Cicadas Cured My Tinnitus — Temporarily

[Ento]

Hi all fellow TT members.

I went to southern Italy for two weeks, and boy was that a relief . I got some time off work, and there are a lot more noises outdoors in Italy than up here in northern Europe. The sounds of the sea and the cicadas were very soothing, to the point that I almost could forget about my tinnitus. I acclimatized quickly to the new environment, enjoying the cicadas both day and night.

I installed a spectrum analyzer app on my phone, and could see that there were three different types of cicadas in that area. The most prevalent (and loudest) ones produced their calls(?) in the 3-4khz range, the other in the 9-10khz range, and the last ones (which I didn't hear but could see on the spectrum analyzer) in the 17-19khz range. My hearing tapers off sharply from 9.6khz, and my (main) T is in the 10khz range.

The 3-4kHz cicadas were very loud; when walking through some wooded areas the abiement sound level was up to 85db! However the medium range ones were around 60dB at close ranges according to my app, and masked my tinnitus perfectly to the point that I couldn't hear it, even later when I was indoors in relatively quiet suroundings for the rest of the day. Also during the night when I woke up I couldn't hear the tinnitus even though I searched for it, even when the cicadas outside were much quieter or silent. The (temporary, I know now) cure seemed to last until the next day. I was hoping the cicadas may have somehow cured or lessened the level of my T, and during the end of the two week stay I was feeling very optimistic.

Alas upon return to work and everyday life it all came back again within a day or two. I had a few days temporary relief but now it is as loud as it was before. I have recordings of the cicadas but somehow the soundtrack does not produce the same effect. Could be that the recording quality is not good enough.

Unfortunately I cannot move to Italy, and it could be a long time before I hear cicadas again, but it was an interesting experience. I wonder if the cicadas, especially those 9-10khz ones, could have exersized or somehow helped my hearing, particulary in the 9.6-10khz area were I seem to have a problem. My next thought is how could I reproduce this effect, since the recordings do not seem to help.

Any thoughts on this would be helpful,
thanks,
Ento

 

[JasonP]

Hi all fellow TT members.

I went to southern Italy for two weeks, and boy was that a relief . I got some time off work, and there are a lot more noises outdoors in Italy than up here in northern Europe. The sounds of the sea and the cicadas were very soothing, to the point that I almost could forget about my tinnitus. I acclimatized quickly to the new environment, enjoying the cicadas both day and night.

I installed a spectrum analyzer app on my phone, and could see that there were three different types of cicadas in that area. The most prevalent (and loudest) ones produced their calls(?) in the 3-4khz range, the other in the 9-10khz range, and the last ones (which I didn't hear but could see on the spectrum analyzer) in the 17-19khz range. My hearing tapers off sharply from 9.6khz, and my (main) T is in the 10khz range.

The 3-4kHz cicadas were very loud; when walking through some wooded areas the abiement sound level was up to 85db! However the medium range ones were around 60dB at close ranges according to my app, and masked my tinnitus perfectly to the point that I couldn't hear it, even later when I was indoors in relatively quiet suroundings for the rest of the day. Also during the night when I woke up I couldn't hear the tinnitus even though I searched for it, even when the cicadas outside were much quieter or silent. The (temporary, I know now) cure seemed to last until the next day. I was hoping the cicadas may have somehow cured or lessened the level of my T, and during the end of the two week stay I was feeling very optimistic.

Alas upon return to work and everyday life it all came back again within a day or two. I had a few days temporary relief but now it is as loud as it was before. I have recordings of the cicadas but somehow the soundtrack does not produce the same effect. Could be that the recording quality is not good enough.

Unfortunately I cannot move to Italy, and it could be a long time before I hear cicadas again, but it was an interesting experience. I wonder if the cicadas, especially those 9-10khz ones, could have exersized or somehow helped my hearing, particulary in the 9.6-10khz area were I seem to have a problem. My next thought is how could I reproduce this effect, since the recordings do not seem to help.

Any thoughts on this would be helpful,
thanks,
Ento

This sounds like residual inhibition at work. Its possible that if you got an extended bandwidth hearing aid such as the Signia 7nx which goes to 12khz, it might help "get rid" of (when you have your hearing aids on) or lessen the amount you notice your tinnitus. You would need to get an extended audiogram (I got one up to 14khz) and then if you have hearing loss in the 10khz area, get it corrected with the hearing aid even if it is mild. In fact, try to get all mild hearing loss corrected even if they say you don't need it. Try a pair out for a couple of weeks and see how it goes. That's just my suggestion though.