The hearing test, which involved sitting in a quiet room listening to noises of various pitch played through headphones, confirmed the worst. I had no hearing in my left ear whatsoever.

Viral infections, such as mumps, rubella and meningitis, cause inflammation of the inner ear or auditory nerve, resulting in permanent damage.

I get a sense that you're really listening and hearing, and I commend you on that.

The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation. What is called resignation is confirmed desperation.

An early sign of damaged hearing is temporary deafness after listening to loud music. This is known as the threshold shift and means you have damaged the cochlea in your ear so that your hearing takes time to revert to normal.

"If we are not listening to our heart, it's time to get our hearing checked." ~ Tom Baker