My Tinnitus Is Waking Me Up at Night

[mrsgruffy]

My tinnitus has got so loud in the last year, that it wakes me up several times a night.

I also have hearing loss which is getting worse. As my hearing loss gets worse, my tinnitus gets louder. I'm also very sensitive to noise.

I used to be able to mask my tinnitus with music at moderate volume, but now that my hearing has got worse, music sounds distorted at normal volume and I can't hear it at lower volume, and hurts me at a louder volume.

I find I can't wear headphones because the sounds are annoyingly distorted (bought cheap ones first and thought they were faulty, so invested in a good set and found it was the same.

I'm a student on a very limited income and I'm on the at least 12 months waiting list to be assessed for hearing aids. I take medication to help me get to sleep because the tinnitus drives me half crazy when I go to bed, and background noise disturbs me too much because of the distortion. So I think it's called hyperacusis - when some noise just makes you crazy or is physically painful.

I'm not sure what to do. I'm always aware of the tinnitus, and I'm quite frankly surprised that I'm not sitting in a corner, rocking and blowing raspberries. It amazes me that I have the resilience to try to carry on, but some days are very difficult, and I find I am becoming very depressed despite being on medication for depression.

I just don't know if I can take another year of this, and it's not even guaranteed if I will be able to tolerate hearing aids or even if they'll work for me, but I'm holding on to the hope that they will.

If anyone has any advice, I'll try really hard not to find a problem for every solution

 

[Jack V]

Does your brain hear tinnitus as you're sleeping, like any other loud noise, and wake you up in response?

 

[Bobby Sinatra]

@mrsgruffy can you give us an update? Your post was so painful to read. You suffer so much. This doctor in Russia treats tinnitus and Meniere's:

 

[Jack V]

Does your brain hear tinnitus as you're sleeping, like any other loud noise, and wake you up in response?

To clarify, I was curious about whether others felt that the actual noise from their tinnitus itself was waking them up at night, and didn't write it as a response to the original post in 2017 (apparently my post was moved here because of its topical nature).

Thanks in advance for anyone who might have some thoughts to share about it.

 

[Capstan]

Recently, yes, I had a spike/worsening that's caused me trouble sleeping. Since then I've been on prednisone and sudafed, both which cause me trouble sleeping, might be exacerbating it. I'm cutting both out to see if I can get through a good night's sleep.

 

[Hotspur2931]

My theory is that tinnitus doesn't actually wake you up. It's more the anxiety wakes you up. And/or you wake up naturally but the first thing you hear is the tinnitus and so you think it woke you up.

There are people with very severe tinnitus who sleep just fine so I tend to use this as reassurance that the sound itself can't actually mess with our sleep – it's just our reaction to the sound that causes issues (and that can be worked on ).

 

[InfiniteLoop]

My theory is that tinnitus doesn't actually wake you up. It's more the anxiety wakes you up. And/or you wake up naturally but the first thing you hear is the tinnitus and so you think it woke you up.

There are people with very severe tinnitus who sleep just fine so I tend to use this as reassurance that the sound itself can't actually mess with our sleep – it's just our reaction to the sound that causes issues (and that can be worked on ).

My experience is the opposite. My tinnitus waking me up is usually coincidental with my tinnitus changing sound or increasing loudness. Very much the same as I wake up with there are new noises or louder noises in the bedroom. Anxiety is long gone. Only freaking ever changing loud head noise is left.

 

[Digital Doc]

I would say it was the tinnitus waking me up, and very annoying. I had no anxiety.

The only thing that helped me was sleeping with earplugs, as it would reduce my tinnitus volume and let me get a good night's sleep, with my tinnitus reduced in volume by the morning to start my day.

 

[Jack V]

I would say it was the tinnitus waking me up, and very annoying. I had no anxiety.

The only thing that helped me was sleeping with earplugs, as it would reduce my tinnitus volume and let me get a good night's sleep, with my tinnitus reduced in volume by the morning to start my day.

Hey - is it that when you put the earplug in your ears it reduces the tinnitus volume generally, even during the day?

My perception of tinnitus is different with an earplug in and I was wondering that myself.

 

[Digital Doc]

@Jack V

When I put the earplugs in at night, it takes about 3 to 5 mins, and then I notice that the tinnitus has reduced in volume, and I fall asleep with the tinnitus under good control. I wake up with my tinnitus reduced compared from what it was in the evening the night before. Many days, my tinnitus generally increases during the day, without any significant noise exposure. The process is consistent and very repeatable. Over time (13 months from my last acoustic trauma) and non-linearly, my tinnitus has reduced in volume. At the peak, I was waking up multiple times from my tinnitus as it was such a loud volume and could not stay asleep throughout the night.

 

[Jack V]

@Jack V

When I put the earplugs in at night, it takes about 3 to 5 mins, and then I notice that the tinnitus has reduced in volume, and I fall asleep with the T under good control. I wake up with my tinnitus reduced compared from what it was in the evening the night before. Many days, my tinnitus generally increases during the day, without any significant noise exposure. The process is consistent and very repeatable. Over time (13 months from my last acoustic trauma) and non-linearly, my tinnitus has reduced in volume. At the peak, I was waking up multiple times from my tinnitus as it was such a loud volume and could not stay asleep throughout the night.

Innnnnnnteresting...

I find that I'm waking up a couple hours after I go to sleep with the ringing louder than where it was when I went to sleep... it feels as if the volume of the ringing itself is what woke me up.

I will try your method tonight!

Curious - have you thought of using the earplugs during the day to achieve similar relief, at least in small doses? For example, putting them in for 15 minutes 3/4 of the way through the day to "reset" your ears?

Thanks.

 

[PeteJ]

I have severe loud tinnitus. I hate that I can't sleep when I want. Last year, my tinnitus just started and it fluctuate somewhat. It calmed down a bit at night sometimes and I would try to sleep when it did. I would use those tinnitus apps on my phone etc.

Now... my tinnitus is still screaming and loud at night. It got worse. I am sometimes up til 3 or 4 in the morning because it's so loud. If possible, I recommend exercising and running to get yourself physically exhausted before bed time. I can't. The tinnitus is so loud, it bothers me to do anything.

 

[Hotspur2931]

@Jack V

When I put the earplugs in at night, it takes about 3 to 5 mins, and then I notice that the tinnitus has reduced in volume, and I fall asleep with the tinnitus under good control. I wake up with my tinnitus reduced compared from what it was in the evening the night before. Many days, my tinnitus generally increases during the day, without any significant noise exposure. The process is consistent and very repeatable. Over time (13 months from my last acoustic trauma) and non-linearly, my tinnitus has reduced in volume. At the peak, I was waking up multiple times from my tinnitus as it was such a loud volume and could not stay asleep throughout the night.

This is crazy. I am amazed that it works! For me anything that muffles outside sounds just makes my T seem way louder. I've had to stop wearing tightly fitting hats for example, for that reason. I would love it if earplugs quietened my T. Do you have any idea how/why it works? I'm wondering if I should give it a try, since you said it takes a few minutes to kick in, but it just sounds impossible to me...

 

[Digital Doc]

I have not tried the earplugs during the day when there is no noise exposure. I am not sure they would do anything without the sleep.

I don't really know how it works. One guess is that it was random noise at night waking me up, like a passing car, and this blocks it out. I figure others should try it, as simple enough and nothing to really lose. I had previously tried masking at night, and found while it helped falling asleep, I was waking up with louder tinnitus.