What was the first sign that something was wrong?

I was having trouble hearing for about 18 months. The first time I noticed it, I was lying on my left side and my boyfriend was showering in the bathroom. Until I rolled over and exposed what is now my good ear, I couldn't hear the shower. My doctor kept telling me I had allergies, and I kept thinking, "What kind of allergies cause hearing loss?"

You moved from Seattle to New York City. Why?

I came to New York to start graduate school in neuroscience at New York University, where my hearing loss became more serious. In class, I couldn't hear when somebody sitting next to me asked me a question. The doctor I went to in New York sent me to an ear, nose, and throat specialist for a hearing test. After taking the standard tests, I learned I had 80 percent hearing loss in my left ear. In tests for ear reflexes, my left ear was completely nonreactive.

What happened next?

I had an MRI, which revealed an acoustic neuroma, and I was referred to a neurosurgeon and a neuro-otologist.

What was the prognosis?

It was not cancerous. I was told I would require surgery to remove the tumor, and I might experience loss of balance and hearing because the surgeon cuts through the auditory nerve, which affects equilibrium.

How was your recovery?

I spent two and a half days in the ICU and another day and a half in the general hospital, where I had to learn to walk again since I couldn't balance. I was out of commission for three months. As predicted, I have hearing loss on the left side and wear a hearing aid.

You now do aerial acrobatics. Is your balance a factor?

At first I was terrified and wondered if I'd have bigger troubles than other people, but I haven't. I think it helped that I didn't start doing aerials until after the surgery, so I've only known how to do these acrobatics with abnormal balance.

How else did you deal with your diagnosis?

I shared my experience on the Story Collider (storycollider.org) to provide insight and to humanize having an acoustic neuroma. It's so easy to think about things happening to other people, but it's hard to put yourself into someone else's shoes.