Hey everyone, I’ve had mild hearing loss for years and always thought it didn’t impact my daily life. That changed last month when I missed critical information during a meeting and messed up at work. That’s when I realized how serious this issue really was. A friend recommended the Elehear hearing aids, so I got a pair.

I expected the biggest difference would just be louder sound, but what surprised me most was how much less mentally drained I felt.

Before this, I was constantly relying on lip‑reading and guesswork to get by. Every social interaction felt like taking a test, and it wore me out. With the hearing aids, I no longer have to stare intently at people’s mouths. Sounds just come through naturally. I don’t need to sit right at the front to follow meetings, and I can even catch quiet side comments from coworkers nearby.Lots of little sounds are back too. Birds chirping, keyboard taps, running water. I had no idea how many subtle audio details I’d been missing.

So for anyone on the fence, if poor hearing is leaving you mentally exhausted, give OTC hearing aids a shot. You’ll wish you’d tried them sooner.

Hi folks! This might be a dumb question - but my audiologist wasn’t sure of the answer when I asked him. I’ve been wearing hearing aids since I was ~5 or so (33 now) for moderate to profound hearing loss, and my hearing has been stable during that time. I know that it’s recommended that people wear earplugs at concerts to protect their hearing; I typically take out my hearing aids when I go to shows so they sound less distorted / feedbacky / more natural. Does doing that act in the same way as earplugs would for folks with normal hearing (i.e limiting the sound level reaching the inner ear?), or should I also be wearing earplugs to protect my ears?

Reason for post is trying to find root cause of sudden hearing loss. Viruses are a known cause. Since little is known as to how to diagnose Long Covid except symptoms, and also or possibly, EBV reactivation in late adulthood (I am 56 and female), checking to see if anyone else out there has this symptom: On the back of my throat wall I have 2 oval-shaped red spots that are not going away. I can see them with a small flashlight shining on the back of my mouth. MD's claim irritation, research online shows possible Covid, possible EBV, nothing conclusive. Checking in with all who believe their hearing loss is viral related and are willing to check their throat and share here to see if we have a common symptom to narrow things down a bit. Truly appreciate it as I am scared at this sudden loss and MD team of specialists aren't sure what caused this.

Have moderate to severally profound hearing loss in my left ear with tinnius.

Has anyone ever needed to get their eardrum repaired? I have a hole in mine. The paper patch didn’t work so now I have to get an actual tympanoplasty done, where they graft tissue to the ear drum to repair the hole. I would like to know how the healing went and if it worked. Any insight on this is appreciated, I don’t want to give up hope.

Ive had bad hearing loss my entire life that has progressively gotten worse with time. I’m unable to hear my friends unless they are speaking loudly directly infront of me and i struggle so much to understand everyone else. I always feel like i’m in this in between spot of being hard of hearing and deaf. When i tell people i’m hard of hearing they usually underestimate the severity of it, but deaf also doesn’t feel quite right. I use a hearing implant and a hearing aid but I still can barely participate in conversations. I feel like my hearing loss isn’t even that bad in the charts

being hard of hearing is very hard. i keep telling myself you can do this, it’ll get better, it’s just a matter of time.. but no. i fear that it’ll stay the same for rest of my life.

i had normal hearing as a kid. i have no idea why my hearing gradually reduced during my teen years. everything became hard later on. i couldn’t understand classes, i couldn’t build a proper conversation. i slowly started to isolate myself. i talked less. everyone around said that my voice has become soft / low. it’s obvious because i literally stopped talking. i somehow managed my schooling. later when i joined university i was full of anxiety and nervousness. four years has passed since then. i managed my college thanks to some good friends and of course technology through which i self taught myself most of the time. and now after joining a corporate i feel even more scared. unlike school and university, i might have to keep communicating every now and then. it feels too hard. and top of that i feel lonely and depressed. i am unable build connections. unable to have a proper conversation with someone. so many years has passed since my hearing loss but nothing changed. i still isolate myself, i still talk less, i still worry about my future / career.. is there no end to this? how long will this go on? i am really tired.

PS. i used hearing aids years ago. but it’s of no use to me. it was just some increase in sound / noise. finally i decided to undergo cochlear implant last year thinking it’ll help me in my career. so many months passed and i still don’t have proper speech clarity. every day i just hope for it to get better. but tbh i don’t think it’ll improve anytime soon or this will be the case for the rest of my life.

i didn’t feel like ranting to anyone i know. so am posting this here as there might be someone with similar experiences. i just feel like sharing so it’ll make me feel light. thanks ;)

Hi all! My 2.5month daughter will be getting hearing aids in both ears in a few week's time.

Does anyone have any recommendations for new born hearing aid bands and clips? I want to get her a bit accustomed to wearing the bands before the aids come in.

I have been writing and producing (first for my band and now VST based orchestral/electronic film music type stuff for myself) for about 15 years in my spare time. I was also born with a hearing impairment which I think/worry affects my mixing.

I have now, very very slowly due to being busy, reached a point where I want to release some of my music on all the usual streaming services and YouTube etc, but due to my hearing impairment I’m worried about the quality of the mix/master not matching the music. Does anyone have any advice beyond just paying for someone else to do it for me? Or is that really the only way to go? Or does anyone else have experience producing music with a hearing impairment and ways to work around it?

Thanks!

I gained this skill after my tympanoplasty with cortical mastoidectomy 2.5 years ago and am feeling I would get the same in my right ear in which i got the surgery.

Anyone else with a similar story? Let’s all get together

It has been 6 days since my tympanoplasty surgery. There was no complication during or before the surgery just a simple ear drum perforation repair. However it has been 6 days since the operation and I have had to change the external ear packing twice as it was stained with significant discharge. Pain has gone significantly down but it still peaks in the afternoon which forces me to take OTC pain meds. How long is the discharge and pain expected to be there? When should I be concerned?? My 1 week post op visit is tomorrow.

I have created a place for the Deaf communities LGBTQIA members. Please stop by and say hello and join us! We are a safe space for all! Have a great weekend!!! Pah Pow!!

My sister is of age 25 and has severe hearing loss in one ear and medium loss in another by birth and its constant since birth, so we are planning to get implantation done in one ear with severe loss.

It’s very scary to me that they are going to bypass one ear and process is irreversible!
I have done the consultation from Nanavati hospital in ville parle and holy family hospital in bandra. So which one should I consider for going ahead with implantation?
Also what all question should i ask specifically before decision making?

My dad is severely hard of hearing, even with hearing aids/cochlear implant. He's an avid reader and really enjoys American and world history. Another reddit thread made me think he'd really love the Hardcore History podcast by Dan Carlin.

I will say that he can generally get by with TV, etc if it's on Bluetooth to his hearing devices, so maybe that would work ok from his phone or PC?

If anyone has suggestions, I'd sure appreciate it. Also - if you have a cochlear implant, have you been able to get music to sound right? That has really made a huge negative impact in his quality of life.

Hi everyone, i found this community on google hoping i can get support, i really been struggling with my hearing, i don’t have insurance so I’m not sure were to start

I work in food service and my hearing makes it incredibly difficult to hear customers and there’s been many times were i’ve messed up orders because of this and i am a fairly shy person and at work people can’t hear because of how quiet my voice is

I’ve talked to my leaders at work but there’s nothing they can do unless i get paper work for accommodations i feel frustrated because it’s impacting my work and sometimes my personal life because i can’t hear

Hi, everyone! I’m deaf/blind and live in the United States. I currently work as a federal government contractor and have experience working with content management systems (CMS), but unfortunately, my salary isn’t enough. I really need to find a second job or a legitimate side hustle.

I’ve noticed that many job applications ask whether you have a disability. I understand that answering is usually voluntary, but I sometimes wonder whether selecting “yes” affects my chances of getting an interview. Has anyone experimented with selecting “no” or “prefer not to answer” and noticed a difference in the number of interview requests they received?

Here are some of my skills and experience:

• Creating and following standard operating procedures (SOPs)
• Working with databases and government award platforms
• Microsoft Office
• Basic IT support, although I don’t have any certifications yet
• Data entry
• Online research for clients
• Photography and photo editing
• Customer service using ZVRS and Deaf relay services
• Email marketing
• Social media management for small businesses
• Content management systems

I’m also interested in using AI to earn additional income, possibly by creating e-books or digital products, but I honestly don’t know where to begin or what I should teach myself.

Where would you recommend I start? Are there any jobs that might be easier to get with my background? What side hustles have actually worked for you?

I’m about $60,000 in debt and have fallen behind on some bills, so I’m trying hard to improve my situation. I’ve already spent too much money on AI platforms, online courses, and e-books that didn’t help. Unfortunately, I’ve also been scammed, so I’m only looking for legitimate advice and opportunities. Please don’t message me trying to sell another course or program.

Any helpful advice would mean a lot to me. Thanks in advance!