Can meningitis cause hearing loss?***Serious Anwers ONLY***?

i'm a teen and i dont know how i caught it but i had meningitis a month ago. since then i have had a really hard time hearing things. it mostly happens when there is two sources of noise. like someone talking to me and the radio is on. then i have a hard time knowing what is being said. the other time i have a hard time hearing is if its really quiet. like a whisper.

i say "HUH?"or "WHAT?" alot. and its kind of came suddenly.
i had meningitis 3 weeks ago. and i only went to the doctor.

any suggestions? what could be wrong with my ears? is this common? this happened to you or someone you know? how can i get over this hearing loss? will it go away? do i need hearing aids?(YIKES!) i am in highschool so i would get made fun of. i mean like MAJORLY get made fun of! what should i do?

HELP!!!
are there any websites about this? whats the URL?

Yes meningitis can cause hearing loss. Meningitis is what made me deaf when I was 2 years old (I'm now 21).

Best thing you can do is to find an audiologist (they're more qualified when it comes to hearing loss and diagnosing it). They can test your hearing and figure out how much of a hearing loss you have, and can help you find the right hearing aids to help you hear. There's different styles of hearing aids available (behind the ear, in the ear, completely in the canal), and different types (analog, digital), and even different colors. You can even have trials with different kinds of hearing aids too, to find which one would be the best for you.

Don't think of hearing loss as a bad thing. Sure, it's difficult at times to make sense of what someone is saying, especially when there's stuff going on (noise or other conversations). But it's not the end of the world. Trust me on this. And as for being a high school student, I never had any issues with people making fun of me, and my hearing loss was NOTICEABLE since I wore FM systems in school to help me hear even better (of course, now there's better technology out there so FM systems are being made much smaller and so on). Sometimes it helps if everyone were more educated about deafness/hearing loss. People who don't know about it, they tend to assume things and even make fun. But usually people who KNOW about it and are educated, they won't bother you about it. That's what I've noticed while growing up and going through the public school system.

http://www.hearingexchange.com is a good website to find resources on hearing loss and such. They have a list of different websites where you can find information, and even a messageboard to post questions on.

Also, if you need more information on meningitis, you can go to these sites: http://www.meningitis-angels.org
http://www.nmaus.org/
http://www.musa.org/

yes meningitis can cause hearing lose and even death it is an infection in the spinal fluid and it goes to the brain so you are very lucky you need to go to the doctor and have your hearing tested maybe there is something that he can give you that will help and good luck sweetie

I had meningitis too about 20 years ago. It all started with a otitis media. I was treated with antibiotics. Then I developed severe head pain, went back to the same GP that treated me to begin with and he said I was suffering from stress. So I asked the stupid doc if stress caused fevers too. He gave me something for the head pain. By evening, I ended up in the hospital and had the spinal tap done which confirmed meningitis. My right ear has never been the same. The inner ear and mengi of the brain are very close. So I think , at least in my case, my loss of hearing was the result of having that.
Megan

Yes. Meningitis can affect cranial nerves, including the auditory nerve. You need to have your hearing tested. Then, you will know whether you need a hearing aid or not. There is no cure for nerve deafness. Hearing aids are very small and discreet nowadays. It is nothing to be made fun of. It is like wearing glasses for vision. You have survived a horrible illness. Chin up!