silas

I treasure my ears. Sound, sound design, music, music making, speaker design, sound art, everything. I've never experienced proper tinnitus before, until just about a week ago. It's in one ear only, at around 4900 Hz (self-tested) or an octave thereof. Underlying potential causes? I've been borderline hypothyroid for years. Loud noise? Very little, though as a teen there would have been more. I carry ear protection though since my 30s (I'm 43 now).

I live in Taipei though hail from Los Angeles. The constant drone of scooter traffic certainly constitutes noise pollution here in the city, one of the densest in the world. I don't think the decibel level and my limit exposure at close range are enough to pose a risk.

My mother, a professional vocalist all her life, has suffered from tinnitus more severely in recent years, and I was beginning to look into the research on notched therapies, or intending to, and now this hits me - my own case.

At present, wearing an ear plug in the affected ear reduces the ringing (it's not pulsating). Well....looking forward to learning more soon.