Hissing and Wobbly Tones 7 Weeks After Tinnitus Onset?

[LostOutWest]

Hey all - been dealing with tinnitus for seven weeks. Over the last week or so, I've been experiencing long periods of "hissing" tinnitus throughout the day, with no tonality. I've been waking up to very low tinnitus (2/10) and over the day it builds, the tones come back usually in the afternoon, however they spend a lot of time "wobbling" in and out. Eventually they stop wobbling and settle back to pure tone (6/10). The hiss and the unstable tones are new for me. Wanted to post and see if anyone had this experience and what happened with it over time.

Not sure the cause of my tinnitus. Can't pinpoint meds, acoustic trauma / noise, or injury. So I guess stress?

I have no measurable hearing loss up to 15khz. Hidden Hearing loss of course a possibility / likely.

Thanks!

 

[Michael B]

I experience all you mention. Seems to change throughout the day.

 

[LostOutWest]

I experience all you mention. Seems to change throughout the day.

Thanks for your reply. Has it always been like this (mix of hiss and ring, fluctuating through the day)? Or did it evolve into this?

 

[Michael Leigh]

Not sure the cause of my tinnitus. Can't pinpoint meds, acoustic trauma / noise, or injury. So I guess stress?

HI @LostOutWest

Something usually causes the onset of tinnitus and many things can be responsible. The most common cause is exposure to loud noise. I know you have said that it isn't due to an acoustic trauma which maybe true. However, are you are regular user of headphones even at low volume? Do you go to clubs or concerts regularly where loud music is played, or have worked in a loud environment? Play loud music in the car or at home via surround sound? Use a Headset?

If no to any of the above then your tinnitus is unlikely to be noise induced. Other causes can be stress or an underlying medical problem within your auditory system. Hearing tests and other examinations at ENT should be carried out to make sure your auditory system is working correctly.

Please click on the links below and read my posts that you might find helpful.

All the best
Michael

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/new-to-tinnitus-what-to-do.12558/
https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/tinnitus-a-personal-view.18668/

 

[Michael B]

Thanks for your reply. Has it always been like this (mix of hiss and ring, fluctuating through the day)? Or did it evolve into this?

My tinnitus started out with a high pitched pure tone and morphed into what it is today i.e. unpredictable.

 

[Aaron44126]

I've been waking up to very low tinnitus (2/10) and over the day it builds, the tones come back usually in the afternoon, however they spend a lot of time "wobbling" in and out. Eventually they stop wobbling and settle back to pure tone (6/10).

This reminds me a lot of what things were like for me 2+ years ago. When my tinnitus started I had a raging 15 kHz tone for the first five or six weeks, which varied in intensity but was a pretty constant sound. Then for the next several weeks it started changing all of the time, throughout the day, with no real pattern. I often had a wispy hissy sound that sounded almost like it wanted to go away but couldn't.

Anyway. A few months after onset it settled into what it is now, which is a pretty constant sound, thankfully way lower than 15 kHz, not exactly tonal (I can't reproduce it with a tone generator) but constant. After some months, I habituated and barely think about it anymore.

Bottom line. I think that it is not uncommon for the sound to be changing while you are still early on, in the first few months. Hang in there and hopefully it either goes away or settles down into something more tolerable.

 

[MasterFA]

Can T lower after multiple months or just in the beginning?

 

[MasterFA]

Hello again, Michael B regarding headset I found online and on this forum a lot of people's still using headset but use earplugs under, does that help or no need to bother

 

[LostOutWest]

Thanks for the replies everyone!

@Michael Leigh thanks for your comments and sharing your posts. All helpful perspective as I navigate this beast. I read your questions and I do not believe this is a noise-induced Tinnitus situation, but in the end, I'll never know.

@Aaron44126 thanks for sharing your thoughts and encouragement. I definitely have some weird, changing patterns and sounds happening. It's consistently less "tonal" these days and more hissy, flat and at times a lot more wobbly. Feels like it's flickering out but can't quite extinguish. Kind of wheezy and anemic at times. Other times, stronger. I believe it will likely continue to change for a while, and I hope you're right about continuing to lessen and who knows, maybe even go away.

I'm handling it all much better these days, than from prior weeks. Tinnitus is without a doubt a terrible thing for anyone to deal with, but I'm trying to move forward while remaining hopeful it improves. It's a battle.

 

[boliston]

I'm at the 6 month point now with tinnitus and there is definitely now more 'hiss' than 'ring' to what I'm hearing, and the hiss has a slightly metallic edge to it - there is also a big variation in volume from day to day - just when I think it's going one day it then might be louder the next day so I don't like to get my hopes up on days when it's not so loud.

 

[spencer2019]

I'm at the 6 month point now with tinnitus and there is definitely now more 'hiss' than 'ring' to what I'm hearing, and the hiss has a slightly metallic edge to it - there is also a big variation in volume from day to day - just when I think it's going one day it then might be louder the next day so I don't like to get my hopes up on days when it's not so loud.

Hi, I am a first time poster having just joined the forum - but my experience sounds very like yours. What was a 12000hz high pitched whine seems to have become more of a metallic hiss. But every few days it switches back to the high pitched whine which lasts all day. Then it reduces for 2/3/4 days before peaking agin. I've tried to work out why this is but it doesn't seem to be linked to food, alcohol, stress etc. Is this pattern a sign that the brain is still adapting and making changes? How are you getting on after 8 months?

 

[boliston]

Hi, I am a first time poster having just joined the forum - but my experience sounds very like yours. What was a 12000hz high pitched whine seems to have become more of a metallic hiss. But every few days it switches back to the high pitched whine which lasts all day. Then it reduces for 2/3/4 days before peaking agin. I've tried to work out why this is but it doesn't seem to be linked to food, alcohol, stress etc. Is this pattern a sign that the brain is still adapting and making changes? How are you getting on after 8 months?

Just noticed I'm almost at 8 months since it all started, and I would say that the overall 'trend' is gradual improvement but with some days when it's still annoyingly loud. Looking back I have been through some of the toughest months of my life, but the 'turning point' was probably at the end of September when it felt my life was getting 'back on track' and I started getting back to normal sleeping patterns. At the start of October I had a terrible onset of eczema (last had this about 30 years ago) and I thought it was far more annoying than the tinnitus - luckily the eczema has now cleared up but I think it was a stress reaction from the tinnitus.