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
Felipe’s story: “We are handicapped, and I would rather act accordingly than suffer for no reason. The more I recognize what hurts me and what does not, the better I can go through life.”
Felipe, a doctoral student in philosophy and a native Spanish speaker, lives in Buenos Aires, Argentina, with his wife Bianca. What I want to say to you is this: I know the pain. I know the pain you go through every day and I know what it is to hurt your loved ones...
BBC News: “Hearing my children’s laughter is like torture.”
Karen Cook, a former flight attendant, shared her story with the BBC, describing how pain hyperacusis has so drastically altered her life.
Hyperacusis; an Engineering Perspective
By Frank Magnusson I am an aerospace engineer and former test pilot with hyperacusis. Hyperacusis is poorly understood, and there is so much conflicting advice that I had to examine it from an engineering problem-solving approach to learn to deal with it on a daily...
Stuart’s Story: “The audiologist had never come across hyperacusis in real life. The staff were wondering why I was flinching at the sound of heels tapping along the shiny floor.”
By Stuart Colwill Nine years ago, when I was a teacher, I started to notice that minor sounds (doors opening, pens tapping, keys jangling, birds chirping, coughing, sudden laughter) were becoming distressing, making me recoil and throwing me off track. My students...
Scott’s Hyperacusis Story: I can no longer be a father to my children
Growing up, I developed a deep love of music that came from always being surrounded by it. My maternal grandfather always had oldies playing on the radio. My mother was a huge Rod Stewart fan. When my father would pick me up every other weekend, we’d listen to ’70’s...
Dave Vance’s story: I had cancer. I have Hyperacusis. Hyperacusis is worse.
People think that cancer is the worst thing that can happen to their health. Everyone has heard of cancer. Everyone fears cancer. They think it’s an awful, scary, painful disease — which it is. Sometimes it’s a death sentence. But the damaged ear symptoms I struggle...
Jemma’s story: I am enslaved by sound
I am 18 and just graduated from high school. I have had both loudness and pain hyperacusis for 11 years. I was born with cataracts and sensory processing disorder. When I was 7, I began to develop chronic migraines. Over time, everyday noises began to trigger severe...
Champion Racing Driver Wolfgang Reip Announces Battle with Severe Hyperacusis
Racecar driver Wolfgang Reip of Belgium has hyperacusis, and is helping us to raise funds for research. Thank you, Wolfgang! "Hyperacusis essentially amplifies noises. While that might sound like a superhero ability, the reality is that even sounds at a normal...
Help Find a Cure for Cindy’s Air Horn Injury!
One evening a year ago, Cindy Redmond was at a friend’s house. Her friend’s stepfather, annoyed that Cindy was chatting on her phone at the table, blasted her with an air horn. Cindy felt a burst of pain in her ears. Within days, she could no longer attend school.