I couldn’t lose my hearing overnight — could I?

As Told to Rachael Lavon

Around seven years ago, I found myself standing on the sidewalk, shaken to my core. My intuition, that crucial compass that guides and advises, had been completely discounted. I felt off-kilter, like the world was tilted, and I no longer knew which way was up or down.

It all started on a regular Tuesday morning while I was getting my kids ready for school. My husband usually calls after Shacharis while I’m in the middle of the morning hustle to see if I need anything picked up on his way home. I saw his number flash on the screen and held the phone up to my ear, but instead of pressing the answer call button I accidentally pressed the loudspeaker button. My husband’s voice came blaring through the phone directly into my ear. I felt something like a small shockwave course through my ear, and I quickly turned the loudspeaker off.

After a short conversation, I put the phone down and realized my ear felt weird. Throughout the day, it reverberated with an uncomfortable ringing sound that wouldn’t go away. I tried to go about my day as usual, attending a shiur and running errands, but I felt distracted by the strange feeling in my ear. As the day progressed, I began to feel nauseous and dizzy. I relayed what had happened to a friend, hoping she’d have some advice.

“Ok, so you heard a loud sound,” she said. “It’ll probably just take some time for the ringing to go away. Try to rest up, I’m sure it will be better in the morning.”

The consensus from other friends and relatives was the same — it would probably get better on its own. I went to sleep uneasy, but hoped a good night’s sleep would help.

It didn’t. The next morning dawned, and my condition hadn’t improved. I kept doubting myself. It’s not like I’d gone to a loud concert or been at a construction site! Could a phone call really damage my ear? As the day went on, I realized I was having trouble hearing out of my left ear. Sounds were muffled and unclear. My self-doubt morphed into anxiety. Ringing was one thing, but hearing loss was quite another.

By Wednesday afternoon, I called the local ENT and asked for an appointment as soon as possible. I felt tremendously relieved when the secretary told me I could come in that afternoon.

I sat opposite the doctor and told him about the phone call and the weird symptoms I’d been experiencing. He was dismissive but humored me by checking my ears, nose, and throat. He put his hands on either side of my face and asked me to open and close my jaw. At the sound of a click (the same click I’d had for ten years), he snapped his fingers happily.

“There it is. You hear that clicking in your jaw? That tells me that you’re under a lot of stress. Do you have young children at home?”

I nodded.

“A baby?”

“Yes.” I responded. “A six-month-old.”

“You need to get more rest. Go home. Relax, and try to take it easy.”