I have a small problem with my hearing, but it's night-time right now and I'm not sure if I should go to the ER right now, or wait till morning. Advice?

Submitted ⁨⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago⁩ by ⁨WtfEvenIsExistence@reddthat.com⁩ to ⁨[deleted]⁩

Sorry I couldn’t find a medical advice community so I hope I can ask this here.

My hearing is getting worse in one ear. I made an internet search and it appears to be something called Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss. Problem is, right now it’s almost 9:30 PM where I live…

Should I go right now to the ER right now, or wait till tomorrow morning?

My mom is tired from having to take my dad to the hospital for some intestines infection, so I think she doesn’t want to be bothered to go again today. I already told her and she said she’ll take me to the ER tomorrow morning. Does a 12 hour delay matter? I don’t want to insist going right now because she and I aren’t really having good family relations. Also going to the ER in the middle of the night is a bit scary. I’m terrified of night time.

Also could my dad’s problems with the intenstines infection have somehow something to do with my hearing issues? I’m kinda afraid its some sort of airborne virus. 😟

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ebits21@lemmy.ca ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Audiologist here.

We treat it like a medical emergency. Reason being if it is a sudden sensorineural loss then they would start you on Prednisone asap. It may help to preserve your hearing.

We think it needs started within a few weeks but earlier is probably better.

That being said, it might not be a sudden sensorineural loss. A hearing test would tell you.

In my experience having seen many actual sudden sensorineural losses over the years, the treatment doesn’t necessarily help in many cases. It’s a last ditch effort really to preserve what we can. Personally, I would probably just wait for morning but I would tell a patient to go immediately.

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psysok@lemmy.ca ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Go now. I had an ear infection on a Friday night and didn’t see anyone until the next day. It ended with some permanent hearing loss for me.

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Raisin8659@monyet.cc [bot] ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
You condition is getting worse. Unless you can consult a medical professional on the phone, you should go see a doctor. Of course, if you mom won’t take you, you’re stuck, and either that, or you figure out some other way.

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jet@hackertalks.com ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
GO NOW!

If you ever have to ask should I go to the ER? The answer is yes. Your going to prevent long term damage id the issue is treatable now.

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Azzu@lemm.ee ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
I live in Europe, so I’d always go. Don’t want to lose my hearing just to not inconvenience my mom.

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- MiddleWeigh@lemmy.world ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  I’m in the US, and I just started going to the doc in my whole adult life. My arms are bricked up, tingling, and spasms. Doc says it’s carpal tunnel, which checks out. I can’t afford anything beyond my general care atp. Apparently I’ll need surgery and physical therapy asap, I work with my hand in the trades. I’d be screwed without them as I have zero savings, etc. The doc gave me referrals with nowhere to go. I asked and they said “well your insurance is tricky, find somewhere”. Lovely!
  
  I understand that this is the place and times I exist in, but hell if I can’t bitch about it (:
  
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  - Drusas@kbin.social ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
    You should be looking into short term disability insurance.
    
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Today@lemm.ee ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
I would probably call the doc in the morning and try to get into an ENT.

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- Pandantic@kbin.social ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  And even more so late at night.
  
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- iamdisillusioned@lemmy.world ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  After two trips to the ER in the last year and almost 8k in medical bills, I have to agree.
  
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Chickenstalker@lemmy.world ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Ideally, you should go right now. If you can call a taxi or uber etc., do it, especially if you are feeling any pain. If there is no choice, then make sure you tag along tomorrow morning to the hospital.

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MiddleWeigh@lemmy.world ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Judging by your username, and some of the context, you seem similar to me. These people are right. Go, and stay on top of it. I put off my health my entire life and now I am hurting. Life may be suffering, but it’s worth it ime. I hope your find something worthwhile to crawl out of that hole for. Sorry I don’t mean to intrude, I’m just super empathetic to your situation, went through it bad, and I’m just crawling out of the dark tunnel now, in my 30s. (:

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Brkdncr@kbin.social ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Does your insurance have a Teladoc? Call.

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GuyDudeman@lemmy.world ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
You can probably wait until the morning, if you can stand it.

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mvirts@lemmy.world ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Call EMS to get to the hospital, aka 911 in the US.

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- Drusas@kbin.social ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  Do you know how expensive that can be in the US? Call a cab or Uber and, if they ask, tell them you're visiting a patient. It'll save you a few hundred or thousands of dollars.
  
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Drusas@kbin.social ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
ER doctors will only ensure that you're not in immediate risk of dying. They will send you home with a referral to a specialist, and you'll still get the bill (assuming you're in the US). I would deal with this by contacting my PCP for a referral to an audiologist first thing in the morning.

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