Looking for Someone in a Similar Situation

Hi there, this is my first post so I apologise if I break any rules/post in the wrong place etc.

I've had what I believe to be Tinnitus (single frequency ringing) in my right ear for at least 6 years now, and I would like to share my symptoms to see what experience you guys have had, and see if I can partially self diagnose myself.

The facts are:

• Ringing in right ear only
• If I hum it resonates in my right ear louder than my left
• If I wear headphones it sounds slightly right biased, that is the "central" sound appears to be slightly right to me
• If I re-pressurise my ear (via blowing holding my nose) the ringing changes pitch/gets louder. I can also hear what seems to be slight air rushing in my right ear.
• Only my right ear pops/pressurises when I do the pressurising mentioned in the last point.
• The ringing seemed to go away for about 4 months last year but has returned.

I'm not sure if any of this is 'normal', or if there is anything here anyone can latch on to and tell me they've had it and what doctors did for them. I had an appointment today and my GP said from what she could see my right eardrum looked fine but it was a little obscured with wax. My left eardrum also is fine.
Should I pursue further medical advice, or is this permanent hearing damage?

I should mention I am a trumpet player and bass player who played in loud bands for about 6 years without resorting to hearing protection very often (so many regrets). I also watched roughly 3 rock concerts without protection. I do use custom ACS earplugs now in any environment that I feel is overly loud. Too little too late I feel.

Many thanks, and I look forward to reading the replies to this post.

 

It sounds like the noise caused the tinnitus. I am not 100% sure on this , but when your ears get damaged from the noise it can bring on tinnitus. Maybe you should go see an ent or audiologist for your situation. If you have a sensation to somewhat loud noise or mid level noise then you could possibly go through some therapy that your audiologist has to reduce that issue.

The ringing itself, you can use masking devices to help out with that.

Good luck!

 

Hey Fergus,
I feel as if my tinnitus was also brought on by exposure to loud music but through headphones and car speakers over many years (although I'm only 20 now). Like you, I also have issues 'popping' or equalizing my right ear. Something you may like to look into is Eustachian Tube Dysfunction or ETD for short. A GP may be able to look at your eardrum and say it's fine but an ENT or Audiologist I think can check the pressure on your eardrum for any irregularities.

If there is a blockage in your Eustachian tube it can tense up the eardrum making your ear feel full or blocked and may affect your hearing because of lack of sufficient eardrum movement. But I would recommend trying to remove that wax first as it can be known to aggravate existing tinnitus and maybe even push on the eardrum, that's what I am doing with my right ear before I worry there may be something else going on. Baby steps

Goodluck!

P.S I wish I had just one frequency in my ears, it feels like someone slammed their hands over multiple keys on a high pitched piano and reverberated it through my head. Oh well, the grass is always greener...

 

Thanks for your reply. I maybe will look into seeing a specialist to see what they make of it. I'm very sorry to hear about your issues and it makes me feel a lot luckier. All the best.

 

Many believe doing the Valsalva maneuver repeatedly, can damage your ears. Valsalva being holding your nose and blowing out, or pressurizing your ears, like your doing.

 

I've only begun doing this since I discovered it changed my tinnitus symptoms (for about 3 weeks). I'll stop straight away, thanks.