Hello,
I am a single woman in my mid-50s with very little history of noise exposure. Life was great, but things changed last August 6. I took a lesson at an indoor firing range while wearing earmuff hearing protection, but I did not know I should double up with earplugs. During the lesson, someone about five aisles to my right fired a pistol that cracked loudly, about 15 times. I was wincing, and even the instructor commented, saying, "Yeah, it's killing me too."
When I finished and got to my car, I felt a "force field" outside my right ear blocking sounds. I could still hear somewhat out of the ear, and this sensation began to fade the next day. (I later realized this was likely temporary threshold shift.)
The real trouble started two days after the trauma. I began hearing a faint, low buzz inside my right ear, like a buzzing fluorescent light. The next day, both ears felt like they were filled with water, though the right ear was worse. Normal sounds did not hurt, but louder noises, like trucks, did. (I later understood this was mild hyperacusis at around 85 dB or more.) Initially, I thought it was related to my sinuses.
The tinnitus buzz in my right ear persisted. It seems to be low in volume because white noise or the sound of my refrigerator at 45 dB masks it. However, mild noise exposure, especially in the car, triggered a 500 Hz flute-like tone on top of it (reactive tinnitus), which would fade after sitting quietly for about an hour. The aural fullness was worse. Both ears felt like they would not "pop," and this sensation got worse when I was driving. Speech sounded muddled on my right side, and I had to turn my head to my good ear to hear clearly. Strangely, the fullness would ease while I was asleep, and sounds would be clearer when I woke up, only to fill up again as I moved around.
I could not see an ENT until 30 days later. Two weeks of prednisone followed. An audiogram showed a 40 dB loss at 500, 750, and 1000 Hz in my right ear, with no more than a 10 dB loss at other frequencies. My left ear was completely normal. By then, the hyperacusis had improved, though I was still a little sensitive. I experienced no vertigo or dizziness. An MRI with contrast came back completely normal. The audiologist was unsure if a hearing aid would help.
Using YouTube pure-tone videos, I noticed that I sometimes experience diplacusis at 750 and 1000 Hz, though not consistently. A second ENT confirmed acoustic trauma, even at low frequencies, and told me the symptoms would "fade." I remain skeptical of that reassurance.
After reading more about this, I started wearing a foam earplug about a month ago and downloaded a decibel meter app (NIOSH). Going about my day, I do not think I have been exposed to anything louder than 85 dB unprotected since the incident, so I hope I have not caused further damage.
Now, four months in, it feels like four years. (You all know what I mean.) A couple of weeks ago, I thought I was improving. Painful hyperacusis resolved within a month, with only some lingering sensitivity, especially in crowded spaces. Aural fullness became mild and intermittent, and driving no longer triggers it. The tinnitus buzz is tolerable, and I often only notice it in quiet rooms. Noise or vibration, or even speaking, still triggers the 500 Hz flute tone, but it has occasionally not triggered or faded more quickly. I started sleeping better and thought I was on track for gradual healing or habituation within 12 to 18 months.
However, in the past few days, I have developed a new tone. It is a high-pitched ~3500 Hz sound, coming from slightly behind and to the right. This seems to be the "traditional" tinnitus tone. Strangely, I believe I have heard this tone in the past, even before the trauma, but only for a few minutes at a time. Now it is there most of the time, at about a 4 out of 10 in volume, but it gets louder when I think about it. It is also keeping me awake.
Could this new 3500 Hz tone be a spike? Is it delayed onset tinnitus from the acoustic trauma? Could it be related to a stiff neck? I did vacuum the day before this started, while wearing earplugs. The vacuum is 90 dB unprotected.
Thank you for reading this far. The past four months have been hell. My mental state is improving, but I am in a constant state of low-level despair. I was feeling hopeful as things seemed to be improving, even the hearing loss, but now I do not know if I can handle a new high-pitched tone on top of everything else.
I am a single woman in my mid-50s with very little history of noise exposure. Life was great, but things changed last August 6. I took a lesson at an indoor firing range while wearing earmuff hearing protection, but I did not know I should double up with earplugs. During the lesson, someone about five aisles to my right fired a pistol that cracked loudly, about 15 times. I was wincing, and even the instructor commented, saying, "Yeah, it's killing me too."
When I finished and got to my car, I felt a "force field" outside my right ear blocking sounds. I could still hear somewhat out of the ear, and this sensation began to fade the next day. (I later realized this was likely temporary threshold shift.)
The real trouble started two days after the trauma. I began hearing a faint, low buzz inside my right ear, like a buzzing fluorescent light. The next day, both ears felt like they were filled with water, though the right ear was worse. Normal sounds did not hurt, but louder noises, like trucks, did. (I later understood this was mild hyperacusis at around 85 dB or more.) Initially, I thought it was related to my sinuses.
The tinnitus buzz in my right ear persisted. It seems to be low in volume because white noise or the sound of my refrigerator at 45 dB masks it. However, mild noise exposure, especially in the car, triggered a 500 Hz flute-like tone on top of it (reactive tinnitus), which would fade after sitting quietly for about an hour. The aural fullness was worse. Both ears felt like they would not "pop," and this sensation got worse when I was driving. Speech sounded muddled on my right side, and I had to turn my head to my good ear to hear clearly. Strangely, the fullness would ease while I was asleep, and sounds would be clearer when I woke up, only to fill up again as I moved around.
I could not see an ENT until 30 days later. Two weeks of prednisone followed. An audiogram showed a 40 dB loss at 500, 750, and 1000 Hz in my right ear, with no more than a 10 dB loss at other frequencies. My left ear was completely normal. By then, the hyperacusis had improved, though I was still a little sensitive. I experienced no vertigo or dizziness. An MRI with contrast came back completely normal. The audiologist was unsure if a hearing aid would help.
Using YouTube pure-tone videos, I noticed that I sometimes experience diplacusis at 750 and 1000 Hz, though not consistently. A second ENT confirmed acoustic trauma, even at low frequencies, and told me the symptoms would "fade." I remain skeptical of that reassurance.
After reading more about this, I started wearing a foam earplug about a month ago and downloaded a decibel meter app (NIOSH). Going about my day, I do not think I have been exposed to anything louder than 85 dB unprotected since the incident, so I hope I have not caused further damage.
Now, four months in, it feels like four years. (You all know what I mean.) A couple of weeks ago, I thought I was improving. Painful hyperacusis resolved within a month, with only some lingering sensitivity, especially in crowded spaces. Aural fullness became mild and intermittent, and driving no longer triggers it. The tinnitus buzz is tolerable, and I often only notice it in quiet rooms. Noise or vibration, or even speaking, still triggers the 500 Hz flute tone, but it has occasionally not triggered or faded more quickly. I started sleeping better and thought I was on track for gradual healing or habituation within 12 to 18 months.
However, in the past few days, I have developed a new tone. It is a high-pitched ~3500 Hz sound, coming from slightly behind and to the right. This seems to be the "traditional" tinnitus tone. Strangely, I believe I have heard this tone in the past, even before the trauma, but only for a few minutes at a time. Now it is there most of the time, at about a 4 out of 10 in volume, but it gets louder when I think about it. It is also keeping me awake.
Could this new 3500 Hz tone be a spike? Is it delayed onset tinnitus from the acoustic trauma? Could it be related to a stiff neck? I did vacuum the day before this started, while wearing earplugs. The vacuum is 90 dB unprotected.
Thank you for reading this far. The past four months have been hell. My mental state is improving, but I am in a constant state of low-level despair. I was feeling hopeful as things seemed to be improving, even the hearing loss, but now I do not know if I can handle a new high-pitched tone on top of everything else.
Member
