Here Is How I Solved My Tinnitus — New Protocols and Supplements To Try

[engineerLA]

Hi everyone,

I have figured out some treatment protocols that really help with at least some forms of tinnitus.

I think that many people have tinnitus that is actually caused by eustachian tube inflammation. Not all tinnitus comes from this problem -- some tinnitus is due to actual injury to the eardrum or hearing loss or other neurological causes -- but my hypothesis is that a lot more tinnitus cases are due to inflammation than anyone realizes. Even ENTs don't realize this in many cases (many of them are really surgeons who take a mechanical view of the ear and don't really pay that much attention to inflammation, unless it is very acute and obvious).

Simply put: When the eustachian tube becomes chronically inflamed it can lead to negative pressure in the middle ear and this results in tinnitus. The inflammation causes the tube to swell and stick shut, preventing normal ventilation, and this forms a sort of vacuum that pulls on the eardrum causing irritation that results in tinnitus. Inflammation can also lead to chronic low-grade infections in the middle ear that in turn results in negative pressure and irritation of the eardrum in the same way.

I have struggled with this problem for many months and have found several solutions that really make a difference. And the good news is that they are easy.

First of all, you really need to get serious about reducing inflammation in your entire body, and also your ears. Try the following:

1. Eliminate common allergens from your diet as much as you can. Especially dairy.

2. Take nasal steroids every day. A really good newer one is Dymista: http://www.dymista.com/

NOTE -- There is a proper way to take nasal steroids in order to direct them at the opening of your eustachian tubes -- You can learn about this technique here: http://www.fauquierent.net/etd2.htm

3. Use a device like the ear popper to help clear your eustachian tubes -- it really helps! Use it many times a day, and over time it will help to reduce negative pressure and re-open your eustachian tube. It's not that cheap, but worth it! http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00449CW36/

4. Take high quality, super strong turmeric liquid. It's also not cheap but worth it and has a great effect on inflammation and has helped my tinnitus. There are many places to buy it -- here is one:
https://www.amazon.com/Health-Rangers-Organic-Turmeric-extract/dp/B00GSTOTEU/

5. Reduce systemic infections to further reduce inflammation; one supplement that really helps your immune system fight infections over time is Monolaurin (also called Lauricydin). Here is where I get it: https://www.amazon.com/Lauricidin®-Original-Monolaurin-Supplement-227gram/dp/B004I8SMOQ/

6. Irrigate your sinuses with a Sinus Pulse machine. It's a neti pot on steriods basically.

Here is a source for the best one: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001CWT4JI/

And another one: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005UO6NRA/

7. If you have a neti pot or a sinus irrigator (see point 6), you can also try this more advanced technique:

Angle your head so that the warm salt water comes out your mouth (this way it is going in your nostril, and out your mouth, passing right over the opening of the eustachian tube).

Immediately after the water starts to comes out your mouth, while the opening to your eustachian tube is still soaked with water, "pop" your ear by holding your nose and blowing.

When done right you will hear a squeak sound as some of the water goes into your eustachian tube when you pop your ear.

Repeat this a few times and more water will go in. Then let it drain out. You can move your head around, touch your toes a few times, to help the drainage.

This will help to clean out your eustachian tube. It has an immediate effect on tinnitus that is caused by eustachian tube issues.

Note that if you get water in there, it may temporarily cause a sensation of ear fullness and reduced hearing, but it will drain out and you will notice improvement over several days.

Also don't overdo this - too much water in there could cause an ear infection. Start slow and don't try to pop your ears too hard or force too much water in there -- you could damage your eardrum. This is an advanced technique and should only be done if you are also doing all of the other steps to reduce inflammation.

8. You can use a similar technique to point (7) to "milk" nasal steroids into your eustachian tube. Simply pop your ear after the you properly use the nasal steroid (see point 2) and this will milk the steroid into your eustachian tube where it can help to reduce inflammation.

9. Also try this tinnitus supplement which, if taken regularly, really helps reduce inflammation as well: https://www.amazon.com/Clear-Tinnitus-Products-60-Caps/dp/B0014AX72I/

10. Also take allergy medication every day (at night ideally) such as Allegra. This will also reduce sinus and eustachian inflammation.

11. In severe cases of tinnitus caused by negative pressure, if none of the above relieves it, your ENT can actually do a very simple surgical procedure to make a tiny hole in your eardrum, with or without a temporary tube inserted. This can allow air to flow in from the outside and relieve the vacuum, allowing the eustachian tube to open again. The eardrum heals on its own in a few weeks and there is minimal (temporary) hearing loss. This is not often suggested by ENT's but they can easily do it, and if none of the above work, you might want to bring it up with your doctor. It has helped some people immediately.


Also note, some things that I have tested that definitely don't help and/or can even make tinnitus worse:

1. Caffeine makes tinnitus worse in many cases, especially pulsatile tinnitus.
2. Cannabis has no effect on tinnitus or may even make it temporarily more annoying.
3. Rife machines do not have any effect on tinnitus. Don't waste your time. I've tested them.
4. Colloidal silver has no effect on tinnitus (and please don't put it your eyes as some people suggested in a forum thread here, unless you want the whites of your eyes to turn grey permanently!).

 

[engineerLA]

One more thing to add... the advanced technique mentioned in step (7) gives me a 100% reduction in tinnitus every time I do it. The effect lasts for hours to days and seems to be cumulative as well. I don't know why it works so well, but this seems to be a promising area for further analysis and research. Perhaps it is the moisture itself, unsealing tissues that are stuck together and are causing negative pressure? Perhaps the salt in the salt water? Perhaps it is simply irrigating and opening up the eustachian tube? I don't know why it works so well, but it really does. This seems to be a clue to solving this form of tinnitus -- which is related to eustachian tube dysfunction primarily it seems.

Also:

I have also found a great Chinese allergy pill that reduces the root causes of allergies, and I use this every day:
http://www.usabotanic.com/en/medicine01.htm -- it's from a small reseller or maybe they make it -- it works VERY well for severe allergies. I take it along with Allegra. It makes a big difference for pollen and pet allergies, and also for mold and dust -- by reducing your allergic response.

 

[bodhisattva]

I'm going to give the turmeric a try today.. anything in particular to look for or look out for? I'm going to whole foods or vitamin shoppe

 

[engineerLA]

Turmeric on its own will only help with inflammation. Results will take time but it can help.

The most powerful technique is (7) - results are immediate.

 

[bodhisattva]

Just did # 7 with a neil med sinus rinse, got the pop and everything but it's still ringing, i think mine may be more stress than Eustachian tube related . Who knows.

Thanks for the info however.

 

[engineerLA]

Bodhisattva, did you hear the water squeak in? Do it a few times, and after the water goes in, then reverse the pressure by holding your nose and pulling the air and water back out of your eustachian tube. See if doing it a few times helps.

Also you may need to reduce the inflammation a bit more before this helps - use Dymista and the other supps I suggested.

 

[Marlene]

Engineer , Now your post truly makes sense,had good read, took down your notes ,looks like my weekend hasent been a total waste after all,I've had allergies with T ,fullness in both ears ,plus it's affected my balance.
I have been hospital diagnosed with Rhinitis ,so your post has helped a lot .
Thank you

 

[engineerLA]

Marlene - yep that's inflammation which is causing your problem most likely. Resolve the inflammation and the T will get better. Note - for bad allergies I really do like the combination of supplements - and especially add in the Chinese medicine (Herba Plus) -- it helps.

 

[Marlene]

It's a definate yes from me ,clearly laid out ,husband said he would print off on the house comp for me .
You made me aware that ENT could help me with allergies and blocked ears ,I will go the route you laid out ,see how that works out ,first thing Monday I will get all you mentioned ,
Karen on TT gave me first glance into Eustachian tubes ,now I can see my dr armed with the ENT side to tubes ,if I can straighten myself upright without Swaying / Rocking ,these past 3 yrs have been a nightmare for it .makes me housebound most of my days since onset ,Drs haven't helped,but now I'm bit more optimistic ,than I was on getting out of bed today ,knowing yet another day with T ,balance and rhinitis ,all 3 going at once. Miserable existence .
Best advice laid out since my Balance began .X

 

[engineerLA]

Marlene - your allergies are definitely contributing to this problem and I bet you have a lot of inflammation, but if you have had this for a long time it will take a while to resolve it - don't expect immediate results. But you CAN resolve it if you are methodical and aggressive about treating it with the protocols above. There are several other inner ear conditions that contribute to the balance issues -- you need to see a TOP RATED ENT at a major research hospital in a big city if you can, so that you get the best, most state-of-the-art advice. You shouldn't have to live for so many years like this.

You may have more going no than just inflammation - there are some well-known disorders of the middle and inner ear that can cause balance problems - so a good ENT will screen for that.

You should also have them do a hearing test and test for eustachian tube dysfunction (they test how well your eustachian tubes clear when they apply air pressure). Eustachian tube dysfunction is a strong indicator that inflammation is involved. Inflammation can come from allergies, or from chronic infection, or even an auto-immune condition caused by a prior infection that your body over-reacted to.

In addition you should be checked for Meniere's Disease http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/menieres-disease/basics/definition/con-20028251

Chronic sinus infections due to a deviated septum or swollen turbinates, or obstructed sinuses can also be a cause of overall inflammation in the ear, nose and throat -- but before you have surgery, try aggressively reducing inflammation for at least 3 or 4 months.

 

[engineerLA]

Also note, my ENT (who is a top ENT in Los Angeles at a major hospital) also suggested that for cases of chronic inflammation, where an infection has been ruled out, another route to try is to go to an allergist and get your allergies diagnosed and then do a course of allergy shots. He said, "Allergy shots are the most effective way to reduce severe chronic inflammation due to allergies and they have long-term benefit"

Also - for really severe cases, under guidance of an ENT, a short 10 day course of Prednisone plus an antibiotic may jumpstart the process of opening up the eustachian tubes. If you couple this with the above natural protocols and then continue them aggressively after the prednisone course, it will have the most effect. Note however that Prednisone has many side-effects and is not advisable if you have any kind of osteoporosis, among other things. I am male and don't have that issue so I had no side-effects other than a rather enjoyable "speed" effect for 10 days.

 

[engineerLA]

Bodhisattva -- the only Turmeric that I have found to really help is the exact product i suggested.

http://www.naturalhealthyconcepts.com/turmero-active-K75-8oz-p-apex-energetics.html

I don't know if Whole Foods or Vitamin Shoppe carry it. I get it online or from a naturopath reseller.

It's a liquid form that has other ingredients that maximize absorption. I am sure other products help but I think this one is most concentrated and has helped more than anything else I have tried.

Note: It should be refrigerated after you open it. Also it is super yellow (naturally) and stains anything it gets on so be careful.

 

[Marlene]

Engineer ,thank you for that info ,now got more I can ask my dr about ,it has got dragged out. Many dr visits over 9 yr period regarding allergies,facial pain,and headaches.I had the basic allergy test at the hospital ,fine only slight raises on 2 of them .
I had a neck tumor removed 2 yrs this coming March ,I was hoping as surgeon had cut behind ear ,to under my chin he maybe would have found block on Eustchian tube ,in that one ear ,alas no .
What you now have said this is ammo ,I can now put to my dr to get the surgeon to take a look at me again ,he did say to contact him if I had further problem ,thought to doing this few weeks ago. After Karen brought up about Eustachian tube .
I will take your advice ,do what you said ,it I fear can be long few years ahead like I've already had until now .,maybe my T will improve ,not go but improve .Lots to contend with daily ,you just struggle through with all of it .
I can see you've done a lot of figuring to all of this ,with what you've produced on paper .
Best wishes Engineer .thank you again ,will come back with what helps ,fingers crossed .

 

[engineerLA]

Marlene you should also get an MRI of your sinuses, if you haven't already, with a good ENT. Sounds like you have several things going on - but I bet the Tinnitus is a side-effect of the root problem, it's not the cause. The root may be you chronic sinusitis in several sinuses and that is causing the headaches, pain, and tinnitus.

 

[Sjoerd]

Hi everyone,

Simply put: When the eustachian tube becomes chronically inflamed it can lead to negative pressure in the middle ear and this results in tinnitus.

Could you explain how this is supposed to work?

 

[Codaz]

When done right you will hear a squeak sound as some of the water goes into your eustachian tube when you pop your ear.

Note that if you get water in there, it may temporarily cause a sensation of ear fullness and reduced hearing, but it will drain out and you will notice improvement over several days.
This will help to clean out your eustachian tube. It has an immediate effect on tinnitus that is caused by eustachian tube issues.

Also don't overdo this - too much water in there could cause an ear infection. Start slow and don't try to pop your ears too hard or force too much water in there -- you could damage your eardrum. This is an advanced technique and should only be done if you are also doing all of the other steps to reduce inflammation.

Yup, nasal irigation with a syringe is the only thing that works for my cracking eustachian tubes. But no, I'm not going to do it anymore. Overuse of nasal spray has bad effects too. I've read in the PET forums that overuse of nasal spray has bad effects on the tubes.

Plus I have used all the sprays that they could think of. Avamys (fluticasone), 2 times nose drops with xylometazoline, fluticasone etcetera etcetera. Totally 50 euro down the toilet.

My GP now prescribed Cetizerine (Zyrtec) 10mg, but I'm going to see a scuba diving ENT to talk about it.

It's way too risky for me this water in my ear so I've stopped doing it. I told ENT's that salt water helped (only for 2 minutes) and they said there was no problem for me to continuing it. But I need a permanent solution for my eustachian tubes, not something that solves the crackling sounds for 2 minutes.

Plus the fact that when I flush everything out, they get stuffed up again because of some other problem that is generating fluid (might be TMJ or something else).

 

[engineerLA]

Sjoerd -- if the tube becomes swollen shut anywhere (the entrance to the tube, or somewhere inside it) it can create suction (negative pressure) or the opposite (too much pressure) that over time can cause tinnitus.

 

[Sjoerd]

Sjoerd -- if the tube becomes swollen shut anywhere (the entrance to the tube, or somewhere inside it) it can create suction (negative pressure) or the opposite (too much pressure) that over time can cause tinnitus.

I understand the stuff about the pressure (or the lack thereof) in the middle ear. What I do not understand is how is this supposed to give you tinnitus?

 

[engineerLA]

Sjoerd - it depends on the type of tinnitus you have. Not all tinnitus is caused by the same thing. But certainly some is caused by irritation or even low grade infection of the eardrum and the sensitive structures of the middle ear, and that can in turn be caused by eustachian tube dysfunction. I never had T until I got terrible allergies last summer which caused eustachian tube dysfunction. To the extent that I have been able to relieve the eustachian tube inflammation the T has also been relieved. Whenever my eustachian tube dysfunction gets worse due to inflammation so does the T. They appear to be directly correlated. It is also possible that eustachian tube dysfunction can lead to slight perforation of the eardrum if pressure builds up too much (that is something an ENT should be able to see if it is there). In my own case, the pressure imbalance in my right eustachian tube is directly correlated with the level of T. When I treat the pressure imbalance (by treating the inflammation), it reduces the T dramatically. Another contributing factor may be moisture or dryness levels in the eustachian tube -- if the tube is stuck open or stuck closed you could have these conditions, and this can lead to further irritation. The salt water treatment does seem to help with that in my case at least - the improvement is so dramatic it cannot be random: a 90% to 100% reduction in T noise level as soon as I do technique (7) above, and it lasts for hours to days. Could it be that it is clearing some blockage, or reducing pressure, or reducing inflammation, or even fighting a low grade infection? Hard to say without further testing, but it works for me.

 

[OddV]

@engineerLA thanks for the thread, learned how to take nasal spray!

Couple of questions... Was yours a constant tone, 24/7 tinnitus or did it come and go?

Was it high pitch or low pitch?

 

[engineerLA]

oddV: constant tone, very high pitch -- around 30,000 or 40,000 cycles per second. Loud enough to distract me from all other sound when at its worst. Since I treated it there have been weeks where it has been entirely gone, and then weeks where it comes back but not nearly as loud as before. When I stay on the protocols above it goes away and becomes either totally inaudible or so quiet it doesn't bother me. The water technique seems to help the most, but mainly in concert with the anti-inflammatory and anti-allergy protocols.

 

[J-rod]

I should look into this more because I suffer from allergy and inflammatory issues. I have a bad ankle that locks up if I overuse it, and it has been that way for 20 years. Typically adding omega 3's to my diet kind of help with the joint inflammation.

I use the Nasal Spray Fluticasone mostly during the spring and summer months and Afrin only if I can't sleep in the middle of the night. I find that hot showers and neti pot help remove the mucousy buildup, but I wish it wasn't a problem to start with. I have had water from the neti pot go into the eustachian tube and it's never a pleasant experience when it's plugged up and I can't get it out. I tried to do the advanced method and the water ended up going down my throat and gagging me enough times that I had to stop or risk vomiting. Perhaps I'm not doing the advanced method right, someone told me to use it as normal and sniff to move a little water into the mouth.

The part about the Turmeric, it stains everything, so is your tooth brush yellow? I used to take turmeric for leg cramps, pretty much use French's mustard on some of my foods each day. Did you know that turmeric can be effective both against Candida Albicans and the biofilms that it forms. A lot of people seem to have Candida, and when we speak of anti-inflammatory this one comes to mind. Even more interesting is that I've noticed the day after cooking with with organic curry and lots of garlic the ringing is lower than normal.

 

[engineerLA]

Using nasal spray a few times a year won't be enough if you have a lot allergy issues. I take Dymista 2x per day every day all year. Also Allegra, and the Herba-Plus during the spring and summer when it's really bad. Dymista is good because it combines two different sprays into one, which is less effort to deal with.

For the advanced water method (#7 in my original write-up), if you get one of the powered nasal irrigators you can put your head in any position you want while it shoots the water into your nose. So you tilt your face to the floor above the sink and shoot the water in and the turn your head until the water flows out your mouth -- but without it going into your throat. So the water runs from your nose, past your eustachian tube and right out your mouth. No choking or gagging, but it takes some experimenting to get it right and it's a messy process - water splashes around a bit.

As soon as you get the water to come out of your mouth, pop your ears right then, while the water is still running past or pooling around your eustachian tube. You will hear a watery squeak sound that is different from normally clearing your ear.

 

[J-rod]

I'll ask my doctor about Dymista. Perhaps I'll buy some Herba-Plus and get the NeilMed Sinugator Pulsating Nasal Wash to try #7 again. I can't take Allegra, chest tightness.

Do you have a link to the Herba-Plus?

 

[engineerLA]

You can get herba-plus here: http://www.usabotanic.com/en/medicine01.htm

The seller is Chinese and I don't know of any other source. I found out about from my acupuncturist. It works really well on reducing the body's allergic response in general. I still also use Allegra, but before I took Herba-Plus the Allegra didn't help that much. Herba-Plus really takes the edge off of allergies.

 

[J-rod]

Picked up the NeilMed Sinugator Pulsating Nasal Wash device this morning. It works a little better than the regular neti pots, it has a little force behind it. The advanced method is going to take some time. I used the normal method on both sides and then tried the advanced. It was working fine at first doing little bursts and then a I sniffed too hard and a flood of stuff went down my throat and made me gagged me until I vomited it up. Obviously it's reaching a new area of sinus cavities, just going to take time learning this method without hurting myself.

 

[engineerLA]

Yeah you don't want to swallow the salt water. The advanced method works by tilting your head to the right or left, with your nose pointed down to the sink. The Sinugator shoots the water in, even though it's a weird angle, then tilt your head sideways at the same time and open your mouth and get the water to come out your mouth. Then pop your ears. You can raise your head back up to pop your ears if you need to.

 

[Codaz]

Did you difficulty in equalizing / valsava when you had this eustachian tube problems?

 

[engineerLA]

Codaz: Yes, definitely. The left eustachian tube does not need to be equalized in my case, but the right often feels full and need to clear it frequently. The T is only on the right side. Definitely indicates eustachian tube is the cause (direct or indirect) of the T in this case.

 

[Codaz]

Too bad there is no such thing as an eustachian tube centre in The Netherlands.