No Hearing Loss, Unknown Cause, FRUSTRATED — Tinnitus for One Month

[Naturegirl529]

Hi... So I'm a 49-year-old female suffering with extremely high pitched tinnitus, both ears, for almost 1 month now.

ENT found no cause, hearing is perfect. No history of loud noises, etc. Regular doctor ran tests, vitamin levels, bloods, all normal. I tried a low dose of Ativan at night to help relax and sleep since they think it's stress induced. It didn't help. I do have 2 herniated discs in neck but for a long time now, never caused any other problems.

Needless to say, as you guys are well aware, I'm going crazy. Trying to use maskers, relax techniques, meditation. Nights are the worst, mornings I wake up (when I do sleep a bit) to it screaming loud.

I started taking Magnesium yesterday, to see if it helps.

Any advice from you guys that have been dealing with it longer is really appreciated. I'm so tired of hearing that nobody knows why I got this and there's nothing I can do for it. It's crazy making. Yes, I'm stressed but it's nothing new and who isn't?

 

[Adaś]

Besides Magnesium, you can try NAC as a dietary supplement that has anti-inflammatory properties. You can also ask your doctor for course of steroids (e.g. Dexaven), as it is known to help with lot of acute cases.

Also unless you had extended audiogram done, don't take "your hearing is perfect" for granted. Many with Tinnitus have ultra-high-frequency hearing loss that is not detected by standard audiograms.

Otherwise I can tell you that the feeling of being helpless is absolutely normal with this cursed condition. You may wonder why me, why others leading same lifestyle don't have this problem. We all wonder. There are many more questions than answers here. The medical world is still struggling to explain the pathology and mechanism of tinnitus. We all hope that in next few years there will be finally some pharmacologic remedies. So we all need to stay strong and hopefully we will all be better.

 

[Ben Winders]

Anything anyone will be able to answer is the usual menu of:

- When you do not hear it (during the day?), do not look for it, don't bring it forward (I know it's impossible at night, I'm 9 months in and I still can't, others can, I m just weak)
- Look through supplement threads here and start trying some stuff
- Are you sure you can't mask it? Not a single sound on asoftmurmur.com can block it out?

Keep in mind that a lot of people here have a good audiogram. I've seen every specialist under the sun in 2 different countries. Tinnitus is not 1:1 necessarily linked to tinnitus and vice versa. It can be so many different causes.

 

[twa]

@Naturegirl529,
Welcome to the forum. I'm sorry you are going through this, it is very difficult. It will get progressively better over time. Your emotions will calm down and you'll be able to focus on life more. The ancillary symptoms will get better very slowly. I've focused on an anti-inflammatory diet to help with inflammation throughout the body, my thought was it can also help inflammation in the ears.

If you can take walks in nature away from loud noises that would be helpful. It helped me tremendously in the beginning. I do wear ear plugs outside if I could encounter a loud noise, there are barking dogs and loud trucks in my area.

I sleep with a gentle stream in the background, enough to hear but not too loud. I think my biggest mistake in the very beginning was trying to get out and do things when I was in the beginning of the acute stage. I would stay put as much as possible until you start to feel better.

Feel free to reach out if you'd like to chat. You can use the conversation tab.

Best to you,
twa

 

[Naturegirl529]

Hi, thanks for the responses.

I did have a very thorough, long hearing test, and tests for pressure in the ear, all came back normal. I've had inflammation tests done, B12 & other vitamin levels checked... all good.

I can mask it but even if I keep it low, it sometimes makes it worse. Recently, it's been louder even during the day. I'm going to get an MRI just to rule anything else out. I've been through quite a bit in my life, but this by far, is the worst.

 

[Thoma]

Hi... So I'm a 24-year-old male suffering with tinnitus, both ears, for almost 1 month now.

Any treatment or any advice please, because I'm stressed with this?

 

[Michael Leigh]

Hi... So I'm a 24-year-old male suffering with tinnitus, both ears, for almost 1 month now.

Any treatment or any advice please, because I'm stressed with this?

Hi @Thoma.

Exposure to loud noise is one of the most common causes of tinnitus. Typically, it listening to audio at too high a volume, often without realizing it through headphones, including earbuds or headset. If you regularly use these devices or exposed to other types of loud noise then it's likely you have noise induced tinnitus. Especially if you have had tinnitus before and it went away after a short period of time.

Tinnitus can also be caused by stress or an underlying medical condition within the auditory system. In the early stages of tinnitus, particularly if it's noise induced the advice is to leave your ears alone. Don't try any treatments as you can easily make it worse. I hasten to add, this only applies if your tinnitus is noise induced. If you are experiencing deafness, dizziness, balance problems or acute pain in your ears this needs to be investigated.

Whether the tinnitus is noise induced or caused by something else you should see your doctor, who will probably be able to help you manage the stress. Please click on the link below and read my post: New to Tinnitus, What to Do? If you have been using any type of headphones, my advice is not to use them even at low volume. Try to avoid quiet rooms and surroundings by using low level sound enrichment. More about this is mentioned in the link below.

All the best,
Michael

New to Tinnitus, What to Do? | Tinnitus Talk Support Forum