Difficulty hearing, but can pass all hearing tests?

[Nennie]

I've been having hearing difficulties for the past 3 years. It seems worse since Covid, but that's probably b/c of masks. My main problem is background noise. If there's a loud air conditioner, or a dishwasher running, TV, restaurants noise, etc, I have a really hard time hearing the person I'm speaking with. It's embarrassing to ask people to repeat themselves. I also notice problems when the speaker had an accent, which is extra embarrassing to have to ask someone with an accent to repeat themselves.

I passed a hearing test with an ENT 2 years ago, and then passed another one today at the Costco hearing center. I can hear when I'm in a quiet room (such as the hearing testing room), it's when there is background noise that I have problems.

Has anyone else dealt with this, and if so, have you found a solution to the problem? I keep hoping that my ears are full of wax or something, but nope, they are all clear. I just want to be able to have conversations and not ask people to repeat themselves.

Any advice is appreciated!!

 

[Christine]

I haven't personally dealt with it yet, although I feel my hearing has degraded lately and if a person is soft spoken and wearing a mask, forget about it. I've been in physical therapy for about 5 months and my therapist is soft spoken and in a mask. I think I've only ever heard about 25% of the conversations we've had. If I'm in my own home and my husband is turned away from me and "mumbling" I can't make out what he says; although I know he's speaking. With other people, I have zero issues.

That said, my grandma had the exact same hearing issue you describe. She couldn't hear anything in a crowd. She got hearing aids that took care of that, but I'm going to say her regular hearing in a quiet room probalby wasn't great either but not bad.

 

[DisneyHardin]

Sounds like you may have an auditory discrimination issue.

 

[JimMIA]

My ENT once told me that many men have "selective hearing loss." He was joking, but my wife has confirmed that I certainly have it. I don't know why she would say such a thing...

 

[clh2]

I sometimes have a hard time hearing my husband, generally a soft-spoken kind of guy. My difficulties arise when there is background noise AND when he talks to me while he is walking away from me.

 

[NotUrsula]

If your hearing test did not include background noise, then you haven't had a good test. A proper test will include background noise in 2 scenarios, with a series of tonal beeps while a white noise plays in the background, and also having you repeat words that the audiologist says while background noise also plays in your headphones. The whole process is repeated for each ear.

If you did have that done while your hearing was tested, and you passed sufficiently that your doctor does not believe that aids are indicated for either ear, then you probably have what is known as "aural fatigue." That is kind of a combination problem that involves both your ears and your brain, and is common when people have any degree of hearing loss, especially age-related. What happens is this: you find it more and more difficult to hear when there is background noise, and that takes more and more effort on your part to actually overcome, so after a while you simply sort of give up and unconsciously stop making the extra effort. The effect is that you end up hearing less than your ears are physically capable of.

One other thing to be aware of: as insurance pretty much never covers hearing aids for adults except when the loss is caused by accident, many doctors are hesitant to suggest them, for fear of causing financial hardship. (My last set of aids was $10K, cash on the barrelhead; I've worn hearing aids since I was in my 20's.) Do make sure that your doctor is giving you the full picture.

You can buy more affordable simple amplifier aids that will make voices louder, but they will also make background sounds louder. FTM, all heading aids tend to do that, and it is difficult to adjust for even in digital models like mine. The sound of a central A/C vent tends to be loud enough to make me try to change chairs when wearing my aids; the wind noise is like standing 50 feet from a well-trafficked road.

PS: My ENT says that they have been busier than ever this year with folks who did not realize how much hearing loss they had until they had to deal with people wearing masks. The fact is, most people do lip-read to some extent without even thinking about it, and as your hearing declines, you step that up. Masks make it impossible, and suddenly you are without that unconscious crutch that you used to be able to depend on to fill in the blanks.

 

[Colleen27]

Problems sorting background noise from voices or other content you want to hear is often a brain problem rather than an ear problem. I had a doctor tell me, years ago and in a rather unhelpful way since he didn't offer any solutions, that it is common in adults with ADHD to have problems filtering out background noises. Buzzing lights and loud HVAC, particularly window air conditioners or box fans, are the bane of my existence. But I haven't found a solution other than intense focus/effort in situations I know are likely to be problematic and minimizing hard-to-filter-out background noises in the spaces I do have control over.

So there's my not-at-all helpful commiseration.

 

[Cheburashka]

Muffled hearing could be a symptom of eustachian tube disorder. Have you had a tympanogram? If not, ask for one, but request to skip the auditory reflex test in which they blare a loud noise in your ears- that's a separate test but often run at the same time as a tympanogram because it uses some of the same equipment.

Many ENT doctors (otolaryngologists) are not very knowledgeable about ear disorders, btw. An ENT doctor's combined specialty of ear, nose and throat is very broad, and the ear is extremely complex & closely related to the brain. An otologist's sole focus is on the ear, and that is who I recommend seeing for a difficult to diagnose ear disorder. Otologists (as opposed to otolaryngologists) are more rare: many multi-specialty clinics won't have one, and they typically take longer to get into than ENTs, but are much more useful if you have a difficult ear problem.

 

[TipsyTraveler]

I've been having hearing difficulties for the past 3 years. It seems worse since Covid, but that's probably b/c of masks. My main problem is background noise. If there's a loud air conditioner, or a dishwasher running, TV, restaurants noise, etc, I have a really hard time hearing the person I'm speaking with. It's embarrassing to ask people to repeat themselves. I also notice problems when the speaker had an accent, which is extra embarrassing to have to ask someone with an accent to repeat themselves.

I passed a hearing test with an ENT 2 years ago, and then passed another one today at the Costco hearing center. I can hear when I'm in a quiet room (such as the hearing testing room), it's when there is background noise that I have problems.

Has anyone else dealt with this, and if so, have you found a solution to the problem? I keep hoping that my ears are full of wax or something, but nope, they are all clear. I just want to be able to have conversations and not ask people to repeat themselves.

Any advice is appreciated!!

Yep, this is exactly me. I first noticed it in my early 20s. I don’t know if that’s when it started or if that’s just when I first became aware of it. (I’m 40 now.) For a long time I chalked it up to poor hearing, but I eventually came to realize my hearing is not actually that bad. I have no problem passing hearing tests and I can hear a pin drop across a quiet room. The problem is trying to hear anything in the presence of background noise. The more background noise, the less I can understand the person standing directly in front of me. I just tell everyone I’m hard of hearing, they speak up or repeat themselves, and it’s a lot easier that way. When I was working in loud club environments I had to learn to read lips. Fortunately, it doesn’t seem to have gotten worse over time.

I believe it’s probably an auditory processing disorder. I don’t think there’s much that can be done for it, though I’ve admittedly not looked into it much beyond a five minute google search.

 

[Nora03]

DH and I are in our 70’s so accepting hearing loss. I think that’s why old people/couples fight. Lately I’ve noticed that the background music on TV shows is so loud, louder than the dialogue.

 

[prairie_girl]

My ENT once told me that many men have "selective hearing loss." He was joking, but my wife has confirmed that I certainly have it. I don't know why she would say such a thing...

She probably told you and you just weren’t listening LOL

 

[DVC-Don]

You need a better test. I recently had one that included back ground noise, whole test took about 45 minutes. I passed but, at the bottom of the normal range. Showed I also had trouble with th and ph words in the back ground noise portion of the test. Recommended I test again in a year. My insurance (Medicare Advantage) covered the test and would have covered up to $1000 of hearing aids per year.

 

[SirDuff]

You also need both the "beeps" and "words". I have mild/moderate hearing loss (depends on the frequency) and score much better with "words" than "beeps" (because I'm really good at guessing). Except for when I have to do the test in French (I speak it but am far from fluent and am rubbish at guessing) since that is the official language of where I now I live.

I don't do the full test every year (when seeing if I need changes in my how my hearing aids are set), but you do definitely need the full test for your first test.

 

[MamaMermaid]

I agree with those who say you need a better test. I have hearing loss in one year due to an ear infection. I went through a series of tests, cortisone shots injected into my ear drum, more tests, etc. before I was given hearing aids. I recommend finding a different ENT with someone who is qualified to give the full hearing test (it should include distracting background noise, beeps, the tester reading you words and you can't see their lips, etc.).

 

[PinkPixel]

I don’t have an answer but I’m experiencing the same thing. I also have to watch most shows and movies with the English captions on which frustrates my husband. Interesting to read some of the responses.

 

[mrodgers]

Muffled hearing could be a symptom of eustachian tube disorder. Have you had a tympanogram? If not, ask for one, but request to skip the auditory reflex test in which they blare a loud noise in your ears- that's a separate test but often run at the same time as a tympanogram because it uses some of the same equipment.

I have hearing problems that mimic what the OP posted. I've been in manufacturing for 26 years and it is very loud. I have religiously worn ear plugs not just at work but also when doing activities at home such as mowing or using the table saw. Even wore ear plugs on the motorcycle because the wind noise in my old full face helmet was loud.

I don't even listen to music in the car any more (or at home) because when I'm not at work in all the noise I just want quiet. If the dishwasher was running, I couldn't hear the TV. Now if I have the air fryer going, which may as well be in the living room with me the way the rooms are, I can't hear the TV. If you are talking to someone right next to me, it isn't selective hearing, it's that I don't put that hard of concentration into what you are saying unless it is a conversation I am involve in. Thus that "selective hearing" is just you need to get my attention so I can be more focused on trying to hear you instead of you just blending into background noise.

We test annually at work, but they are testing a trend not if you are hard of hearing or not. They have flagged many long term people here at work in that they have to go get custom molded ear plugs made and aren't allowed to use the disposables. They have never mentioned anything to me so it is assumed I don't have a hearing loss trend.

I think I could have an issue with the eustachian tube. Every now and then my ears will "pop" and suddenly I can enjoy crisp and clear sounds for a few minutes while it lasts. I am always amazed at the sounds when this happens (not a normal pressure related ear "pop" such as driving on a large hill or in an airplane.)

 

[Cheburashka]

I believe it’s probably an auditory processing disorder. I don’t think there’s much that can be done for it, though I’ve admittedly not looked into it much beyond a five minute google search.

Auditory processing disorder can be worked with, I'm sure. My son had sensory processing disorder which was mostly resolved via Therapeutic Listening, special music with tones played in the background that he would listen to for an hour per day.

 

[jo-jo]

I can hear "Moooooooom" at a store, even if my kids are grown and live miles away.

 

[RUDisney]

My ENT once told me that many men have "selective hearing loss." He was joking, but my wife has confirmed that I certainly have it. I don't know why she would say such a thing...

My DH calls it the squelch. He says that he can "turn it up" when he doesn't want to hear and he can "turn it down" when he wants to hear something. Sometimes, I have to get his attention and tell him to turn down the squelch so he can hear me. I think I can do the same thing, though.

 

[JimMIA]

She probably told you and you just weren’t listening LOL

I ALWAYS listen; I don't always hear.