Chiropractor Is Successfully Treating My Tinnitus

Hi everyone,

I joined because I wanted to share my personal experience in case it may help anyone else out there. I'm at the point I'm at right now because I found some recommendations online that I pursued and that lead me to my treatment, so I wanted to pay that forward by sharing what's turning into a success story for me.

My tinnitus came on hard and fast seemingly overnight in August. I woke up with what seemed like sirens in my head. I spent a good deal of time panicking because it didn't go away and then going down a very fast rabbit hole of total depression, which got worse and worse the longer the terrible noise lasted. In the 2 months that followed, I went to my primary care physician who told me she couldn't help and sent me to an ENT who tested my hearing and ruled out any ear/nerve damage, and then told me he couldn't help either.

I asked him offhand if my TMJ might be affecting it and he said no. It is a very good thing I did not take his word for it. I had been noticing an increasing pain and sore/stiffness in my jaw and neck but wrote it off as just one of those things as you get older. I shouldn't have.

By then, I was doing heaps of research online and basically throwing everything I could at my situation to see if anything would help. I began a regiment of Lipo-Flavanoid out of desperation, and I can say in my case, I believe it has had an effect. However, in the comment section on Amazon, I found someone who suggested trying a chiropractor. Given the fact I'd already been to the ENT with no success, it seemed like just the next step I could take in my crusade to go down the long list of things that could possibly be causing my misery.

The first chiro I went to did not do much and didn't work well with my insurance, so I had to find someone else. I landed at North Jersey Pain and Rehab Center for a consult because I liked the idea of a more holistic approach, and this was their offering. When I told the chiropractor my symptoms she immediately asked if I had been in any car accidents. I had, but it had been months before my symptoms started, and I hadn't been feeling any physical effects--or so I thought. She told me that span of time didn't matter and that my particular symptoms--the jaw soreness, the neck pain and the tinnitus were all linked to whiplash injuries.

I have been treating with her since late September now and I am very happy to say, the tinnitus has come down so low in volume I've been able to get much of my life back. The doctor herself actually had a very similar experience to mine and spent a good deal of time and effort treating, and training how to treat, the injuries to the ligaments that are affecting my ear and my tinnitus. There's still more work to do, but my progress has been extremely encouraging. I've had silent days and near-silent days back to back already.

So I really want to encourage anyone who may have experienced a car accident or whiplash, or any other potential injury to your neck/jaw, including TMJ and just stiffness and stress, to seek out a chiropractor. If you're in New Jersey or New York or are willing to travel, I linked the practice I'm treating at above for anyone who may want a consult. I hope it helps.

I also want to share some of the (mostly holistic) things I've been taking - namely for the inflammation and my anxiety, because stress affects the muscles already in trouble and keeping it under control has been a key component to my recovery. (All of this, except the CBD oil, is available on Amazon.) I'm not a medical practitioner, so I'm only just sharing what I'm on myself. I would recommend researching these for yourself to see if they are right for you before taking them.

For the tinnitus itself:
-- Lipo Flavanoid (follow the directions exactly on how to take it)

For the muscles:
--Magnesium glycinate/malate 120mg
--Hemp gummies 20,000mg
--on rare occasion, I take a prescription of muscle relaxants (Methocarbamol) 300mg
--"Formula 303" which is comprised of Valarian Root, Passiflora and Magnesium
--Hempvana - topical cream I apply to the affected areas throughout the day

For anxiety:
--Ashwagandha (this is a godsend for anyone with anxiety)
--Rhodiola
--CBD oil
--L-theanine
--Melatonin

Again, this is my personal experience, but I'm hoping it can be some help for some of you. Stay strong and keep searching for a treatment that works for you. I didn't give up looking even when my doctors told me I would just have to "live with it," I wouldn't have gotten as far as I have if I'd listened to that.

 

That is great news! It makes my heart glad to read stories like yours. I've had T since last July but have not considered Chiropractic. Good for you for seeking out the right kind of Chiro. Did she mostly work with the ligaments in your neck and back of the head? And thank you for sharing your supplement list. I like to take passiflora (once in awhile) and magnesium glycinate every day to help relax. I haven't tried hemp gummies, cbd or formula 303 but would consider trying them to help me sleep better. Wishing you continued success!

 

Thanks for sharing your story! To be fair, I hear a bit too many negative stories about chiropractors to dare the treatment myself, even though my case is a bit comparable (whiplash related): I guess you have to be lucky with the one you end up getting. There are plenty who end up making it worse, at least that's what I make up out of many stories here.

Until I somehow get more assurance that the result won't end up negative, I'm waiting for other options.

 

Thank you Rockrose! And to answer your question - my problem is both my neck (my curvature was messed up in the accident--so it is constantly cracking and stiff and the base of my neck can get particularly uncomfortable) but more related directly to the T is my face/jaw muscles. This was not something I'd ever considered in my search for a cause, but somehow the damage I sustained made my ligaments stiffen up in my face & jaw so bad that it was actually changing the look of my face (one eye was actually smaller than it should have been because of the pulling, and my jaw was offset while my cheeks went almost gaunt) and if you felt my cheeks/jaw from inside my mouth, what felt like bone was really muscle. Those ligaments were pulling so much, that the muscles/bones of my ear were (are) affected and causing the T. As my chiro used her method to work on them, the muscles have been calming and she's actually adjusting my jaw back to "normal" bit by bit, so that too is not pulling as much and as a result, the T has calmed down. It's not 100% gone, but I'm making progress. And the supplements are definitely helping.

 

Hi Tybs - I get the apprehension based on other negative experiences with chiros - so I'll say, absolutely, a spike in the T right after a treatment is to be expected to a point because the affected muscles are "angry" and they have to calm down. Within 24 hours of an adjustment, the spike for me has usually dramatically lessened, as has the overall T, but it does go a bit haywire after my chiro does her thing.

I will also say it is imperative to find a chiro who understands the situation because they won't all get it or know how to treat it. The first one I saw was clueless and really just guessing about what might be related to my tinnitus. In that instance, I would be concerned that they may not positively affect the situation. But the one I'm with now that I linked in my original post, had a personal experience with a car accident herself and sought out training to help her own situation (including tinnitus) which is how she was able to relate to mine. She really understood what was going on with me, and my skepticism alleviated pretty quickly as I began to experience the positive results with her treatment.

As I mentioned above to Rockrose, my problem is both my neck (my curvature was messed up in the accident--so it is constantly cracking and stiff and the base of my neck can get particularly uncomfortable) but more related directly to the tinnitus is my face/jaw muscles. I'm not a doctor and I can't really throw out the medical/anatomical terms here to scientifically clarify, but what's basically going on is somehow the damage I sustained via the whiplash made my ligaments stiffen up in my face & jaw so bad that it was actually changing the look of my face (one eye was actually smaller than it should have been because of the pulling, and my jaw was offset and cracking alot while my cheeks went almost gaunt--you could see the strain, but I thought it was just aging or something, depressing for other reasons, haha.) From inside my mouth, what felt like bone in my cheeks/jaw was really a muscle that was so tight it was hard enough to mistake for bone. Those ligaments were pulling so much, that the muscles/bones of my ear were (are) affected and causing the tinnitus. As my chiro used her method to work on them--it's a lot of digging in and adjusting said muscle directly with her various techniques, it hurts, I won't lie--the muscles have been calming and she's actually adjusting my jaw back to "normal" bit by bit, so it is not pulling as much. As a result, the tinnitus has calmed down. It's not 100% gone, but I'm making progress. And the supplements are definitely helping.

Hope that helps shed some light on things.

 

E. Grace I appreciate you sharing the details. That must have been scary to look in the mirror and notice that your face and eyes were changing from the muscles tightening. It's gotten me thinking more about the complexity of musculature, especially in and around our face. I've not been in a whiplash accident but my T started the day after I had gotten a mini trampoline. I thought that jarring motion in bouncing was a contributing factor, along with mowing without ear protection and inflammation from summer allergies. I've had TMJ in the past and have worn a night guard on and off. I've been wearing it again since I got T. My jaw is muscular and I can easily feel the tough ligaments. From your description, the combination of taking supplements that are healing and or relaxing and the chiro treatments have been helping you. You've inspired me. It might be worth my while to look carefully for someone in my area that would do adjustments in and my mouth and upper neck. Or at least I could try self massage. I might try the Lipoflavonoids too, though many on this board think that they are ineffective. Right now I'm doing sound therapy which has actually been helping my hearing. It will take time to see if it helps my T. Thanks again! Please keep us informed.

 

Did you have any forward head posture?

 

I had quite a bit of successes with a prescription of Doxycycline. It's a common and safe antibiotic that's prescribed for a variety of conditions. I've written some other posts here that describe my symptoms and treatment in detail. It's very well tolerated and covered by insurance if you remember a tick bite. You might consider trying it.

tbhale20

 

How are you doing today? I noticed your post is from 2019.