2nd Doctor's Visit

Went to my second doctors visit was on 08/09/2012.  I got my MRI done, and a new audio-gram test to see if there is any improvements.
The MRI went a lot smoother than what I thought, I was only inside the tube for about 30 minutes.  The technicians did a great job muffling the noise from the machine.
Second audio-gram test was also performed right after the MRI.  There was some minor improvement in my hearing, going from a 100+dB loss to a 85-90dB loss (slight improvement but I will take anything).  The audiologist informed me that my hearing loss has gone from a profound to a moderate level.  The test results also showed that there is some slight  damage to the inner ear organ.  This grounds me, as from information that I have read the inner ear does not have the capability to heal itself as like other areas of the human body.  One area of major improvement has been in the word recognition test, I'm not sure what the equipment or test called.  But this is when they attach a band that sends vibration through the skull and its directly picked up by the inner ear.
On my first test I could hear the noise but I could not make out any words.  This time around I can actually identify 40% of the words.  These results give me hope that improvement is taking place, even if its slow.  I might not be able to recover 100% of my hearing back, but if I can get to a level where a hearing aid can help that would be awesome.

Now to the doctors visit, the MRI results were immediately sent to his office (got to love Houston's medical center!).  The imaging did not show any sign of a tumor/cancer growth, busted blood vessel, aneurysm or any abnormality of the inner ear.  This is great news, as its nothing major, but at the same time it sounds more and more like I will never find the root cause.  A part of me is relieved but at the same time disappointed there are no answers as to why this happens.
By this time the doctor has given me three options for continued treatment: 1) continue the oral steroids for two more weeks  even though there are no studies that suggest any benefit from steroid use past the initial two weeks.  2) steroid injection to the inner ear, again this method of treatment is more of a placebo than anything else.  3) no medications, as patients do continue to improve even after they are off the steroids.
I choose option 3, as I experienced several side effect from the prednisone (constipation and rise in body temperature at all times of the day).
I will go ahead and start my workout routine again after having a 3 week hiatus. Lets hope things go smoothly.