Tinnitus anyone?

[fab1976]

Has anyone been told it’s due to sleep deprivation? My ENT told me that, and it’s due to sleep apnea. Just curious if others have been told that.

 

[VandVsmama]

One of the side effects I experienced for about 6-7 hours after my 1st COVID vaccine was tinnitus. I have a lot of respect for anyone who has to deal with it on a constant basis.

 

[goofyernmost]

I have it. I mostly just ignore it because I've had it so long, but now that I'm thinking about it for this post it's all I can hear. Sounds like a high-pitched dial tone. I think it's from listening to loud music for years with headphones and earbuds. I don't turn it up quite so loud anymore, but it's too late.

I've got it equally in both ears. No one knows exactly why, but I did work for a few years in a newspaper printing company. (pre - ear protectors) Like yourself, most of the time I can ignore it. Times like right now when I have no background noise it seems a lot louder. For years now, I have had to have some white noise in the background. I guess no one knows how to fix it or exactly what part of the brain it is being generated from, not actually from the ear itself. However, in absolute silence it might as well be a person with a trumpet next to my ear.

 

[goofyernmost]

Has anyone been told it’s due to sleep deprivation? My ENT told me that, and it’s due to sleep apnea. Just curious if others have been told that.

I do have sleep apnea and use the equipment nightly, but I truly don't remember if I had this before that or not. Interesting possibility though, but it still doesn't fix it. Thankfully, mine is not all that bad that I can't ignore it most of the day.

 

[NotUrsula]

I have misophonia also! It’s an awful thing to have. I also had tinnitus for a time. How did it go away? I had “stuff” in both ears that was apparently clogging up my ear drums. The Dr used a curette and got rid of the “stuff”. Had to do it twice but it finally went away.
I feel for all of you suffering from it. I felt like I was going crazy from it.

In your case it probably wasn't true tinnitus if clearing out the wax got rid of the noise. Movement of wax buildup that has hardened can cause a crackle kind of noise when your move your jaw or roll your head, but that's not true tinnitus, which is not an actual sound, but an electrical impulse from nerves inside your ear that your brain interprets as if it were a sound. The real thing doesn't go away even if your ear canals are spotless.

The "noise" varies from person to person: mine sounds like the screech of microphone feedback -- but distant, as if it was coming from a couple of rooms away. (This is in addition to a sound that I get sometimes because I have Meniere's; that part sounds like dry rice rolling inside a jar whenever I tilt my head more than 30 degrees.)

One of the odder parts of having physical issues with your ears is that doctors like to poke around inside them with scopes and such. The sound of those tiny instruments moving inside the ear is incredibly loud.

 

[BlueStarryHat]

Sometimes, like this morning, it goes with my heartbeat like a pulse.

 

[OKbyme]

Wow, sorry for everyone who responded. But it helps to know I'm not alone. Mine started about 6 years ago and after I was diagnosed, I knew it was common for the condition, and most likely to progress.

I was doing OK until the past couple of months, as the tinnitus is very very loud now. (why I know my hearing is getting worse) I have been using a noise machine at night, but I have to turn it up rather loudly now to hear it well enough to drown out the tinnitus.

Given the stark choice between hearing low-grade noise all the time and not hearing anything at all, the choice of learning to live with the whine in my ears was a simple one.

Yes, life can always be worse in many cases, but I remember reading about a gentleman who was dying, he had a long life, but he told his son at least he wouldn't have to put up with the ringing in his ears any longer!

 

[Hisgirl]

Yes, my spouse has it, a good friend who woke up from retina surgery with it, and another composer friend who had one too many loud concerts. It's a life-altering, difficult to manage situation. And my husband's audiologist said she and other audiologists are seeing an uptick in tinnitus cases which started after getting the mrna vaccine. So that's not good.

 

[Diznygrl]

First rule of tinnitus, don't talk about tinnitus!

I've had it for as long as I can remember, in both ears. I had a lot of ear infections at around 3-4 years old which I'm sure messed up my ears and resulted in the hearing loss that I developed shortly thereafter. Most of the time if I'm not thinking about it, I don't notice it. But once someone mentions it or I read the word 'tinnitus', suddenly it becomes deafening and near unbearable until I'm able to forget about it again.

 

[penn19]

In your case it probably wasn't true tinnitus if clearing out the wax got rid of the noise. Movement of wax buildup that has hardened can cause a crackle kind of noise when your move your jaw or roll your head, but that's not true tinnitus, which is not an actual sound, but an electrical impulse from nerves inside your ear that your brain interprets as if it were a sound. The real thing doesn't go away even if your ear canals are spotless.

The "noise" varies from person to person: mine sounds like the screech of microphone feedback -- but distant, as if it was coming from a couple of rooms away. (This is in addition to a sound that I get sometimes because I have Meniere's; that part sounds like dry rice rolling inside a jar whenever I tilt my head more than 30 degrees.)

One of the odder parts of having physical issues with your ears is that doctors like to poke around inside them with scopes and such. The sound of those tiny instruments moving inside the ear is incredibly loud.

Maybe, but I know what I “heard”. It was constant. And I hadn’t had it before I had the ear issue. It was maddening.

 

[penn19]

In your case it probably wasn't true tinnitus if clearing out the wax got rid of the noise. Movement of wax buildup that has hardened can cause a crackle kind of noise when your move your jaw or roll your head, but that's not true tinnitus, which is not an actual sound, but an electrical impulse from nerves inside your ear that your brain interprets as if it were a sound. The real thing doesn't go away even if your ear canals are spotless.

The "noise" varies from person to person: mine sounds like the screech of microphone feedback -- but distant, as if it was coming from a couple of rooms away. (This is in addition to a sound that I get sometimes because I have Meniere's; that part sounds like dry rice rolling inside a jar whenever I tilt my head more than 30 degrees.)

One of the odder parts of having physical issues with your ears is that doctors like to poke around inside them with scopes and such. The sound of those tiny instruments moving inside the ear is incredibly loud.

Not sure how reliable but it’s Miracle Ear so maybe?

https://www.miracle-ear.com/hearing-diseases/tinnitus-ringing-ears/ear-ringing-myths-and-facts

 

[JacqueHope1]

I've been living with tinnitus for 3 years I learn myself to control it

 

[lisaviolet]

Tinnitus can be a symptom of b12 deficiency/Pernicious Anemia.

Check your b12 levels & don't expect your GP to fully understand the condition and treatment, if low b12 is an issue.

 

[ScottOKW2K]

I know exactly when my Tinnitus started - Kiss concert when I was 17 years old. Some times I hardly notice it but when I'm in a quiet room I hear that constant high pitched tone.

 

[Alicefan]

My husband is Army Infantry and he has it in both ears and wears two hearing aids that create a noise that is supposed to counteract the tinnitus sounds.

 

[goofyernmost]

12 years in the web printing business. Both sides, but usually something I hardly notice anymore! White noise usually lessons the intensity.

 

[Kennywood]

I have it. I mostly just ignore it because I've had it so long, but now that I'm thinking about it for this post it's all I can hear. Sounds like a high-pitched dial tone. I think it's from listening to loud music for years with headphones and earbuds. I don't turn it up quite so loud anymore, but it's too late.

A friend of mine and I both have tinnitus. Mine is a high pitched tone in my right ear. I told that I've had it so long that I basically just ignore and tune it out. She went off on me! "If you REALLY had tinnitus, you wouldn't be able to ignore it!" I said something like, "Okay....whatever."

 

[flyingdumbo127]

Not tinnitus but I do have related TMJ issues. Thank God, they are no longer a daily struggle. and prayers to all. Feel better! Thank you all for sharing and caring always!

 

[Wakey]

Best thing you can do with tinnitus is forget about it. Now I’m thinking about it for this thread I can hear mine, I don’t usually.
This is because if we forget about it, our brains screen it out due to a process called habituation.
An ENT I did some work with describes it as- you know when you are in a restaurant and talking to someone. You hear them because your brain is concentrating on them. it automatically filters out all the background noise due to habituation. But, if you suddenly start thinking about all that background noise and mentally focus on it, you hear people on the next table talking, plates and cutlery clattering, the music playing etc.
So in many cases the best cure for tinnitus is forget about it and let your brain do its habituation thing.

 

[NotUrsula]

How can you forget about tinnitus , especially at night, when you don't hear anything else, except that annoying ringing.

By playing soothing background noise to mask it.