Hello everyone, I'm also a fellow low humming/drone or whatever we call it these days sufferer and I've also been lurking over this forum for a while now. My symptoms are very similar to a lot of people with low frequency tinnitus as in I can somewhat modulate its intensity with jaw and neck movement, sometimes to a point where it stops. Clenching my jaw stops it for like 2 seconds or so. It's only in my right ear. Putting a finger in my ear or putting my ear against my arm drowns it. Things like fridge or computer fans do a great job at masking (or stopping, I'm not sure) as well as the famous starship sound which I use most nights to sleep. I also cannot hear it outside, I think the environmental noise of the city is just enough to mask it. Ventilation systems such as the ones in offices or any industrial building is a blessing to me because the constant humming of it seems to masks it so well. I've gotten really good at spotting that airflow sound whenever I get into a building. Unfortunately I don't have any at home.
I've had it close to two years now with a change in patterns 6 or so months ago, it used to usually lasts 1 or 2 days and then stop for a while but since that change I'm getting it almost every day with variable intensity. I just had a very quiet night for some reason and now it's back on full force. I've been able to kind of accepting it as a part of me and I sometimes surprise myself at being able to carrying on my activities even if I can hear it although I still feel better when I'm masking it which I think can change over time. It put me on the edge at the onset and for the greater part of the first year but for everyone out there I think it does get better, not necessarily in sound intensity but how we react to it.
Like many here I also feel like it's muscular in nature and I've been experiencing some residual inhibition from things like being outside for an extended amount of time or after some intense workout session, I often can get a few hours of quiet after and also like many it can disappear for weeks or months only to come back and stay with me for weeks. Alcohol seems to have some positive effect on it, especially on the following day of a heavy-ier drinking session. I've seen countless of doctors and none of the treatment I've tried helped. They all seem to help at the beginning but their effect subside over time or it's just a placebo effect? I'm currently seeing an ENT who's entertaining the idea of cutting the two muscles inside the ear (Tensor Tympani and stapedius) although we're not sure it would have any impact on this particular tinnitus. I do get actually TTTS sometimes so that would solve that one I think but it's really nothing compared to the drone.
Interesting thing, I sometimes get a bit of a clogged ear (due to allergies I think) and when that happens, it stops completely but I think it's because during that time I'm not able to hear the lowest frequencies as well. It does return stronger for a couple of days after my ear goes back to normal and takes a while to go back to baseline or disappear.
This forum helped me a great deal at finding methods to cope and live on and I wanted to share my experience a bit, especially to all new people going through this live-changing event. With the amount of information here I'm hopeful we'll get a better understanding of this condition and perhaps solve it? I'm located in QC, Canada so if anyone around here has a similar condition I'd love to chat about it.
I've had it close to two years now with a change in patterns 6 or so months ago, it used to usually lasts 1 or 2 days and then stop for a while but since that change I'm getting it almost every day with variable intensity. I just had a very quiet night for some reason and now it's back on full force. I've been able to kind of accepting it as a part of me and I sometimes surprise myself at being able to carrying on my activities even if I can hear it although I still feel better when I'm masking it which I think can change over time. It put me on the edge at the onset and for the greater part of the first year but for everyone out there I think it does get better, not necessarily in sound intensity but how we react to it.
Like many here I also feel like it's muscular in nature and I've been experiencing some residual inhibition from things like being outside for an extended amount of time or after some intense workout session, I often can get a few hours of quiet after and also like many it can disappear for weeks or months only to come back and stay with me for weeks. Alcohol seems to have some positive effect on it, especially on the following day of a heavy-ier drinking session. I've seen countless of doctors and none of the treatment I've tried helped. They all seem to help at the beginning but their effect subside over time or it's just a placebo effect? I'm currently seeing an ENT who's entertaining the idea of cutting the two muscles inside the ear (Tensor Tympani and stapedius) although we're not sure it would have any impact on this particular tinnitus. I do get actually TTTS sometimes so that would solve that one I think but it's really nothing compared to the drone.
Interesting thing, I sometimes get a bit of a clogged ear (due to allergies I think) and when that happens, it stops completely but I think it's because during that time I'm not able to hear the lowest frequencies as well. It does return stronger for a couple of days after my ear goes back to normal and takes a while to go back to baseline or disappear.
This forum helped me a great deal at finding methods to cope and live on and I wanted to share my experience a bit, especially to all new people going through this live-changing event. With the amount of information here I'm hopeful we'll get a better understanding of this condition and perhaps solve it? I'm located in QC, Canada so if anyone around here has a similar condition I'd love to chat about it.
