Eustachian Tube Blocked Along with Insane Tinnitus in My Ear

[AnonymousPenguin]

Hi I just joined the forum.

I got a middle ear infection 6 weeks ago, treated with 3 antibiotics so far. After taking a second one (week 3), the pain in my ear went off, yet the fluid stayed in my ear due to blocked Eustachian tube. I was told by a doctor that it takes time, I shouldn't worry about it. After 5 weeks with fluid in my ear, I got a nasal spray from a doctor. The fluid went away, and my hearing returned. At the same time as the fluid went out through my Eustachian tube, I started having an insane tinnitus in my ear. I must add, the Eustachian tube is still blocked. Valsalva maneuver is not working. Doctors say the eardrum is retracted, and I have a negative pressure in my ear. It's been a week now with tinnitus. I have not slept a single night in a week, I cry at night and I go crazy. I also burst into tears during the day as I can also hear it. I don't sleep, I don't eat, I don't live anymore...

I'm visiting another doctor tomorrow. I wanted to ask if the cause of tinnitus could be blocked Eustachian tube? When I think like this, it leaves me a little hope. What are the possibilities of unblocking the tube?

Lastly, I will add that I tried antihistamines, antibiotics, steroid nasal spray, salt water and all sorts of maneuvers (for instance Valsalva). Nothing works. I also have a burning sensation when applying nasal spray. It feels like small air bubbles are popping at the end of the tube. When using antibiotic ear drops, I feel very similar burning. When ear drops are in my ear, tinnitus is still present.

 

[Mister Muso]

Hi

Welcome to the forum!

I was told I had retracted eardrums too but I was never diagnosed with blocked eustachian tubes.

A steroidal nasal spray helped things settle down.

I would be very careful with things like the Valsava manoeuvre as I've heard of cases where it can make tinnitus worse.

Hope you can keep getting support from your doctor in these unusual times.

 

[Ed209]

In my case, the only thing that worked was the passing of time (it can take months). I tried everything as well. I know it's easier said than done, but try not to stress about it.

 

[BuzzyBee]

How did your appointment go?

 

[AnonymousPenguin]

Hi again, thanks for your replies!

I got an appointment with ENT today. Summed up: No new infection in my ear. Everything looked OK. Got only told I had serous otitis media. Eardrum is retracted and Eustachian tube blocked. Nasal endoscopy revealed that the Eustachian tube is open.

I got told to continue with Mometasone nasal spray and got prescribed 3 days cure of Prednisolone (even though the doctor wasn't really willing to give me Predniosolone in these Corona times...). I am not sure if I will jump on Prednisolone at first, but definitely I will continue with Mometasone nasal spray.

I told my doctor about being very discouraged, even having suicidal thoughts during the nights when the tinnitus symphony plays the concert in my head. I guess she asessed me as being safe at this point. She mentioned Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. But it is more suitable for chronic cases, as I was told.

And just like here, I was told to be patient.

I am super convinced the tinnitus symphony happens due to EDT and it will go away once the tube gets unblocked. I am really hoping and praying for this to happen. My doctor wasn't willing to make any point on possible reasons.

I do have some sensations with the nasal spray - yesterday I felt solid burning when the nasal spray reached the end of the Eustachian tube. It lasted around 2h. Asked the doc about it, but she was unsure. I did also have some weird pop feeling in my eardrum once. Never felt anything like this. In a moment, the hearing felt slightly better... The tinnitus sound was however still there. I am not really sure if those are real impressions, or maybe I am just trying to convince myself I see changes.

Guess all I need is time. Oh God... I never thought life can change so much in just a week! I want my life back so badly!
Thanks again for caring!

 

[PugDog1]

I had the exact same in January 2019! It never fully went away but it turned out I have major sinus issues that cause my blocked Eustachian tube so there's still hope!

As for the sound, you will eventually tune it out or at least some of the time Things do get better. Try chewing gum, get a humidifier and inhale the steam, if you can (I can't) use the NeilMed Sinus Rinse to clear any hunk away and drink loads.

I was also on mometasone too but found it didn't do much for me! I find Dymista better but I don't use it regularly as it's sinuses it doesn't help fully! Good Luck & keep pushing your ENT if things don't improve xxx

 

[BuzzyBee]

Thanks for the update, and I do hope you feel better!

If the steroid you are taking helps the inflammation and the tinnitus decreases, there's a slight chance you'd benefit from a daily supplement of curcumin or turmeric. It didn't work for me personally, but it has helped a lot of people here.

Don't kill yourself over the late night tinnitus. It's awful, but it's just your brain trying to help you out in a really unhelpful way! Sometimes just listening to it really hard or pretending you enjoy it and trying to mediate to it helps. If it's middle ear inflammation, it's probably much worse at night than it is during the day because you are lying down. Just keep telling yourself it won't be as bad when you wake up. Try not to cry because that just clogs up the sinuses and makes it worse.

 

[Tango]

Hi
I feel for you. I too am going through issues with my ears with frequent SBUTT, ear pain and sensitivity for the pass 6 weeks. Seen an ENT and was advised it was ETD and expect it to settle within in 2-3 months. Not very comforting news but the ENT did not seem too concern. I believed I now have tinnitus which is more prominent at night whilst lying in bed. but once I wake up and get out of bed it seems to be better. Hope things improve for you, give it time.

 

[Jenelle]

I too have been going through this and told generally the same. Got a nasty ear infection in January after a weird bad flu and it caused ETD and tinnitus. I also did Prednisone, 3 rounds. It helped lessen the inflammation, but didn't solve the tinnitus. The ENT I saw also didn't seem concerned and prescribed the Otovent and patience. The Otovent did no good from what I could tell.

The first couple of months were awful, miserable. I had similar thoughts as you, crying, no sleep. Once the pain and pressure in my ears lessened, which took time but was helped with the Prednisone, I got better at dealing with the tinnitus. My GP also advised Azelastine and Flonase sprays 2 sprays each 2x per day, and Claritin. Sometimes the sprays are uncomfortable, but it subsides. I've read on here that Claritin can cause tinnitus, but I was also told it should help with the lasting inflammation affecting the Eustachian tubes, which is what is believed to be causing my tinnitus, so that it should help in my case. I think things are improving, albeit very slowly. The stress of these times and the spring weather changes certainly don't help!

Something that helped was finding a tinnitus support group. Finding others who've had tinnitus for several years and who still have regular, enjoyable lives helped with my perspective and feeling of isolation. It may go away, it may not. The general advice from the group was learn to be your own cure, which can be done by coming up with a "tool kit" of things that help you manage your tinnitus/your response to your tinnitus when you're having a rough time with it.

Some things that have helped me manage:

1. After trial and error I realized that my tinnitus can be masked by other high pitched ringing/buzzing sounds. For sleep, I downloaded the "Rain Rain" app and use the "Mississippi at Night" sound as background noise. It blends with my tinnitus so that I don't hear it as much and also gives the added illusion of sleeping outside in nature under the stars.

2. Watching TV became unenjoyable because it exacerbated my tinnitus or I could hear the it over the TV. Having a white noise machine on in the background helped a lot. This is the one I use: https://www.target.com/p/yogasleep-dohm-for-baby-sound-machine/-/A-51030299 It took me a while to find the right sound, but once I did, what a difference!

3. As PugDog1 recommended, a humidifier. I use one when I sleep. My GP also told me to sleep with my head slightly elevated.

4. Alcohol and salt seem to make my tinnitus worse, so I try to avoid it. More greens and lots of hydration.

5. When I'm having a hard day with it, I count to myself the healthy things that my body does or the things that I can still do even though my ears are uncomfortable and I have tinnitus. I realized I was taking a lot of things for granted, so listing them helps shift my focus. I also like to think of other people who have tinnitus and say to myself "well, if so and so has tinnitus and can do that, then I can figure out how to have tinnitus and do this." It sounds hokey, but it helps me.

I've been reading on here about supplements to take and may talk to my GP about starting B12, or a B complex, and Magnesium Glycinate.

Anyway, it gets better. I was at one point stuck and didn't think it would. But it does, and in the meantime you'll get stronger and figure out what works for you.

Keep us updated on your progress!

 

[AnonymousPenguin]

Thank you for the replies!
I am still fighting for my recovery. Counting from the very beginning (that is 2 months now), I visited doctors 10 times! For now I have decided to switch off the forum, as reading through the posts gave me a lot of anxiety. But I will surely make a summary in a couple of weeks of all the treatment that I got and things that worked in my case!

 

[AnonymousPenguin]

It's nearly 3 months after an ear infection started, 6 weeks with tinnitus in my right ear. It's time for a follow up post.


Good news: ETD got resolved! Valsalva manouver works (not at first try, but it does!)

• Medicines that I belive had the greatest impact: Prednisolone 40 mg for 5 days. And then second round of Medrol for 20 days (8 mg in 10 days followed by 10 days with 4 mg). It's a great feeling that now it works!
• All signs of ear infection are now gone.

Sad news: tinnitus did not go away + I got mild hyperacusis in my right ear. For the past two weeks the tinnitus spread to my left ear.

• I am mentally wrecked. I haven't done much for the past 6 weeks. I still do not sleep well and I still find it impossible to concentrate on anything.

• Tinnitus in my right ear has changed a lot since the onset. I stopped counting the sounds I experienced – flying mosquito, stopping train, screaming water kettle, super loud deflated tire - you name it! It is heartbreaking not to be able to control anything! Tinnitus lives its own life and takes away mine. I believe though the sound is now slightly less intrusive, or maybe I have first signs of habituation?
• I have a weird fullness feeling in my ear + mild hyperacusis. I kind of feel like a sound radar now! I find it hard to cope with a sound of passing cars when my window is opened! I have some high pitch sound that gets louder when a car is passing by! Horrible!
• Worse of it all, tinnitus spread to my left ear with no particular reason two weeks ago! It is a constant high pitch sound, not changing at all. Yesterday after an ENT visit I got a serious spike. From 4/10 the sound went over to 7/10. I can hear it now over music playing in my room! It drives me insane! I hope it will settle down... I have no clue what could have caused yesteraday's spike. The doctor did just take a look into my ear with otoscope. Any ideas? Is it common for tinnitus to spread to another ear after en ear infection?

The way now is to have all sorts of tinnitus hearing tests (don't know date yet… Things work bad here in Norway) + MRI scan after that. Are there any sound tests I should stay away from? I heard tympanometry and acoustic reflex are bad ideas.

I feel like my life is ruined. It's 6 weeks now of it all, and I am mentally wrecked!

 

[Emgee]

Sorry to hear you're going through a rough time. I, myself, am dealing with a bad bout of tinnitus in my right ear. Although I believe mine is noise-induced, I had a terrible infection in the same ear a few weeks back that I feel made it worse.

I've seen posts where the tests that you've mentioned made things worse for some. Similarly, earwax removal procedures also appear to have a negative impact on some tinnitus sufferers.

Does your T react to sound - as in, does it get louder when you hear sounds? This is what I'm dealing with at the moment.

Anyway, I hope you see improvement in time. All the best!

 

[AnonymousPenguin]

Yes, my tinnitus in right ear reacts to some sounds and gets louder
Hope things will get better for both of us!

 

[Emgee]

When it reacts, does it stay louder for a while after sound exposure or does it immediately go back to baseline?

 

[AnonymousPenguin]

It goes back to the same baseline nearly immidiately.
I'd say it sort of diminishes within 2-3 seconds.

 

[Emgee]

It goes back to the same baseline nearly immidiately.
I'd say it sort of diminishes within 2-3 seconds.

Same thing for me. Mine reacts to everything: hum of the fridge, dishwasher, white noise, microwave, fans, TV, even footsteps can do it. When I'm in a quiet room, my tinnitus is not that bothersome.

 

[Peanut Farm]

I had a really nasty infection in my left ear last year from a perforated eardrum which led to mastoiditis, then bells palsy for a few months.
After recovering from that, my right ear become blocked for no reason. so for the last 6 months, my right ear feels full and I cant pop it at all.
I recently bought a Eustachi & I've been using it the last few days. It's weird because my right ear becomes even fuller once I use it? I'll continue to use it for a few weeks to see if I can unblock the eustachian tube and let you all know. And by the way, I have terrible tinnitis.

 

[Eloy Resendez Jr]

So I know I'm late in this conversation and may not get a reply but figure I'd give it a shot.
Fortunately my symptoms are not as severe as others here but it can still get annoying. I feel a slight clog and my right ear gets the feeling of air coming in and out only when I cough or bend down. Dr gave me steroids and worked well but didn't get me to 100%. At this time my ENT didn't want to give me more steroids because of the side effects. It's only in my right ear. He did a scan of my neck and that came out good. I've had tinnitus since 2015 in my left ear for minor hearing loss, then had a spike back in December. Just as I started getting use to my T, I get this ETD in my right ear. I'm about 6 weeks in. I felt a slight improvement every week except this week.

Any thoughts on how I can get to 100%?

 

[Jan124]

It takes a long time to heal. Nobody will understand you so don't even try to explain. Inflammation. Mine started getting better by a year. Tinnitus got better except night time. First it was reactive now it's not. I believe it's healing slowly. ETD hurts like hell but it will get better.