hearing loss?

[benEzra]

You'll recover most/all of it over time. There may be a small permanent loss, but probably not noticeably. When I was a teenager, a @%#! friend came up behind me and popped one of those bang-snap things less than an inch from my left ear (you know, the little white firecrackers that explode when you drop them). Put me on the ground, and I was totally deaf in that ear for several minutes, and it rang for days. BUT, my hearing in that ear came back, and thanks to careful use of hearing protection (ALWAYS, when hammering, working with power tools, shooting), my hearing now (age 35) is way better than average. No tinnitus whatsoever. And I always, always wear both good plugs AND muffs, even when shooting outdoors.

Still, it would be a good idea to run, don't walk, to your nearest GNC or other nutritional store and buy you a NAC (n-acetyl cysteine) supplement, which has been proven in clinical studies to reduce or halt cochlear cell death following exposure to loud noise (the instant hearing loss is due to temporary threshold shift, but the permanent loss is due to the later death of damaged cells).

 

[hso]

BUT, my hearing in that ear came back, and thanks to careful use of hearing protection (ALWAYS, when hammering, working with power tools, shooting), my hearing now (age 35) is way better than average. No tinnitus whatsoever. And I always, always wear both good plugs AND muffs, even when shooting outdoors.

Excellent advice. The more we protect our hearing in the noisey tasks we're involved in the more hearing we have. I'm one of those guys on the mower with ear plugs. Fire up the chainsaw? Not without my plugs in. Grab the circular saw, plugs first. Of course I've got my little "alert tone" that never goes away ringing in my right ear to remind me.

Still, it would be a good idea to run, don't walk, to your nearest GNC or other nutritional store and buy you a NAC (n-acetyl cysteine) supplement, which has been proven in clinical studies to reduce or halt cochlear cell death following exposure to loud noise (the instant hearing loss is due to temporary threshold shift, but the permanent loss is due to the later death of damaged cells).

I wouldn't be as definitive about that. Before folks start looking for the magic "hearing protection pill", there is no conclusive proof that any medication or nutritional supplement prevents or recovers damaged cochlear hair cells. I'm never going to tell folks not to do anything that improves their health, including the use of nutritional supplements, but there is nothing definitive about the use of any med to recover hearing loss.

Also, the threshold shift you mention is a just a measurement of how much hearing in what frequencies you've lost. The temporary threshold shift is just that, the measure of the temporary hearing loss experienced after noise exposure while the permanent threshold shift is that part you don't recover after several days.

 

[UWstudent]

hey, are you actually a UW student? I'm in the Aero department.

i'm in LSJ

 

[Geno]

Indoors, I suggest--double for pistol; tripple for rifle. It's not over-kill!

When firing pistol, I use soft foam inserts AND Remington headphones. When I or anyone else is firing long gun indoor, I use soft foam inserts AND silicone ear plugs over the foam inserts, topped off by the headphones. In other words, minimum double protection, max. triple protection. It is NOT over-kill.

It's amazing how much you can "feel" the blasts/concussion when you can't "hear" them. You want to "test" it some day--try this. Just before you pull the trigger, open your mouth about an inch. It will give you one weird sensation!!! I wouldn't do it often, as you might break a tooth by flying brass, but it will prove the point. There is some serious blast going on.

Best of all, I actually shoot better because I can hardly even hear the gun go off.

Doc2005