Hearing loss

[P-11 shooter]

i'm pretty lucky because i always used ear plugs, my buddy on the other hand always wanted to be macho and never wore hearing protection when we shot. Now he's almost deaf and finally admitted last year he was a dumbass. For range shooting I have electronic muffs that amplify sounds, they are also combat rated and have a radio jack so a solider could probably benifit from them.

I do have slight ringing in perfect silence and I think it's cuz I used to work at a concert venue on the sound boards, also crappy earplugs, and hunting. In particular the time my same buddy blew off a .35 remmington a foot from my ear. I'm pretty lucky.

My buddy however can't sleep without the radio to override the whistling in his ears.

[jsb889]

I feel for you guys, I really do.

I put about 20-30 rounds through a 40 cal about 3 years ago without protection. I couldn't hear sounds right for about a week, always distorted. I then had a constant ringing for about a year in my left ear, but it has stopped for the most part. Now, every once in a while it'll just hit me with a loud roar, then just ring for about an hour. That has slowed even. I now have a noticable amount of hearing loss compared to before then. A couple managers at work get very annoyed with constant "what?" and "huh?". Definately a lesson learned. I wear hearing protection when cutting the lawn now.

I couldn't imagine having tinnitus. The damage I got from my stupidity was bad enough. I really feel for you guys, especially since most of you didn't even have an option to put in plugs. I hope they come out with something to fix it for you guys.

[4XLT]

i was at a friends house who has a range adn we took my pistols down tot he target to shoot while looking at the rifle target and forgot ear protection,
the .40 wasnt too bad but the .357 revolver really hurt. i wont be making that mistake again

[Statkowski]

On the bright side, I don't have to worry about the chirping of crickets bothering me at night when trying to sleep.

The ringing comes and goes. Usually I don't answer it.

When shooting I wear Mickey Mouse type hearing protection.

Like I said, it comes with the territory. Unhappy with life? Consider the alternative.

[bert304]

I have 25% hearing loss in my right ear and the ringing from working with air tools

[LastManOut]

Originally Posted by Stack

Anyway - I get paid monthly for it but it's not much and I'd gladly pay 10x that to get my hearing back and lose the tinnitus.

I found out after the fact your VA entitlement for tinnitus and hearing loss of 10% is for ONE ear, if you have BOTH ears damaged, appeal for the correction. I hope you are getting hearing aids from Alyce at the VA Clinic. You are entitled to them. The increased hearing will "drown out" the ringing/chirping sounds to improve your "quality of life".

[Stack]

Hey LMO - that's great info. Thank you. I need to look into that.

[Jackal]

A deaf soldier couldnt function as well as a soldier with in tact hearing....I can't understand why they dont have something. Something like p-11 shooter mentioned, that might reduce the loudness of guns but still allow you to hear orders or small noises perfectly well.

[scjbob]

I've suffered high-pitch hearing loss ever since I was a kid. High fevers and ruptured eardrums did the trick for me. I have a friend that is the CEO of one of the several companies that are trying to address tinnitus in a new way. If you are interested in the latest treatments for this frustrating disease check out their website: http://www.neuromonics.com/

[Roland of Gilead]

Originally Posted by 4XLT

. . . but the .357 revolver really hurt. i wont be making that mistake again

Got that one right. I only need to get smacked once with the 2x4 and I get the message.