Patient Stories
Like many disabling disorders, hyperacusis is invisible. The sounds that cause pain are also invisible — yet the impact is profound. Hyperacusis affects every aspect of a person’s life — work, home, school, family, friends. Setbacks are common, setting off new cycles of pain that can last indefinitely.
The following are a few guidelines to go by if you can. But it’s most important to tell your story in your own words. What do you think started your hyperacusis? What is your history of noise / music / headphone exposure? What is the pain like and how long does it last? What triggers new cycles of pain? Has any management approach made a difference for you? How has hyperacusis altered your life? Please also do not make your story too “short” or too “long” – in between is perfect, around 800 to 1,000 words.
If you would like to share your story, please contact us here.
For even more stories, check out this page from our friends at Hyperacusis Central.
Read Patient Stories
A jaw injury made every sound torture for this model
Katrina Caro's hyperacusis developed after a blow to the face. The sobering story of her injury and its aftermath is told in the New York Post. Katrina was working as a nightclub waitress when she was punched in the jaw. What appeared to be a dental injury turned out...
Low-level Laser Therapy: One Patient’s Experience
I would like to summarize my personal experience with low-level laser therapy (LLLT) and some implications for improving our understanding of hyperacusis diagnosis and treatment. Like most people with hyperacusis, my journey has been long and complex.
LB’s Hyperacusis Story: My Guitar Had to Be Loud
I have always listened to loud music and played loud music, thinking the worst that could go wrong was mild hearing loss when I’m old. At age 14, I started listening to loud music through earbuds. When I started playing bass guitar, it had to be loud or I wouldn’t be...
TM’s story: My Life Was Changed Forever
On February 28, 2014, when my ear started ringing out of nowhere, my life was changed forever. That night I first started to notice signs that I had hyperacusis. I’ve thought long and hard about this night and the days that followed trying to piece together how...
When Hearing Hurts: Hyperacusis in the News
Hyperacusis Research was excited to participate in a news segment, titled “Hyperacusis: When Hearing Hurts” aired on the News4 Jax TV station. The story features George Rue, a musician whose life was radically altered 9 years ago when he left blues concert with...
Hyperacusis Documentary: A Noisy Life
In a moving documentary, Anthony Ochoa describes the many ways his life has been altered by hyperacusis. Anthony lives in Los Angeles and works as an audio engineer. Watch as Anthony describes how even his own voice can hurt his ears and see how he manages life in...
An Automotive Journalist’s Story
I have Tullio, a severe hyperacusis condition wherein noise will create pain and vertigo. I was diagnosed with Meniere's in 1989 after many years of being around loud noises from engines, workshop machines, open vehicles, etc., with no ear protection. Other than a...
A Mother’s Hyperacusis Journey
My symptoms of hyperacusis started after acoustic trauma from a carbon monoxide detector that went off in very close range to my ears. I purchased a faulty carbon monoxide detector for my home, which went off twice in one week. In my attempt to turn off the alarm, I...
Jesse’s Story
Jesse's hyperacusis was caused by exposure to loud weapons in the military. Now, eight years after the initial onset, Jesse struggles to find ways to do simple things like fishing with his son because even a loud voice can create pain. After following a treatment...