Choco Mucho's Kat Tolentino. Photo from PVL Media Bureau

MANILA, Philippines – Choco Mucho mainstay Kat Tolentino revealed Saturday that she has yet to recover from the auditory condition she started suffering earlier this year.

Tolentino shared that she has yet to regain her sense of hearing in her left ear, hoping that this condition will not be permanent.

READ: PVL: Choco Mucho's Kat Tolentino to rest amid recovery from auditory condition

"It's different because I'm deaf in my left ear so all the sounds are coming from my right side so it's pretty different," Tolentino told reporters.

"Well, according to the ENT, it [hearing] hasn't exactly come back and it's been almost around 9 months. Hopefully it's not permanent, hopefully it will come back. But right now, I just can't really hear so much in my left side," she added.

READ: Amid uncertainty over health, Kat Tolentino keeps the faith

In Choco Mucho's first game, Tolentino delivered 12 points, although they succumbed to Petro Gazz, 20-25, 28-26, 21-25, 25-16.

READ: PVL: Van Sickle fires 34 as Petro Gazz soars past Choco Mucho

Tolentino was benched in April due to the said auditory condition, prioritizing rest for her to recover.

Later on, she was played sparingly in the 2024 Reinforced Conference, where Choco Mucho suffered a pool phase exit.

Despite this, Tolentino remains steadfast as she intends to power through this situation in the 2024-25 PVL All-Filipino Conference.

"Just even as a person in the arena, it's different but it's not something that I can't deal with. I just have to adjust and understand that this is the condition I have so I have to get used to it," said the former Ateneo standout.

The 29-year-old opposite spiker was confident of her team's support amid this challenge.

"And so far it's been okay, it's just really loud on my right side. But other than that, my team has been really supportive and I'm thankful for that."