Sustained overly loud music can cause hearing damage in anyone.
Meniere’s disease is unrelated to that.
Unfortunately like your eyesight - hearing eventually deteriorates over time too - so some of what may be blamed on loud music or exposure may simply be aging.
I lost some left ear ultra high frequency hearing in my left ear from a head to head collision in a rugby match many years ago. I don’t notice it anymore but the shift was quite apparent when it happened. Fortunately my loss is very slight and also well outside the mid range. I guesstimate about 3dB to 6 dB loss in the highest frequencies (close to CRT TV range which is so high - around 16 KHz - that you tend to lose that range over time anyway - I am around 14 KHz now)
There is no solution for many hearing issues. So just listen to music as much as you can while you can - life is short and there is so much beautiful music out there...
Seeing how many people have posted here, I wonder if there is any link between the volume at which one listens to music, or the frequencies that good audio might reproduce better than run of the mill equipment. That would truly be ironic -- higher quality audio causing low end frequency loss and Meniere’s . . .
I’ve had Meniere’s Disease for 9 years. First year, every 3 months or so I had intermittent bout of horrible vertigo where, within 15 minutes of first symptoms, I was so dizzy I couldn’t stand or walk, and would then vomit until I managed to pass out. Moved from San Diego to Miami year 2 and it stopped for 7 years. Last year, tinnitus started, and the vertigo attacks again. Now it has stopped again for the last 6 months, but the tinnitus in my left year remains and I have low frequency loss (common in Menieres) and high frequency loss in that ear. Ironic that someone that gets a lot of pleasure from high quality audio has now lost some hearing in one ear. Could be worse. Could be both ears, I guess. Sometimes I can’t tell whether the recording sucks or its just my left ear sucking! :)
@zebra9, I had acupuncture for the last year. I also reduced my salt intake and alcohol intake. Don’t know if those were factors. However, now, if I feel the slightest bit lightheaded, I take promethazine, which seems to stop anything before the whole wonderful experience starts.
I have had Meniere's for 17 years, it's a terrible syndrome but doesn't necessarily mean you lose your hearing. Vertigo is the telltale sign of this horrible disease with no cure or medication to relieve symptoms.
One of more the interesting treatments I received was an injection of steroids directly into my inner ear through the eardrum. Needle was human hair thin, about 4” long. Doc said, ‘don’t move!’ No problem doc!
I’ve suffered with Menieres for over 15 years. It is not genetic. It’s caused by a malfunction of the body’s immmunodeficiency system that attacks the inner ear. Symptoms include tinnitus, vertigo, nausea, loss of hearing, and can eventually result in deafness in some cases. A fellow sufferer eventually had his inner removed because of non stop vertigo. Treatments vary and results vary and it can remit but it never goes away. At its worst, in my case, unexpected violent onsets included vomiting, falling down, and horrible headaches. Really nasty stuff. Genetic? No. I’ve seen the best doctors and it confuses them all, like many immunodeficiency diseases. Bonus! I have another immunodeficiency disease: alopecia totalis! Docs can’t figure that one out either!
I've had a mild to moderate case of Meniere's for the past 20+ years, what it does is gives you some weird inner ear ringing/noise, and dizziness due to affecting the balance canals in your ear. but I was and am still able to listen to music no problem. if it gets really bad though, a person can lose their balance to the point they can't walk, or fall down. what happens is, your eyes take over for balance by sight perception. if a person with Meniere's tries to walk a straight line with their eyes closed, they stagger and almost fall over. a person with good inner ear balance can still walk a straight line with their eyes closed.
my mother had a wonderful singing voice. I used to love sitting with her in church. she contracted Meniere's....couldnt buy a note for the rest of her life.....I missed her singing.
There is no cure or effective treatment for Meniere's. If you have a severe enough version you will go deaf and constantly lose your equilibrium. Less severe cases "just" have godawful/constant ringing in the ears. It is genetic.
Very cool history lessons here guys. At one time, Ryan Adams suffered from the same affliction. A man of Huey's status will find a specialist to help treat Meniere's- get well soon.
shadorne, I too consider Bill Gibson a real good drummer, very tasty. And The News’ original bassist Mario Cipollina is the younger brother of Quicksilver Messenger Service guitarist John Cipollina, one of the best San Francisco area guitarists of the era.
Brian, Huey can be heard blowing harp on the first Elvis Costello album---My Aim Is True, at the time of it’s recording a member of Clover. Are you located in the Bay Area? If so, you might want to check out Gary Smith of San Jose. He studied with Charlie Musselwhite, and is a VERY good harp player. I was in a band with Gary in 1969-70, not long after he switched from drums to harp.
Huey is a very talented harp player. He uses Anthony Dannaker custom brass body harmonicas. I own two of them and they are exquisite. Although you may think the harmonica plays itself it’s actually a very complex instrument. A c harmonica has the same octave range as a flute and Huey Lewis is a master of it. i’m sad to hear he’s having hearing trouble. This particular affliction is unrelated to exposure to high decibel levels I believe it’s genetic, so no it’s not because he was just too darn loud. Wish you luck and blessings Huey Lewis.
I took Presley’s AP Physics class, which was a very positive influence. I never witnessed the afterhours misbehaviors. BTW, I recall that he had a nice stereo with Altec Valencias.
If you’ve been following the newsletters you might know the name Bruce Presley. He was my physics teacher, a post doc from Princeton, but way before all the bad behavior started. Before he became a .....House Master.
So sorry to hear this. I really like The News - very talented bunch of musicians - I especially like Bill Gibson - underated drummer IMHO. Yes Lawrenceville produced many talented folks - what happened to you?
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