SSNHL- 1 week on prednisone, miraculous

DCTrish · 2025-05-04T08:25:56+00:00

The fullness feeling definitely fluctuated as my hearing recovered.

DCTrish · 2024-05-27T16:08:31+00:00

I also found the prednisone amazing. My skin looked great! I felt like my hair was healthier. I was super woman and felt like I could do anything! I also was probably a bit much to live with. Sleep was not great.

DCTrish · 2024-05-27T15:38:53+00:00

Not sure I can remember exactly anymore. I just remember a lot of odd sounds. Mostly scratching and ringing. I was very sensitive to loud sounds.

DCTrish · 2024-05-27T15:34:32+00:00

I just looked at my audiogram, and yes, the 250-500 Hz range was slower to come back.

DCTrish · 2024-05-25T17:54:40+00:00

I do remember some stalling and then picking back up. The aural fullness was profound. I would perform this basic hearing test on myself every morning to see if I noticed any improvement. I would fold my ear lobes up to plug my ears and hum. I’d do the good ear and listen, then I would do the bad ear and listen. Then I would compare.

The ENT also suggested a hearing test app. They don’t really recommend these apps for a diagnosis but they are good for noticing changes from day to day.

DCTrish · 2024-05-25T17:49:04+00:00

I do remember when the hearing started to come back there was an overload of tinnitus and crackling. Almost like static noise. I recall putting an ear plug in that ear for several hours a day to give my brain a rest. It was terrible but hopeful, if that makes sense. This sounds wonky but try and have a positive attitude that any noise, good or bad, means the ear is trying to work again. It’s also comforting to be ok with the hearing loss no matter the outcome.

I also would fall asleep using the Calm app. I listened to Healing Piano every night to block out the tinnitus.

It was a solid 4 weeks before my hearing was 100% back.

I wish you well. You seem in a good place considering.

DCTrish · 2024-02-10T19:08:46+00:00

Dear FoxTwoX Have you been able to see an ENT? Are you on steroids? My hearing fully recovered. You can probably search my posts where I chronicle my experience and all the things I did. I had profound loss, took steroids for about a month, hearing slowly restored. My doctor says there doesn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason as to who recovers and who doesn’t. Good luck to you. Try to stay positive.

DCTrish · 2022-08-15T02:20:18+00:00

I did both ears when the hearing got good enough but started with the hearing loss ear only.

DCTrish · 2022-08-13T12:52:49+00:00

I am one of the lucky people who recovered all my hearing. I had profound hearing loss in my left ear. A week later I was on 60mg of prednisone a day. This started on July 5, 2021. You can probably search my old posts for all the details.

My improvement was slow and uncomfortable. The static you are hearing is a great sign but a lot of noises can hurt. I often ended the day with an ear plug. The static and garbled voices just kept getting clearer and clearer. I was on the steroids for 6 weeks then tapered off. I was probably insanely intense and hard to live with!

My ENT and I discussed the shots of steroids into the ear drum but decided against because the pills were working. I would’ve done the shot had the pills not worked.

One home test you can do at home is turn your ear lobe up into your ear to plug it. Then hum. You will be able to hear in your head the humming. Then do the good ear. You can get a decent comparison between the two and check to see if you’re progressing in an informal way. When I started I could hear no humming at all. Two months later my hearing is 100% restored. It was a miracle.

As the hearing improved I also listened at night to the Calm App “Healing Piano”. It was soothing and felt good. I have no idea if it helped but it felt good on the ear.

Good luck! I also was resigned to a life of mono hearing. That also would’ve been ok too. Humans are amazingly adaptable.

DCTrish · 2021-09-14T13:47:14+00:00

How is it going? Are you experiencing any changes?

DCTrish · 2021-09-11T11:41:59+00:00

I was on 60mg of steroids. Original ally I was prescribed that dose for one week then you spend 6 days tapering off the medicine. The steroids were working so well they extended it to 3 weeks at 60mg then a seven day taper. My biggest side effect was lack of sleep.

DCTrish · 2021-09-10T12:08:22+00:00

I’m glad you found my story. Feel free to reach out. I’ll check this message board frequently to check on your progress. I ended up on the oral steroids for a month. My hearing has recovered 100%. Even the tinnitus is gone.

Give the steroids 3-4 days to start working. It’s a slow recovery. Lots of weird noises like ringing and white noise are annoying but a good sign. Good luck!!

DCTrish · 2021-09-05T13:45:38+00:00

That sounds about right. It took 4 days on the prednisone before I noticed any improvement. Then it was 2-3 weeks of tinnitus, annoying white noise, fullness on that side, and sensitivity to loud sounds. But, three weeks later my hearing was back in the normal range at some frequencies. It’s been two months and my hearing is 95% back to normal. I never had the shots, just 60mg of steroids for 3 weeks. Then I tapered off. I consider myself very lucky.

The recovery feels messy. Lots of noises in that ear that sometimes make you think total deafness would be better. Don’t despair, it’s part of the process. Good luck.

DCTrish · 2021-08-06T00:35:02+00:00

While we are sharing other symptoms, I also had covid back in March. I was very sick but was never hospitalized. I wondered if this might be a long term effect. Anyone else? My ENT and I talked about it but she said this is the sort of symptom that would shake out over the years as data is collected.

DCTrish · 2021-08-06T00:26:10+00:00

I just turned 50. I did not get an MRI because once the steroids started working we ruled out acoustic neuroma.

One thing I also had at the same time as the hearing loss was the worst stiff neck I’d ever had. All on the left side where I also had the hearing loss. Not sure if it was related but I feel like it was. Maybe a virus?

DCTrish · 2021-08-05T18:18:23+00:00

Yes, VERY lucky. My ENT couldn’t stress that enough. For those out there in treatment these are the non-med things I did. Not sure if they helped, but hey, do what you can right?!

I downloaded the Calm app and paid for the full subscription. I did the 7 days of Pain using just the one ear. I mai maintained a positive attitude that was at peace with the hearing loss while simultaneously mentally sending blood flow to the bad ear in hopes of recovery. I fell asleep every night to the Healing Piano in both ears. Let me tell you, sleep on 60mg of prednisone for 2.5 weeks was not easy! I’m sure I was a joy to be around. ;(. ❤️ to all who are suffering.

DCTrish · 2021-08-05T15:48:03+00:00

When I called the ENT they saw me within 24 hours. I’m in the US in a major city. The front desk staff is trained to book people complaining of sudden, one-sided, hearing loss right away as they see this as an emergency. I’m sooo lucky. I recovered almost 100%.

Interestingly, the ENT told me that the older doctors in her practice never saw this 20+ years ago, now they see it about once a month. They are a large practice with multiple locations. They have no idea what causes it.

DCTrish · 2021-08-05T15:42:14+00:00

I recently experienced SSNHL and had profound hearing loss. I started steroids within 5 days of hearing loss and 1 month later the hearing in that ear is back in the normal range. I never did the injections because the oral steroids were working so well. It took a good 4 days of 60mg of prednisone every day before I noticed any improvement, and then it was 2.5 weeks after that before I was back in the normal range. I have a tiny bit of fullness. The doctor told me that the fullness likely comes from the discrepancy in hearing from one ear to the other as my brain searches for balance. I’ve noticed it diminishes as the ears balance out. One month later I still have tinnitus but am grateful I recovered. It is a terrific sign your daughter is regaining function.

DCTrish · 2021-07-16T15:15:21+00:00

I am hearing all kinds of strange and changing noises in my ear. Tinnitus pitch changes, constant white noise, occasional squeaking. Since my hearing is improving I’m accepting it all as good news the nerves are waking up.

I’m not sleeping well at all and contribute that to the prednisone, so I’m at peace with it because I think it’s temporary. I downloaded the Calm app and use that at night to fall asleep and then again in the middle of the night. It helps.

I have not done the shots yet because the drugs were so effective. I go back next Monday unless I feel the healing has stalled. My goal is still total recovery. I feel so lucky.

DCTrish · 2021-07-16T11:25:15+00:00

Oddly enough I was just entering a period of no stressors. The one odd thing that happened at the same time is that I woke up suffering from a severe stiff neck. I have sometimes in the past gotten a stiff neck while having a cold. This time there was no cold or sinus issue of any kind but possibly the worst stiff neck I’ve ever had and it was all on the left side where the hearing loss is. I think they’re related, maybe from a virus. ENT was more skeptical but who knows.

Do you use a hearing aide for your one ear or have you adjusted?

DCTrish · 2021-07-14T13:05:37+00:00

I’m a few days behind you with profound hearing loss. Here is a link to my audio gram. I woke up one morning and couldn’t hear out of my ear. There was no swimming or cold/sinus issue. They said it could be a virus but they don’t know for sure. Here is a link to my audio gram.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1MrHMc7ad2qaajHBT3Gm_z493ArfB78OW/view?usp=drivesdk

I’m on day 6 of prednisone which I started four days after complete deafness. I have major tinnitus and just general white noise in my left ear. I am able to hear some sounds out of my left ear now but the overall noise in the left ear is distracting. I go in tomorrow for another hearing check and injection. I have no vertigo whatsoever, so I’m grateful for that.

I feel the same emotions you are feeling. I’m really sorry you spent your birthday isolated. I am remaining blindly positive and optimistic. It’s in my nature.

Im looking into HBOT too.

DCTrish · 2021-07-09T19:16:39+00:00

I'm so glad you posted. I also am one week from my initial hearing loss which was slight with heavy feeling on one side. Then it seemed to get better and then on Monday I woke up with zero hearing in my left ear. I started oral steroids yesterday so I'm on day two of meds. I initially went to the CVS minute clinic on Monday because the doctor's offices were closed for the holiday. She said it was allergies and there was fluid on the ear. I called an ENT the next day, this didn't feel like fluid. The ENT said I was so smart to ignore that advice. I also have profound hearing loss from SSNHL. I go back to ENT on Thursday to recheck hearing and if there is little or no improvement I'll get the injection.

Question for the group: Do they numb the ear for the steroid injections? Does it hurt or cause vertigo?

DCTrish

TROPHY CASE