New Here & Scared

[ajg]

Hi everyone.
I'm new here and found this site the other day. I haven't been diagnosed by a doctor- yet- but I'm sure I have tinnitus. In fact, I know I have it.
I'm female and just turned 60 2 weeks ago, although I feel like I'm still in my 20s s
I suffer from mild depression and not so mild anxiety/panic-GAD. Have for over 20 some years.

For the past 3 weeks I was having a lot of sharp stabbing right ear pain. Had it checked out twice at the dr- nothing showed up as far as infection. My inner ears looked normal despite the sharp pain.

Now the pain has subsided. it comes & goes occasionally now and the pain is no where as severe as it was at first. In fact is really not much to talk about.

But now I have dizziness- like an imbalance type of dizziness that comes & goes but for right now as I'm typing this, it's been several hours with the dizziness.
Also I have occasional ringing in either ear that last for 10-15 seconds then goes away and this is kind of loud.

I also have noticed, that as of yesterday, I have constant ringing/buzzing/hissing at a lower intensity. It never goes away. I say I noticed it yesterday because I've been so consumed over the past weeks to find out what my pain and imbalance dizziness was, that I just never paid attention to what I have thought was 'normal' sound in my ears.

So I can't say for sure if this is actually a new problem or I have had this constant ringing for a few years.
How odd is that! I do get a whooshing/heart beating sound in my right ear occasionally but goes away immediately when I turn my head. I've had this sound on/off for a long time- maybe years.

Right now my heart is beating out of my chest- I am terrified!- the dizziness is frightening me.
Can anyone talk me down? I'm too scared to go to the doctor

Sorry this is so long- so if you've read this far-- thank you!

 

[Sherri786]

Hi ajg, sorry to hear about your t. Please go through the forum and read other posts , there's a lot of good information here. Other knowledgeable members will soon advice you.

Take care, hope you feel better soon xx

 

[Karen]

Hi, AJG, and welcome! We're glad you joined Tinnitus Talk; it's a great forum, and we have a lot of supportive and knowledgeable members.

I understand where you're coming from right now. I'm a woman in my 60's, too, and was struck with severe tinnitus 3 1/2 years ago. When it first began, I had dizziness/imbalance like you, and even a few episodes of vertigo. However, they have now subsided, and I can't remember the last time I had any vertigo.

Since your doctor checked you twice and couldn't find any sign of infection, it's possible that the ear pain could be caused by some sort of Eustachian tube dysfunction. That could also be what is causing the whooshing/pulsating.

I have pulsating tinnitus (whooshing), too, but mine is in time with my heartbeat, and is constant. Yours sounds like it is more intermittent, so that would more likely point to Eustachian tube spasms, possibly.

Another thought: Do you have any jaw problems that you know of? Sometimes, TMJ can result in tinnitus and Eustachian tube disturbances, and even pains in or near the ear. Just a thought, but you could consider having a doctor, TMJ specialist, or dentist check for jaw problems.

The main thing is: Don't panic! It's possible that your hearing has deteriorated (age-related?), and that could also be causing the tinnitus. Others on this forum may have additional suggestions for you.

I believe you will be fine, so please don't panic!! I'm hoping your imbalance/dizziness will subside soon. Please keep us posted on how you're doing.

Best wishes and hugs,
Karen

 

[Magpie]

Hi ajg.
There are several causes for dizziness. Often it is temporary and it resolves itself over a period of time but its important to have it checked out for possible causes. You really should ask your doctor for a referral to a specialist. There are tests that might indicate the cause of the pain and dizziness. In the meantime try to avoid panic, try some breathing exercises and understand the likelihood of you having a serious illness is extremely remote.

 

[Beth]

Hi ajg, Join the over 60s club!

One thing that really stood out for me in your post was that you said you may have had constant ringing for years but just never noticed it. PLEASE go back to not noticing it again!! Everyone has sounds in their heads which are 'noises of the brain'........blood flow, heart beat, electrical type sounds from neurons firing etc etc. Lots of noise going off in there all the time for everyone but you must remember that what you are hearing is the amplification of perfectly normal harmless sounds that have always been there but you are now hearing due to high levels of stress or anxiety.

The dizziness can be sorted and in the meantime try not to focus on your tinnitus and remember that we all have internal sounds which are nearly always made worse by stress and anxiety. Your head was full of noisy activity before you got the dizziness problems but you probably didn't notice or didn't even care so you will get back to that point. You said you 'didn't pay attention to the normal sounds' and that's just what you can do again.

Lots of good people on this forum to support you while you need it. Take care and happy new year.