Daily living with hyperacusis due to head injury 1 year after a treatment programme at the hearing clinic.

The aim of this study was to gain a deeper understanding of the quality of daily living of persons with hyperacusis after a traumatic head injury 1 year after these persons had participated in a treatment programme at a Swedish hearing clinic. The study group consisted of 21 patients with a mean age of 36 years. In-depth interviews, conducted 1 year after the treatment programme, were analysed using the grounded theory method. Five emergent categories were labelled moderating vulnerability, awareness of restrictions, conditioned participation, structuring daily life and controlling mood changes. The core category, moderating vulnerability, describes the necessary balancing act between activity and recovery. The informants were aware of their new restrictions and managed daily life by structuring and planning each day in detail to minimize exposure to sensory stimuli. They had learned to prioritize their activities and, thereby, rationed their time. The evaluated programme appears to have positive effects and facilitates patients' adjustment process to hyperacusis with relatively restricted costs for the society.