I’m not a professional, just a layperson who has done some study on diving ears. There seems to be a lot of disinformation on ears, and many MD don’t help clear it up. Some of the things you have said and what the doctors have told you do not add up.
The dizziness and loss of equilibrium you experienced is classis symptoms of what happens immediately following a tear in the eardrum and water entering the middle ear. This, in and of itself won’t necessary make a hearing loss. The middle ear is not where sounds are processed. That is done in the inter ear. The inter ear is filled with fluid and there is a membrane between it and the middle ear. If the membrane gets damaged, it can allow fluid to drain out of the inter ear, or air to go into it. This can cause damage to the hair like fibers in the inter ear, where sounds are processed resulting in permanent hearing loss.
Water entering the middle ear, or body fluid being drawn into it, can cause a short-term hearing loss until the body absorbs it back out. Things sound muffled like your hearing through fluid.
Damage of the membrane between the inter ear and the middle ear is caused by low pressure in the middle ear. Since the inter ear is already fluid filled, you only need to increase the pressure in the middle ear to equalize it to the inter ear. Most people and even most doctors only think of the eardrum as the one you need to equalize for.
What likely happened is you first damaged the inter ear by tearing the membrane between it and the middle ear, and then your eardrum broke causing you to get the loss of equilibrium symptoms. The breaking of the ear drum actually helped relieve the low pressure in your middle ear, thus helping to keep from damaging your inter ear further.
What the doctor said about a torn eardrum never being as strong, is correct, but some people have healed nicely to where they can continue diving with more care. If the membrane between the inter and middle ear torn, and healed well, I do not think you would suffer more hearing damage from diving with proper and often equalization. Remember I am just a layperson! The question will probably be, how strong is your eardrum?
My recommendation is to practice short quick equalizations, one after another on dry land. They need to be short and quick so no unnecessary pressure is put on the eardrum. When you release the pressure used to equalize, the excess pressure in the middle ear is bleed off by the Eustachian tube. Play a game with yourself and see how many equalizations you can do on a single breath. It’s a great way to increase breath hold and better your equalization technique at the same time. Try doing it with your head and upper body hanging off a bed so they are vertical. If it is harder for you vertical, I would only do it vertical, because that is the position you need to master.
You may find that the dry land equalizations hurt at first. In this case, quit for a few days until the pain goes away. Then concentrate on using less pressure and less time with pressure.
If the dry land equalizations don’t hurt your ears, then go to a pool and do the same thing on your descent. One right after another. Pressure, equalize, release, pressure, etc.. Equalizing in a constant rhythm will soon become habit ever time you descend. If on a descent your equalizations stop, that is where you stop and don’t go any deeper.
I hope you are able to dive again, but remember there are other things in life worth doing to. I would give these suggestions a try and see what happens.
don