Hearing Loss?

[HowardW56]

Heres the deal: I have a pair of ear plugs that work ok. I wore them at the outdoor range several times and enjoy them because I still get a decent dose of volume through them which helps me get used to the noise of the gun.

Today however, I went to an indoor range to shoot my handgun. I was a little freaked out when I removed my earplugs and could barely hear a thing. It has been 6 hours now and my left ear is not hearing very well. Everything is muffled.
My question is, wont this go away? I mean, people in war dont all go deaf and they fire weaponry all the time. Will I permanantly lose my hearing in my left ear? help please.

You will probably be OK BUT!!!! Wear more hearing protection, I have been shooting for over 30 years, and didn't use much in the way of hearing protection and I now have a constant ringing in both ears, that I will probably have forever....

Take care of your ears!!!

[510shooter510]

Thank you all. Some slight improvement has occurred but not much. I will wait for a day or two but by your comments, I am sure I am fine.
I threw those plugs out and will be investing in some high quality muffs.
Have been to many concerts before as I am a musician but have never experienced hearing loss to this extent. Guns are louder.
Thank you for your comments.

[Spearo]

I mean, people in war dont all go deaf and they fire weaponry all the time.

Yes, some do indeed.

Hearing damage is usually irreversible.

I suffer from some hearing damage. However, I cannot attribute as to what exactly.
It may be all the guns I shot growing up without hearing protection.
Or it could be the two times I have perforated my tympanic membrane while diving.

My assessment is probably a little of both.

The last time I perforated my ear drum, I could not hear for a few weeks.
Slowly I began to regain hearing. Now that ear is I would say 80-90%.

Sometimes it sounds like someone is across the room, even though they are standing right next to me.

Go see an ENT specialist! Don't F around with your hearing.
Most people here are probably not MD's, nor am I.

Had I not gone to the ENT after the perforation, I may have lost the hearing for good. Since the inner ear had flooded with a bit of salt water.
Antibiotics were prescribed right away to prevent damaging infection.

[EBR Works]

Hearing loss from extreme noise can be permanent. Think of it like stomping on a lawn. With a light stomp, the blades of grass will return to vertical after awhile. A heavy stomp and the blades will remain crushed flat forever. Your inner ear has similar structures with fine hairs that can be damaged.

I was using standard muffs and plugs until I started to shoot .510 DTC. After that first day of 50 rounds my ears felt like they were bleeding and my ears were ringing for several days. I bought these and it makes a world of difference.

http://www.cabelas.com/p-0065879229806a.shtml

I still double up with plugs as well.

[ke6guj]

I was using standard muffs and plugs until I started to shoot .510 DTC. After that first day of 50 rounds my ears felt like they were bleeding and my ears were ringing for several days. I bought these and it makes a world of difference.

http://www.cabelas.com/p-0065879229806a.shtml

I still double up with plugs as well.

wow, I hadn't seen any electronic muffs with a NRR so high.

[bombadillo]

...which helps me get used to the noise of the gun.

Dude, don't do this to yourself. You only have one pair of ears and hearing aids are a couple grand a pair. Just think what you could buy for 2k every couple of years. Wear plugs and muffs like a lot of us do to really muffle it. I made a bonehead mistake of not putting my muffs on and fired off a .223 with a brake and good god my ears were ringing. I already have some permanent damage from DJing high school dances and weddings for years as well as doing some competition bass setups in cars and shooting w/o hearing protection. Its not worth it. You don't get used to the sound, your hearing just starts getting worse because you're damaging it slowly and not hearing it as much as you used to because you can't. Stop trying to get used to something, you're not supposed to for a reason. Sorry if this sounds harsh, I'm just speaking from some experience here.

[AgentAK]

It could also very well be that you shoved a big chunk of wax in deeper.

[bruce_ventura]

Not to be smart, but have you cleaned the wax build up out of your ear?

This is where I was going when I read the OP. About 20 years ago I experienced damage to my hearing on one ear after attending a loud rock concert. Few days later a large cylinder of wax fell out of my ear - my hearing was immediately better. I've been diligent about keeping my ear canals clean ever since.

You can get a kit from the pharmacy that will remove wax build-up. Basically you place a few dropd of a very mild acid in your ear, let it set for a few minutes, and then rinse it out with warm water using a rubber bulb. My doctor says to rinse my ears out with warm water and soap every time I shower. Hope that's not too much information for ya.

I use good quality foam plugs when I'm shooting outdoors. If at any time I hear ringing, I double up with foam plugs and muffs. I always double up when I'm shooting indoors or shooting a .50 cal.

[BlackDrop50]

I learned this lesson the first time shooting my .357 snub indoors. My ears were ringing through my crappy 20dbr earmuffs that weren't suctioned tight enough to my head.

The ONLY time I will only wear earplugs is if I am outdoors shooting rifles so I can get a good checkweld.

Any time I am indoor the minimum is a good pair of 33dbr Peltors, and I usually just throw some 23+dbr earplugs in there too.


A good set of 30+dbr earmuffs is only $20.

[EBR Works]

wow, I hadn't seen any electronic muffs with a NRR so high.

Yep, expensive but worth it considering the alternative of permanent damage from the 180db .50 blast.

[RudyN]

I hope you will be ok. I was stupid one time and went to an indoor range and forgot my ear plugs. Shot anyway with a .22 revolver and my right ear rang for quite a while. Eventually I needed a hearing aid in my right ear and now I have them in both ears. Anytime I go to a range it is with both earplugs and ear muffs as I would like to save what little hearing I have left. It is right about the price of hearing aids. Cheapest are over $2,000 a pair.

[B Strong]

Heres the deal: I have a pair of ear plugs that work ok. I wore them at the outdoor range several times and enjoy them because I still get a decent dose of volume through them which helps me get used to the noise of the gun.

Today however, I went to an indoor range to shoot my handgun. I was a little freaked out when I removed my earplugs and could barely hear a thing. It has been 6 hours now and my left ear is not hearing very well. Everything is muffled.
My question is, wont this go away? I mean, people in war dont all go deaf and they fire weaponry all the time. Will I permanantly lose my hearing in my left ear? help please.

At the next gunshow in your area, go and see the folks that make the custom fitted plugs, buy a couple of pairs and from there on always "double-bag" (plugs and muffs) when you shoot outdoors or indoors.

[BigBamBoo]

..............

[Army]

+1 on the wax plug.

For the last ten years, I have tested in the high 50's and low 60's in my left ear. I attributed this to too many .357's with no protection, and my two combat tours.

Two months ago, the audiologist checked my ear and told me to buy an ear wash kit, then come back the following week.

I tested in the high 20's, low 30's.



....so much for my disability check.

[SCMA-1]

Here's a previous thread on hearing protection devices:

http://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/showthread.php?t=205485