Hearing is changing?

[jyl]

In the last year, I've noticed a change in my reaction to sounds.

I am more bothered by cacaphony, unmelodic music, loud audio from TV, noisy places.

I have more dislike for conversing in confused loud environments.

I prefer quiet places and am less able to ignore background noise.

Is this normal? I'm 53. No hearing loss as far as I can tell. It's more of an irritability thing.

No history of exposure to loud noises (seldom went to concerts, wear hearing protection when shooting, don't ride unmuffled motorcycles).

[Don Ro]

I grew up shooting at the age of 10...no ear protection.
Rode motorcycles with no helmet back then.
Hearing loss almost kept me out of the military.
Jet engines in the military.
Loud home music systems...loved loud and crystal clear head phones.
At 35 yrs. of age my ex g/f was an audiology Dr. who tested me for loss and recruitment.
These days (70 yrs. old) I don't like gatherings because I can't make out most of the conversations.
Watching movies on TV I use the closed caption feature.
~~~~~~~~~

Recruitment causes your perception of sound to be exaggerated. Even though there is only a small increase in the noise levels, sound may seem much louder and it can distort and cause discomfort. Someone with recruitment can have problems only with specific sounds and frequencies or may have problems with all sound in general.

The theory of recruitment is that as the hair cells in your cochlea become ineffective, they "recruit" their (still working) neighbor hair cells to "hear" the frequency the damaged hair cell was supposed to hear, in addition to the frequency the still working hair cell was supposed to hear. This increases the signal from the still working hair cells.

The sounds reaching our brains appear to be much louder that normal. This is because the recruited hair cells still function in their original critical bands and also in the adjacent one(s) they have been recruited into.

The net effect is that people who have recruitment along with their hearing loss will experience an increasingly narrow range between the softest sound they can hear (caused by the hearing loss) and the loudest sound they can comfortably tolerate (caused by the recruitment).

[Porsche-O-Phile]

Noise doesn't bother me so much but chaotic, cacophonous noises do. I've never liked clutter, disorganization, large crowds or messiness so it's probably related to that somehow - auditory clutter if you will. Still, a good bit of well-performed music played at high volume still inspires me and gets the blood going... I just don't like "messy" music / sounds at any volume.

If that makes me a "grumpy old white guy" then so be it. Now get off my lawn.

[Don Ro]

"messy" music/sounds...
Excellent wording. Same here.
That's why I have a very pricey home sound system for accurate reproduction...crisp mids and highs, etc...
And I'm not a fan of modern rock music any more...too cluttered sounding.
When I watch news programs where everyone talks at once, I change channels.

[Outback Porsche]

What?

[LEAKYSEALS951]

For me it's a bunch of stuff-
One, I am becoming an old curmudgeon.
Two, there are a lot more distracting noises
Three, The curmudgeon in me doesn't like those noises, so I spend time actively tuning them out, and I miss what I was really wanting to hear.
Four- over a lifetime of abuse, one can lose hearing in certain frequencies. Dentists, for example, can lose hearing in the frequency of the high speed handpiece. My grandfather in the FBI, shot Thompson machine guns with no hearing protection. He was deaf as a doornail.
Five- Certain nationalities have pronunciations, and dialects, that miss the syllabant sounds and cues I am used to, and I have a harder time understanding. Thick dialects, etc. I have a very hard time understanding people from India. I can watch the mouth move, but the words just melt/evaporate before I can make out what they are saying.

Cars have so many safety beeps, lights, and warnings, I cannot pay attention to the actual environment around me.

Communication devices have so many G@#D@#$ sounds and gimmicks they make me want to scream. Do I really need to hear a bird chirp on someone's cell phone from across the store to signify they got a text when I am trying to buy groceries? Annoying. When I am pulling teeth, dental surgery... chirp chirp... "excuse me... this is an important call" VERY DISTRACTING!

I believe the complexity of one's ring tone is inversly proportional to the importance of that cell phone call.

Sports bars with 5 big screen TV sets tuned to different channels all blaring?

No wonder....

I was in a hotel recently, on vacation (you know- getting away form it all), when I came into the lobby only to be greeted by CNN and FOX on two different big screens blabbing about racial violence and two different versions of the past election. Complementary breakfast my arse....

I feel much better now!!!!

[KFC911]

Originally Posted by Porsche-O-Phile

....

If that makes me a "grumpy old white guy" then so be it. Now get off my lawn.

As I was reading John's post, I was thinking...
It's time for you to get your sign

Started shooting at 7, loud lawn equipment all my life, at times my home stereo had 2500 watts and was constantly on (never a fan of headphones), several thousand shows in clubs (my ears rang for two daze after a Johnny Winter show in the 80s). Some of those I don't do amymore, and I wear earplugs when using equipment or spoons now....didn't back in the day. I've been dang lucky...no effects that I can tell....

Huh, eh, what?

No sign on my lawn (yet) at 56

[DanielDudley]

Too much caffeine will do that too. But yes, we all age. Can't hear as well, glasses, night vision, balance, all can be effected.

Lipoflavinoids can help with the hearing issues, particularly ringing and distinction, and can help with balance issues as well. Lipo-flavinoid Plus is the product. It is a vitamin C type compound from citrus. Don't know if you need it, but it has helped me.

If you drink a lot of coffee, look at that as well. There is fluid in your ears. Stay well hydrated.

[targa911S]

Years of loud amps and drums going off in my ears has taken it's toll. I'll be 66 in Jan (hopefully) and while at my age you would expect some hearing loss I think mine is more than normal. Poor MJ just automatically says things twice and I feel bad as she is in stage 4 COPD and every breath is important. I have to be facing you to really hear you clearly and even at that you may have to say it again. A lot of time if the TV is on in front of me and you talk behind me just forget it. I can hear both but understanding is another thing. My ears also ring constantly.

[wdfifteen]

Jyl, your situation is similar to mine at that age. The issue with confusing environments may be due to "discrimination loss." You may be able to hear speech in quiet environments better than average and still not be able to filter the speech of person at the table across from you from voices 20 feet away. I have it bad, and it doesn't get better.

EDIT: Loud sounds didn't bother me at age 53, but at about 57-58 loud sounds became increasingly, physically painful. I don't go to movies in theaters often, but when I do I wear earplugs.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by targa911S

Years of loud amps and drums going off in my ears has taken it's toll. I'll be 66 in Jan (hopefully) and while at my age you would expect some hearing loss I think mine is more than normal. Poor MJ just automatically says things twice and I feel bad as she is in stage 4 COPD and every breath is important. I have to be facing you to really hear you clearly and even at that you may have to say it again. A lot of time if the TV is on in front of me and you talk behind me just forget it. I can hear both but understanding is another thing. My ears also ring constantly.

Might a hearing aid help both you and MJ?

[ckelly78z]

At 51, I am noticing a curmudgen style crankiness that overcomes me when I've had a really long, stressful day at work, or in heavy traffic.

I view it as a shrinking tolerance for needless noise, in a world that seems to have more of it everyday. TV commercials are more annoying, and have a faster pace than years ago. Traffic on the roads all seem to be at a faster pace, and closer together, with less reaction time.

Most of this world is catered to the teen/twenties millenials who have shortened attention spans, and demand more audio, and visual imput in their daily lives.

[jyl]

There is a particular sound in music that really bothers me now. It is a high sustained keening. Hard to describe but Florence And The Machine has a lot of this sound. I don't mind high notes, especially high pure notes, even a Hendrix squeal sounds good, but a keening really grates on me, when it didn't used to.

[cantdrv55]

I'm 52 and when I watch TV, i turn on captioning.

[Crowbob]

Sounds like early age-related hearing loss. Usually, the higher frequencies go first. The irritating high-pitch may indicate hearing loss of other close high frequencies making that one particular frequency stand out more due to the inability to mask it.

[gsxrken]

At "only" 50, I have enough tinnitus ringing that I got checked, and I do have hearing loss in a certain bandwidth that the doctor said would qualify for hearing aids if I wanted them. Above and below that frequency my hearing was slightly better than average.
I CAN'T STAND a loud TV and religioulsy hit the mute button at every commercial break. The cacophony shuts down my ability to think. A loud, unexpected noise startles the crap out me... always has. I use a white noise fan at night to drown out the tinnitus whistling.
It sucks- I know I was more careful than others around loud noises, but "hear we are". Doctor said a major cause of hearing loss can simply be hereditary.

[recycled sixtie]

Sometimes hearing loss can be attributed to wax build up in the ears. Sticking foreign objects in your ears like a pencil with an eraser on the end can compress the wax more.
I have done this myself and then it is harder to get out. I found my hearing is improved if I get a doctor or nurse to remove it with a jet of hot(not too hot water). However too much pressure can cause tinnititus. You can also buy a rubber bulb and solution to squirt in your ears which I find helps.

My father was a bomber pilot in WW2 and had a total of 1700 hours. His hearing was bad enough he needed a hearing aid in his forties.

Anyway as a caveat I am not a med professional. At 70 I don't like too much noise.

[targa911S]

Originally Posted by masraum

Might a hearing aid help both you and MJ?

Yeah probably. They are big money though and I don't think Medicare covers them. Fixed income here. Maybe someday. I have been thinking of retiring from music for a lot of reasons. Hearing is just one of them. The band I'm with now is not real loud so maybe it won't get any worse. Playing with ear plugs just makes you play louder.

[Charles Freeborn]

Welcome to middle age. I don't like it when people come up on my porch either.
My BS tolerance level has gone way down. Many restaurants simply piss me off anymore...

[74-911]

Originally Posted by masraum

Might a hearing aid help both you and MJ?

You will know you definitely need hearing aids when your wife/significant other/etc. tell you if you say "what" one more time I'll .... what I had trouble hearing were sounds in the female voice ranges and anything really high pitched and I couldn't hear anything when there was much road noise when driving.

Was fitted with my aids about a year ago and they definitely help but they DO NOT restore your hearing to normal (whatever that is) as I keep telling my wife. What I still do not hear really well are soft voices on TV thus closed captioning is always on...

and yes, good aids are expensive and Medicare does not cover..