Elgin man suffering from tinnitus and vertigo opens up on struggles after losing hearing overnight
An Elgin man who suddenly lost his hearing has praised a local charity for helping him 'enjoy his life again'.
Philip McDonald, from Elgin, has said tinnitus and vertigo 'dramatically changed his life' and led to him losing his job.
In 2015, he woke up one morning to find he was unable to hear anything and could barely balance.
At the time, the now 62-year-old managed to make it to his doctor for an emergency appointment and was then diagnosed with sudden onset hearing loss which also caused tinnitus.
This also brought on severe vertigo, which resulted in Philip losing his job in a nursing home as he was deemed unable to provide safe care.
Philip said: 'I woke up at 5am to a loud crashing noise, and got up to check what had caused it.
'I was staggering all over the house, and put it down to being half asleep.
'I went back to bed, but when I woke at 8am, I was still staggering and bouncing around.
'I thought I would turn the volume on the TV up, but still couldn't hear anything.'
Philip, who previously served as a technician in the Royal Air Force, says he then realised he couldn't hear anything – including his feet on the floor and the kettle.
At that moment, the Elgin man says he started to 'panic' and got a taxi to the GP where he had to communicate by writing things down.
During his visit to the GP, Philip began suffering from tinnitus.
He added: 'Over time, some of my hearing did come back, but all I can hear now is really low bass notes in one of my ears.
'Sometimes the tinnitus is so bad I can't hear anything else.
'It causes nausea and sometimes vomiting. I tell people that it makes me unpredictable as I may have to cancel appointments at the last minute.
'There have been times when I've reacted to a loud noise, which made me turn my head suddenly, triggering my vertigo and causing me to fall and land in the middle of the street, on two occasions with cars coming towards me.
'If I get an inkling of vertigo, I don't go out until it's passed.'
After hearing about North East Sensory Services (NESS) from a friend, he contacted the charity and staff were able to help him adjust to his new life and regain his confidence and self-esteem.
The charity supports thousands of blind and deaf people across the north-east, with its main objective being to help people to live as independently as possible.
They have helped him with a flashing doorbell, a flashing and vibrating smoke alarm as well as a social worker who has worked with him to apply for the Adult Disability Payment.
He also joined one of NESS's lipreading classes, which he described as 'amazing' and 'a real turnaround,' as it helped him meet others going through the same thing.
Philip said: 'I know I can phone NESS any time during the day if I'm feeling lonely.
'The social isolation is the worst, and they helped me so much with that.'
Carla Marchbank, statutory services manager at NESS, said: 'Philip's story shows just how devastating sensory loss can be. At NESS, our staff understand people need different things along their journey, and we try to support them in whatever way they need at the best time for them.'
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