AT 21, Hampshire woman Emma Hassell had everything to look forward to.

Her boyfriend had just asked her to marry him and the couple were making plans to save up to buy a home of their own.

She was preparing to step into the shower to get ready to celebrate her engagement. Then, just 20 minutes later, she was completely deaf - and nobody knows why.

Six weeks on Emma still cannot hear a sound, leaving doctors stumped. Their best guess is that the problem may be psychological and they have referred her to an expert.

Emma's frightening ordeal began on Easter Monday when she was preparing to celebrate her engagement to boyfriend Kevin Love.

She went upstairs at her family home to take a shower. The next thing she remembers is telling her mum that she could not hear anything.

Emma, who has had no previous hearing problems, was immediately taken to Southampton General Hospital. Tests confirmed a complete hearing loss, but doctors have failed to provide any explanation for what has happened.

Emma, who has taken sick leave from her job as a carer at Fleming House rest home in Eastleigh said: "I just feel so frustrated. Living a normal life is very difficult.

"On the day it all happened I just couldn't understand what was going on. I went upstairs to take a shower but about 20 minutes later I was telling my mum I couldn't hear. But I didn't have a shower - I just sort of lost about 20 minutes.

"We thought I must have hit my head but nothing showed up at the hospital.

"I feel that people have been very patronising and some just don't seem to believe me. I don't see how it can be psychological. That basically means that if there is a hope of my hearing coming back it's down to me. But why would I choose to be like this?"

Fiance Kevin Love, who lives with Emma in Wildern Lane, Hedge End, said: "We need help, we are absolutely lost for what to do next. We are trying to save up for a house, we need to get back to living as normal a life as possible.

"Emma has been very brave, she is a very strong person."

A spokesman for Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs Southampton General Hospital, said: "If there is nothing we can do medically or surgically then all we can do is refer them to other organisations which help them cope with their situation.

"If this particular lady feels we could have done more she is very welcome to speak to our patient advice liaison service."

Pamela Morrisey at the British Deaf Association said she has never heard of a case like Emma's.

She said: "It is unusual, I don't think I've ever picked up the phone and been told about something like this. We know of industrial accidents for example that cause people to lose their hearing but I would think that the numbers of incidents like this are pretty low.

"The people we deal with have lost their hearing at a young age or were born deaf and the average reading age of such a person is eight years old.

"This young woman will feel slightly isolated and frustrated but she already knows about how the world works and she has an awful lot of information about life that will help her.

"The reality is that she will learn to lip-read and it is up to the people around her to try to understand how to speak. For example not to speak with their hands over their mouth or with hair over their face. Your lips need to be completely forming the words."