Bad Tinnitus from Prolonged Exposure to Loud Music Through Headphones

[Sad Frog]

Hi guys,

I'm a 24-year-old male from the Midwestern US who has recently developed a pretty bad case of tinnitus.

Growing up hunting and shooting firearms, I think I've always had some degree of tinnitus, though it was never bothersome or particularly noticeable to me. Fast forward to midway through May of this year, I started experiencing an incredible amount of ringing and hissing in my ears after prolonged exposure to loud music through my headphones; the specific song -- which was on repeat for probably two hours or so -- being Tchaikovsky's 1812 overture, known for its use of canons. The ringing died down slightly and was manageable for about a month, but I must've made it worse by continued use of my headphones.

Two weeks ago, seemingly out of the blue, I started experiencing symptoms mirroring those of dysacusis and hyperacusis; sound distortions (namely when listening to digital audio, i.e. through phone speakers, TV, laptop speakers; sounds tinny, crackly, and overall just horrible, like shards of glass piercing my ears), hearing what I can only describe as a flute sound over certain noises (sink, shower, toilet flushing, air conditioning, refrigerator, fan), and other weird auditory hallucinations (hearing xylophone noises coming from things like my fan and refrigerator, hearing my fan talk to me, high-pitched beeping over certain television advertisements, high-pitched noises when running my hands through the short hair on the sides of my head). Just a disclaimer, I probably have an undiagnosed anxiety disorder -- most likely OCD -- that may or may not be exacerbating my symptoms.

Three days ago I visited my GP. I told him what was going on, he checked my ears, and concluded that it was likely Eustachian Tube Dysfunction, and sent me home with a list of some allergy medication to pick up at the pharmacy. Since then, the only symptom that has really improved for me is the flute noise I've been hearing over certain sounds, which is nice considering that was the most annoying symptom I've had thus far. It's definitely still there, but seems to be getting better. I have an ENT appointment scheduled for next week so hopefully they can give me some direction.

Admittedly, I've been a total and complete wreck these last couple weeks. I've broken down crying several times, fearing that I've permanently ruined my hearing and that I'll never enjoy listening to music or watching TV again. I've thrown away my Apple AirPods and my $400 Sennheiser headphones, vowing never again to use devices like these again. As you can probably tell, I've beaten myself up about this quite a lot, regretting the various choices I've made that have lead up to this point. My life feels like it's over; can't wrap my head around the idea of never enjoying music or TV again. Goes to show that you never truly appreciate something until it's gone. I don't know if I'll ever forgive myself for this.

Well, any help or advice would be appreciated. I don't know how much I'll frequent this forum -- think I've done too much of it already; reading all of the doom posts have probably made my situation worse, frankly -- but I'll try to give periodic updates in this thread or on my profile to document my experience.

God bless.

 

[Marina Moon]

Hello, I'm sorry about what's happening to you. I'm pretty new to tinnitus too, and I agree, it really threw a wrench in my life. I've vowed never to use my headphones again and packed them away, the regret is universal... But no longer using your headphones and AirPods can only do your ears good, by giving them auditory rest! I hope you recover, reclaim back some joy in your life during these difficult times, and that your ENT appointment goes well.

 

[Tryn2BHopeful]

@Sad Frog, well the good news is that you have seen some improvement! Doesn't seem like it's been going on too long thus far, and the early days are the worst!

There are certainly many success stories of people with noise-induced tinnitus on these forums, though it may take many months. Try to relax and get some rest. Stress and lack of sleep tend to make it worse.

Good luck!

 

[Nick47]

@Sad Frog, you come across well, even though you said you may have OCD. I have read some crazy attributions given as theoretical causes of tinnitus, however yours is a known cause and a common one.

CBT can help with the OCD.

Medication for acoustic trauma, as you may know, is hit and miss, however Gabapentin helps a fair few (1/3rd) with this type of tinnitus. Well worth a shot. Clonazepam is also useful, especially when taken occasionally, as dependence can build with daily use.

First, do not rush off and buy herbs and vitamins out of desperation. Many including myself did this. The exceptions are Magnesium, Alpha-Lipoic Acid (ALA) and a general multivitamin. ALA is the only supplement with a good study behind it and it will only help a little if at all. Magnesium can help with sleep.

So there is a combination of options I have provided, and I would consider all 3 (CBT, a medication, ALA) as a strategy to bring things under control.

All 3 have some evidence too, so not complete wacky, weird, bank account draining shit.

Good luck pal.

 

[Sad Frog]

Hey guys,

For an update, I visited an ENT and audiologist today. ENT did an ear cleaning (not suction, thankfully) on initial evaluation because he saw a lot of wax; this was contrary to what my general practitioner observed at my appointment last week. Ear drums and canal looked fine, though apparently there's a hair stuck on my left ear drum. He couldn't remove it because he'd risk damaging my ear drum, but he reassured me that it should come off with ear irrigation. On an unrelated note, I found out that I have a deviated septum, though not significant enough to require treatment. Anyways, I told him what was going on with me symptom wise and he sent me to another room to get a hearing test with an audiologist. I asked her to test the higher frequencies (8000 Hz +) as well, but unfortunately she didn't have the proper equipment available at her disposal. Completed the hearing test and interestingly she told me that I have 'slightly above average' hearing for people my age; definitely alleviated some of my anxiety upon hearing that. Met back with the ENT to discuss the results and he essentially told me that he couldn't do anything else; thought that additional testing wasn't necessary. I can't say I'm surprised by this outcome since it was more or less what I was expecting, but to know that I have no clinically observable hearing loss and that I now have a baseline for further potential testing in the future, I left the appointment satisfied.

That said, I'll do a little update regarding my symptoms. Things have been improving rather quickly, thankfully. Distortions and auditory hallucinations are getting better, though I still hear high-pitched beeping over certain sounds coming from my phone, laptop, or television. I no longer hear a flute noise over things such as running water, air conditioning, and my fan. Digital audio in general is sounding much better and less unintelligible, tinny, and distorted. The only thing that remains unchanged is the ringing in my ears, which is expected; still incredibly annoying though, but much better to manage than my other symptoms. My anxiety has also gone down significantly following the appointment I had today. Hopefully, this is a good indication that I'll make decent recovery eventually. I certainly don't feel 'normal' yet -- not expecting to honestly -- but undoubtedly in a better place than I was a three weeks ago. If I've learned anything from this experience so far it's that I need to take care of my ears. I never really thought about my ears or ear health before this whole ordeal, so I'm hoping that I'll look back on this as a blessing in disguise.

I'll keep making periodic updates in this thread. I'll also attach my hearing test results.

 

[Sad Frog]

Hey guys. Going to do a little update.

The last two weeks or so were amazing; didn't have any symptoms aside from the ringing in my ears when lying in bed. Thought I was all better.

Two days ago, I went to the lake on a boat without any hearing protection and was exposed to three loud engine beeps. Came home and felt fine, but the next day, my distortions were back, the flute noises were back, literally everything was back. Such an awful occurrence considering I thought I was past the brunt of this shit.

Oh well. Lesson learned. I will never leave my house again without hearing protection.

Hoping I recover again in time.

 

[Jammer]

Hey guys. Going to do a little update.

The last two weeks or so were amazing; didn't have any symptoms aside from the ringing in my ears when lying in bed. Thought I was all better.

Two days ago, I went to the lake on a boat without any hearing protection and was exposed to three loud engine beeps. Came home and felt fine, but the next day, my distortions were back, the flute noises were back, literally everything was back. Such an awful occurrence considering I thought I was past the brunt of this shit.

Oh well. Lesson learned. I will never leave my house again without hearing protection.

Hoping I recover again in time.

Experience is the worst teacher when tinnitus is forgotten. Heal up and remember that you're possibly just one trauma away from having permanent tinnitus.

 

[Sad Frog]

I haven't been here in a couple months so I thought I'd do an update.

I'm 99% better. I have slight ringing in my left ear when going to bed but otherwise my hearing has returned to normal. I'm definitely being more careful when it comes to my ears. I went hunting a few weeks ago and wore hearing protection. I was mocked a bit by my buddies for it but I don't care. I'm not going to neglect my ears. I also wear hearing protection around my house sometimes but mostly when I think I'm going to be in loud situations; lawn mowing, laundry, working on the car, etc. I highly, highly recommend Loop earplugs. I wear the Engage and Quiet models depending on how much noise I'm exposing myself to. Not trying to do a sales pitch but they've been an absolute godsend for me.

Anyways, wishing all of you the best. Bye, for now...

 

[Jupiterman]

Well done and congratulations on your 99% recovery. To heal from distortions, auditory hallucinations, hyperacusis and tinnitus in such a short period of time is quite astounding.

Thank you for posting.

I do believe your case is purely healing (not habituation) in that you are recovered after 3.5 months.

Best of luck and I wish you a happy future of no loud accidental noise exposures.

 

[gameover]

Congrats! You are lucky! So envious.

Thanks for coming back and updating us.

 

[Jupiterman]

Shouldn't this thread be in Success Stories?