) like a very scary experience. I've so far never needed help removing ear-wax but since some time last year (when I came across an ad about it) I've actually been using an olive oil spray from the pharmacy preventively. Surprisingly effective.
ReplyDeleteMonica, it's many years since I had mine done and I thought everything was okay. I now know differently. I'm drowning in warm olive oil in one ear and Tasker's Otex suggestion in the other.
DeleteDear GB, I was very confused as to how you knew you were only going to be "deef" for ten days, but I think I figured it out by reading all the comments here.
ReplyDeleteIf you are going to hang out with people in the meantime, just carry a nice black marker and a notebook, and write to each other across the table! Do little kooky drawings too, and make it a fun thing rather than a pain in the arse, which is, of course, what it is. 8-)
Marcheline, it really is becoming a PITA but so far I've not been socialising apart from lunch with my son and d-in-l. This week I have a friend coming to Stornoway who has just been round the world and spent 4 months in New Zealand so I'm really hoping they clear up by coffee time on Friday.
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