• Our expert, award-winning staff selects the products we cover and rigorously researches and tests our top picks. • If you buy through our links, we may get a commission.Reviews ethics statement Tech Mobile Headphones Why I Stopped Wearing Earbuds After Hearing Loss I learned the hard way how to avoid hearing damage when using earbuds. • Here’s what the audiologists I spoke with said you can do to prevent it. • Wearing earbuds can come with risks, which I learned after experiencing hearing loss in my left ear. • As Joni Mitchell once sang, “you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone,” and that rings particularly true for our health. • In early 2025, I learned this lesson the scary way when what started as a nasty weeks-long cold turned into the following symptoms in my left ear:reduced hearing, a feeling of fullness, occasionaltinnitus(ringing in the ear) and a day or two of balance issues, as the inner ear helps with the body’s equilibrium.
Article Summaries:
- As Joni Mitchell once sang, “you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone,” and that rings particularly true for our health. In early 2025, I learned this lesson the scary way when what started as a nasty weeks-long cold turned into the following symptoms in my left ear: reduced hearing, a feeling of fullness, occasional tinnitus (ringing in the ear) and a day or two of balance issues, as the inner ear helps with the body’s equilibrium. What turned out to be eustachian tube dysfunction – when the tube connecting the middle ear to the back of the nose no longer functions properly – left me f
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