Got a Cold — Tinnitus Worse Now

[Brandon1994]

Hello everyone. I have some questions for you. I had this cold for around 4 days. Now I'm feeling a little better but I noticed once I got my cold that my tinnitus is louder and it feels as if I can't hear 100% out of the same ear.

I'm praying this isn't permanent and that it will go back to normal once my cold clears up.

Has anyone been in the same boat as me with having a cold and it making tinnitus worse?

Also did it return back to normal once the cold was fully cleared up?

I would say my tinnitus before the cold was 3/10 on the annoying scale and now it is a 7/10.

 

[Contrast]

The eustachian tube is congested during a cold, however deafness via congestion isn't common during a cold so maybe you should see a doctor.

 

[Brandon1994]

I'm thinking the reason why I can't hear out of that ear 100% is because the tinnitus noise is really loud. I was fine until this stupid cold, now it made my tinnitus really loud. Also I forgot to mention that anytime I swallow my other ear makes a popping sound.

 

[glynis]

@Brandon1994,

Try steam inhalation or Sudafed to clear your tubes.
When your cold gets better it can take a bit longer for your ears to feel better.

love glynis

 

[Deamon22]

My tinnitus was like a 0.5 but after I caught a cold it ramped up a lot. Took some NAC and let the cold pass. Now it is not yet back like before but I am on a good way. Took me a few weeks but I noticed for a while problems with my tube.

 

[Brandon1994]

I've been having a hard time with this cold. My hearing is kind of muffled in my ear with tinnitus and the ringing is louder. It all started last Friday night when I noticed my tinnitus had spiked a little and the next day I was sick. I'm still stuffed up and not feeling too great. I had my wife try to look in my ear to see if she could see anything inside blocking my ear canal and she said she could see something blocking the ear canal almost all the way in the back.

What I'm asking is, is it normal for tinnitus to spike with a cold and take a long time to go back to its baseline? It's been around 8 days now.

Or do you believe it's the ear blockage? Is it safe to use ear drops to remove the ear wax? Thanks!

 

[Hissy missy]

Hi Brandon
In 2016 I got a really congested cold. My left ear wasn't quite right for up to 5 weeks after the cold finished. My doc said that ears can take the longest to heal after a cold. Given my tinnitus and heightened anxiety, it was a miserable 5 or so weeks for me.