Gamers Anxiously Check Heads After Twitch Streamer Shows Headphone Dent

For today’s edition of “Things You Might Want To Worry About,” we bring you the story of a streamer who discovered his many hours of wearing a gaming audio headset has left an indent on his scalp. Subsequent discussion revealed that many other gamers have experienced the same. Go ahead and have a look at your head in the mirror now, I’ll wait.

During a June 3 charity stream for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, streamer Curtoss shaved his head in support of the charity and, to his complete shock, discovered a headset-shaped indent right at the top of his skull. His decidedly dented head and his reaction to it swiftly caught the attention of other streamers and gamers who’ve either experienced or worried about the same thing. It turns out that the issue is a bit more widespread than one might’ve thought.

“Dude, I have an indent like right here,” Curtoss said when he first caught sight of the new shape of his head. As gentle, mood-setting house music played in the background, he continued: “This is where my headphones go! I have a fucking headphone indent on my head! What the fuck? I always thought that was just my hair!”

Streamer finds a headphone indent on his head while shaving for charity pic.twitter.com/3RiIlnjYeX

— Dexerto (@Dexerto) June 5, 2023

But as it turns out, Curtoss is far from alone with this issue. As a Reddit thread discusses, the issue of cranial indents caused by headphones has been raised by others in the past. One reply surfaced a video from two years ago in which streamer Nickmercs revealed the results of his occupational hazard.

Another Reddit thread from three years ago also goes into the phenomenon, as does this five-year old Reddit thread.

But as many have observed on Reddit and Twitter, it’s highly unlikely that headsets are actually altering the shape of anyone’s skull. It takes around 135 kg of pressure to cause damage to the human skull, according to one study. So what we’re seeing in these examples is the result of the headset pushing down on fat and soft tissue, or is nothing more than the natural shape of some people’s heads. Any indentation would likely go away with a bit of massaging and a long enough break from wearing a headset.

And while you may worry about the shape of your head being altered from wearing headphones for prolonged periods of time, as someone who suffers from tinnitus I can tell you the real danger is to your hearing. Please folks, watch the volume on these things.