Hello Everyone!

GOBarbieri

Member
Author
May 31, 2019
4
Tinnitus Since
05/2019
Cause of Tinnitus
Cold/Flu
Hey everyone! Nice to meet you all!

I wanted to know if anyone was experiencing something similar to me to get some relief. I got a cold early this month and went to emergency services after I was having very strong symptoms. The doctor sent me some antibiotics and suggested that I should get a flu shot before returning home. That same night, I felt like my left ear was completely clogged an hour after the shot. I assumed this was normal, and went back to sleep. My ear was still clogged for about 3-4 days following my emergency until the clogged feeling slowly faded.

However, once it was completely gone, I could still feel my left ear was not hearing correctly. I started feeling some numbness in the inner walls of my ear randomly, and have been experiencing tinnitus for almost 2 weeks now (although it's very mild and can only feel it if I concentrate really hard on it or when I'm going to sleep). I had an ENT appointment and told me my hearing was perfectly fine, and that I surprisingly had better hearing in my left ear. He said my Cochlea is probably irritated after the cold, and that I should give it some time to recover; he also sent me some pills as well. Clogged ears had never been a symptom in any of the colds I've had in the past (I'm 21). My two concerns were the following:

1. Is it normal to experience this numbness randomly in my ear? It feels as if the skin inside suddenly went tight (as if they were little cramps in the ear walls, not exactly numbness as I do feel pressure when I touch it)

2. Is tinnitus supposed to last after all of my other cold symptoms are gone?

Similar experiences/advice would be really much appreciated!
 
May I ask the question if you have a history of excessive loud noise exposure?

Hope your tinnitus goes away.
 
Hey Contrast, thanks for your response!

Not really, I study abroad (originally from Peru) so I've been focusing largely on my studies and avoiding clubbing, etc. I recently had an MRI for a back problem and I definitely did feel like my ears were slightly sensitive, but I did use ear protection and kept feeling these symptoms afterwards. I want to attribute these symptoms to my cold given they all started after that flu shot (or vaccine). I've read Magnesium helps, and it could even work as a way to relax those "ear cramps", so I will start to take it immediately. Not sure if Prednisone is necessary in this case though? Given it's already been about 13 days since all of this flared out.
 
In 2018, scientists found noise levels of modern MRI machines are extremely high. MRI machines have average noise like a jackhammer or chainsaw loudness (110 to 115 dB), and peak or max noise as loud as gunfire (130 dB). International noise exposure limits recommend no more than 15 minutes of unprotected exposure to 100 dB. MRI tests usually take much longer than that. The stronger the magnetic field from the MRI machine, the higher the noise, and the higher the risk of hearing loss. This is a serious concern, especially for people who need more than one MRI over time.
 

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