A couple of days ago, peopleās voices starting sounding funny - like mechanical - and I developed a new broadband tinnitus on the left side. I realized that I had developed diplacusis - or ādouble hearing.ā Basically, hearing through my left ear has a higher pitch perception. The right ear sounds normal, the left ear does not. But when I use both ears to listen to a voice, it sounds distorted - like a mechanical voice.
I realized I had a wax impaction, and had the wax removed today - but the double hearing remains. The physicianās assistant (who had removed the wax) suggested that the Vestibular Migraine may be affecting my hearing - hence the question.
Sorry to hear that, that sounds disturbing for you. I have not personally experienced that but I did have the tuning fork test at my oto-neuro that I suspect looks for that issue (and others eg conductive hearing loss).
Have you had a hearing test? Is your hearing otherwise normal?
My last hearing test was a few years ago - so I am due for one. But it does seem I have lost quite a bit of high-frequency hearing in the ear associated with the higher pitch perception. And I developed new broad-band tinnitus at the same time as the diplacusis - just a few days ago. I have just started CoQ10 just in case that might help. There is some evidence that can help SSHL, although it can recover on its own.
I had never seen a name for it - but I experienced this (or something very similar) some years ago.
I have had Meniereās disease for over 50 years and after a number of years in remission - it came back some 8 years go with bells and whistles. I have been totally deaf in the āaffectedā ear for over 40 years due to MD and surgery a long time ago. About a year into the āreturn of the beastā, I literally woke up one morning almost totally deaf in the good ear - with those metalic sounding voices, and my med/large dogās bark sounded like a a frog croakingā¦we wonāt even go into how music sounded! Tnitus, which is usually pretty background for me, escalated and at times I had Gregorian chants going on in there!! Looong story short - I was told I was going bi-lateral with MD and there was nothing on offer to help. Although the hearing problem was obviously affecting the good ear - the bad seemed to be the epi-centre of the tinnitus and discomfort. Got a hearing aid in the formally good ear (couldānt deal with one in the bad) which helped very little. AND THEN - 6 months later,I just as suddenly woke up with it all āback to normalā - just with more loss in the good ear, but at least what I can hear is normal! With age adding itās bit, my hearing is continuing to fade - more that I canāt hear WHAT people are saying than the volume. Just to add, that as time passes my symptoms match those for MAV more than classic MD - so either the disease has morphed to migraine - or it is the progression of the MD - depending on the beliefs of the researcher! Not sure if it would be helpful to you - but it was suggested that I might have had a viral infection - although neither anti-virals nor Cortizone helped anything. I hope you soon get relief! I understand your āpainā!