Hello folks,
Randi from across the pond here. My doctor brought up Meniere's Disease today and I'm hoping you might have some advice for me.
In 2011, I had severe vertigo accompanied by intense nausea and vomitting. The nausea was like a tsunami of nausea that came on suddenly like I was out at sea on a rocky boat. At the same time, I started to have ringing in my ears. When I hear the ringing, it is like all the sound in the room has been vacuumed out and everything is muffled except the high-pitched ringing. My doctor at the time found an excess of fluid in my ears and treated me with antihistimines. The vertigo and nausea/vomitting went away, but the tinnitus has stuck around to this day. Lately I am not only hearing the high-pitched ringing but also a whirring sound, like a machine.
In 2012, I started noticing problems with my hearing. Sometimes I can hear my laptop clearly from the other side of the apartment, and other times I can barely hear it when it is on my lap. I also have trouble hearing on my phone and frequently have to use headphones to hear on both of these devices. Lately a lot of people have been telling me I am talking very loudly but I can't tell at all that I am doing this, so I am wondering if my hearing is out at these times.
This year, the nausea and vertigo have come back, though less severe than in 2011, and the tinnitus persists, as well as the fluctuating hearing. I have taken two hearing tests that have both come back normal, as I expected them to, because I was hearing just fine those days. Today the ENT instructed me to call the hospital the next time my hearing goes out and tell them it is an emergency and get in for testing right away.
A couple things you should know about me are that I worked in a very loud bar for two years, and it has been suggested that is the cause of the fluctuating hearing and tinnitus; and I also suffer from migraines, which are also a vestibular disorder, and it has also been suggested that migraines are the root of all of these mysterious symptoms. I am kind of at a loss and would just like a definitive diagnosis so I can move forward.
My symptoms do not seem as severe as some of yours, so I am wondering if any of you have a mild form of the disease. I am also wondering if it gets worse over time and if it will definitely lead to permanent hearing loss. If so, is it total deafness, or more like hard-of-hearing? So, basically, what can I expect? And what can I do to manage it?
Any words of wisdom you have to share are much appreciated!