Hitting Things with Ear Muffs on

[Sam Bridge]

A few times when I hoover I have been wearing my ear protector muffs and I'll knock into a wall and it makes that kinda clunky sound. I was just curious if others have this happen or I am just being clumsy.

Secondly, anyone know how loud that is, I would say its up to 70ish dB maybe...

 

[Lex]

It happens to me too! A lot! I figured I was harming myself more than I was helping. So now I wear earplugs instead of earmuffs most of the time.

 

[linearb]

I chop wood with earmuffs on a lot, so, yes.....?

 

[Sam Bridge]

I chop wood with earmuffs on a lot, so, yes.....?

I mean when the muff hits something like a wall or whatever then it makes the clunk sound.

 

[JurgenG]

I have the same issue with my premolds..

 

[Elfin]

same thing happened to me today - hit them against a garage door as I was ducking and carrying something! Made a very loud 'clunk'!

 

[Bobby B]

All the earmuffs make loud sounds when hitting objects EXCEPT the Peltor X5a because the shell is different - it's a sort of rubbery surface which works well at dampening and also the shell interior is much larger - yes those are huge but the best earmuffs by far and also for noise reduction

 

[Jiri]

The same thing happened to me just now when I was emptying the bins. Knocked with the muffs into a wall and a loud clunky sound. It's not a high-pitched sound tho and lasts a fraction of a sec.

Do you think this could potentially result in a tinnitus spike? Anyone any experiences?

EXCEPT the Peltor X5a because the shell is different

Thanks for the tip.

 

[Jiri]

A few times when I hoover I have been wearing my ear protector muffs and I'll knock into a wall

It happens to me too! A lot!

same thing happened to me today

Could you please share if that incident gave you a tinnitus spike or not??

 

[Lex]

@Jiri No T spike, but I get H pain.

 

[Elfin]

Could you please share if that incident gave you a tinnitus spike or not??

Hard to say really. Ears ring so loudly anyway, that any increase isn't noticeable! Just try to do the same things to take my mind off it.]

Even if it has spiked, what can be done now?

 

[Jiri]

Even if it has spiked, what can be done now?

True. I was thinking of upper intaking my Prednisone levels now.

Yesterday I was happy that my ringing lowered in volume, and thus decided to be productive. After that stupid 'protective' earmuff's hit I've got a headache now and my ear is ringing loud again. Damn cheap plastic materials!

 

[Elfin]

Man, I feel your pain. After hitting mine on the door it threw me into a obsessive, anxious spin.

I am trying to internalise and move from this closed mentality more into the attitude and philosophy espoused by @fishbone and @Michael Leigh.

We have this noise, but if we want to live and do things, we have to accept that we may be exposed to noises from time to time. They may be harmful; they may not. But worrying about each noise, certainly isnt helpful or a way to live your life.

We must protect ourselves when the risk is high (bars, pubs, cinemas, restaurants etc), but otherwise try and live our lives!!

 

[Jiri]

I don't know, man. This feels more like surviving then living, really. No bars, pubs, restaurants? *sigh* These are the places where people like to go and socialize. Where does it end? No Uni's, schools either? All loud places.

What's worrying me more now is if that hit could've caused a permanent t. spike or a further damage to the tiny hairs inside cochlea, since it's a direct 'clunky' sound impact right into your ear. See what I mean?

 

[Ambassador]

I find a noisy bar room filled with people is a perfect mask for my tinnitus and don't have any issues with that causing any spikes. I won't go to a place with live music but a regular bar or restaurant is just fine.

 

[Lex]

I don't know, man. This feels more like surviving then living, really. No bars, pubs, restaurants? *sigh* These are the places where people like to go and socialize. Where does it end? No Uni's, schools either? All loud places.

What's worrying me more now is if that hit could've caused a permanent t. spike or a further damage to the tiny hairs inside cochlea, since it's a direct 'clunky' sound impact right into your ear. See what I mean?

It depends on how bad it is for you. Some people can lead normal lives. I know people who have T and still live as if they have normal ears. No pain, no spikes, no distortions. T is just a faint annoying sound in the background they hear when surroundings are quiet. And based on the many success stories posted in this forum, there are people all over who can live full, unhindered lives even with T.

Then there are the worse cases. Fluctuating T, loud T, distortion, ETD issues, H pain, etc. I'm one of them. I have to avoid all kinds of noises because of the pain. But even with that, I'm still not the worst one because I still work at an office and lead a semi-normal life. Those who got it extremely bad had to quit jobs, go on disability, and isolate themselves from the world. And then there are those who won't put up with this shit and found the will to end their lives.

 

[Jiri]

Yes, that all makes sense. I am now in my second month with this terrible condition. It started all slowly, unobtrusively and progressed within 2 weeks time into extreme pain and suffering (viz my 'intro yourself' thread). Obviously, upon the onset of my problems I went to see a lot of ENT specialists, neurologists etc. As we all did.

Now the past two days I finally felt some relieve and that my tinnitus has subsided. Then I hit the wall with the earmuffs on, and here we go again. Back to square one. Honestly, even hearing someone shutting the door scares me.

A kind of a yo-yo effect... so I guess the question still stands. Can that clunky type of a sound when knocking with cheap shell earmuffs into a wall cause an ear damage or summon a tinnitus spike?

 

[Elfin]

Then there are the worse cases. Fluctuating T, loud T, distortion, ETD issues, H pain, etc. I'm one of them. I have to avoid all kinds of noises because of the pain. But even with that, I'm still not the worst one because I still work at an office and lead a semi-normal life. Those who got it extremely bad had to quit jobs, go on disability, and isolate themselves from the world. And then there are those who won't put up with this shit and found the will to end their lives.

I agree that there are varying degrees of suffering and intrusion across different people's tinnitus, yet I am now realising that long term a lot of it is also down to attitude (not that it is easy - it certainly isn't, but a positive outlook or one of patient acceptance does help, however 'wishy washy that sounds and may seem).

For example, I have hearing loss; I have fluctuating T and I have hyperacusis. I got this when attending a concert and spending the entire evening, without protection, in the front row. I left the venue unable to hear t-shirt sellers shouting 'who wants a t-shirt' etc. My hearing has never really recovered, although it improved. I also have aural hallucinations: sirens, lawnmowers etc. I have spent years existing in fear, terrified of door slamming, loud cars going past me, beeping in shops, alarms in hotels, flying, dogs barking, but where has this got me? These sounds have still been heard and could have been heard without fear or anxiety, or with fear and anxiety. That choice to suffer and be afraid was mine, rather than the only option.

 

[Jiri]

Ok, so I'm going to answer the question for all of us.

Yes, I believe it is entirely possible to get a maaad tinnitus spike from knocking your cheap a$$ plastic safety headphones into a wall while wearing them. Either that or ototoxicity from the medication I am now on.

Woke up with a bad ringing already which got significantly worse now towards the evening. No cry baby but this is torture and it is getting absolutely unbereable! The "eeeeeeeeeeeeeee" sound in your head

 

[Bill Bauer]

I was thinking of upper intaking my Prednisone levels now.

There is a small chance that your spike is a result of prednisone. So be careful...

 

[Jiri]

There is a small chance that your spike is a result of prednisone. So be careful...

I checked the ototoxic brochure you sent me and the https://www.ehealthme.com/ds/prednisone/tinnitus/

There is a small chance, indeed. I was prescribed the Prednisone and all the other drugs for that matter at the ENT A&E and was reassured that they are not ototoxic. The same goes for an emergency psychiatry - all the meds even in the combination with the aforementioned substances should not again cause ototoxicity.

But who the heck knows? I'm at the end of taking all these 'potions' and have a maad tinnitus spike as of today.

 

[Sam Bridge]

Could you please share if that incident gave you a tinnitus spike or not??

Nope but i don't really get spikes unless you count fleeting t.

 

[Jiri]

Nope but i don't really get spikes unless you count fleeting t.

What's fleeting t., may I ask?

 

[Sam Bridge]

What's fleeting t., may I ask?

When you get a high pitch tone in your ears that lasts a few seconds.

 

[Jiri]

When you get a high pitch tone in your ears that lasts a few seconds.

Oh, ok. Thx. I get that too + that tinnitus spike today.

 

[Elfin]

any update on whether you guys spiked following this? Just happened to me when driving and turning head to see. Really loud clunk as earmuff hit the panel where the seat belt is attached. Stupidly, this happened a couple of times.

any help and advice appreciated!

 

[Jiri]

@Elfin Yo, bro. First off you need to relax. I noticed it happens to me quite a lot too but I didn't detect any major spikes after that. I just get upset that it happened again. It is bothersome, I understand. I think you'll be fine.

 

[Elfin]

It is bothersome, I understand.

man, it seemed so loud! and to have the repeated exposure has got me really anxious and worrying about it now. have i done permanent damage. is it spiking from this or am I just thinking too much about it!

christ, this is just horrible!

 

[Jiri]

You need to calm down. Take a pill if you need to. Mine was loud as well and I didn't get any noticaeble spike after that. Like I said, I'm a but clumsy sometimes so it happened to me multiple times.

I think if you do get a spike it's more likely because you're so stressed out about it right now.

 

[Sam Bridge]

any update on whether you guys spiked following this? Just happened to me when driving and turning head to see. Really loud clunk as earmuff hit the panel where the seat belt is attached. Stupidly, this happened a couple of times.

any help and advice appreciated!

Nope, i don't get spikes luckily ..