Pre-Existing Hearing Loss/Tinnitus: Are the Ears More Delicate and Susceptible to Further Damage?

[Rings-a-Bell]

I have a 55 dB hearing loss notch at 4000 Hz and a tinnitus tone to match it. I've had it for years, and for the last couple of years, I have been mostly habituated. I recently fell out of habituation because I went to a couple of loud social events. Of course, I wore good-quality earplugs, but the spike has arrived nonetheless.

Normal people can listen at 80 dB for eigh hours before they physically damage their ears. I exposed my ears for a couple of hours around the 80-85 dB mark, but with earplugs rated at 15 dB, so there shouldn't be any actual new hearing loss damage, right? Which would mean the spike is all in my brain.

Could it be that our experiences are unique? Perhaps the 'forest' of our hair cells is different from that of healthy individuals. Our 'forest' may be filled with half-knocked-down trees, easily toppled by even the slightest disturbances. This could mean we're more susceptible to additional hearing loss/damage with much less exposure than a regular person.

I am curious if anyone out there who already has had some hearing loss, has any experiences where a moderately loud noise exposure that wouldn't hurt a normal person actually caused a measurable change in their hearing thresholds. Or if anyone knows if there are any studies on this anywhere.

I'm hopeful that if I can confirm I haven't physically damaged my ears, my brain will stop worrying, and the mental component will subside. Any insights or experiences would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Michael Leigh]

You have noise-induced tinnitus, @Rings-a-Bell, so there is no guarantee you or anyone else who has this condition will be safe when exposed to overly loud sounds for long periods of time. It doesn't matter if you wear the best hearing protection in the world. When external sound is loud enough, it will pass through the head and transfer to the inner ear by bone conduction. It can cause the tinnitus to spike, and it might reduce within a short period of time, or it could increase the tinnitus for a longer period, which could ultimately increase it to a new permanent level.

I believe a person with noise-induced tinnitus who stays at a venue for 2 hours and the sound levels are 80-85 dB is putting themselves at risk of making their tinnitus worse, even when wearing earplugs.

When a person develops noise-induced tinnitus, with or without hyperacusis, they need to be careful of being exposed to overly loud sounds, even after they have habituated. The auditory system is more sensitive than before. One can still lead an active life, in most cases doing what they want to do. However, there are some precautions they need to take. I advise you never to listen to audio through any type of headphones, even at low volume, and be careful of attending venues where loud music is played. Never put trust in earplugs, no matter how good they are.

I don't think you have physically damaged your ears. I believe your tinnitus has spiked because of being exposed to overly loud sounds. Hopefully, in time, things will settle down. Please click on the links below and read my threads: Can I Habituate to Variable Tinnitus? I Have Noise-Induced Tinnitus, What Should I Do?

All the best,
Michael

Can I Habituate to Variable Tinnitus? | Tinnitus Talk Support Forum
I Have Noise-Induced Tinnitus — What Should I Do? | Tinnitus Talk Support Forum

 

[tomytl]

I have a 55 dB hearing loss notch at 4000 Hz and a tinnitus tone to match it. I've had it for years, and for the last couple of years, I have been mostly habituated. I recently fell out of habituation because I went to a couple of loud social events. Of course, I wore good-quality earplugs, but the spike has arrived nonetheless.

Normal people can listen at 80 dB for eigh hours before they physically damage their ears. I exposed my ears for a couple of hours around the 80-85 dB mark, but with earplugs rated at 15 dB, so there shouldn't be any actual new hearing loss damage, right? Which would mean the spike is all in my brain.

Could it be that our experiences are unique? Perhaps the 'forest' of our hair cells is different from that of healthy individuals. Our 'forest' may be filled with half-knocked-down trees, easily toppled by even the slightest disturbances. This could mean we're more susceptible to additional hearing loss/damage with much less exposure than a regular person.

I am curious if anyone out there who already has had some hearing loss, has any experiences where a moderately loud noise exposure that wouldn't hurt a normal person actually caused a measurable change in their hearing thresholds. Or if anyone knows if there are any studies on this anywhere.

I'm hopeful that if I can confirm I haven't physically damaged my ears, my brain will stop worrying, and the mental component will subside. Any insights or experiences would be greatly appreciated.

Hi,

I can only say that if you already have hearing damage, it's better to avoid concerts or loud events altogether, even with the best ear protection. I learned this the hard way in July.

I've had ear-damaging incidents 20 and 10 years ago. First, I experienced sudden hearing loss, mainly in my left ear. Then, about ten years later, I suffered noise trauma after sitting in a very loud restaurant for 3–4 hours. After that second incident, it took about a year and a half for things to become somewhat bearable again.

Now, ten years later, I'm dealing with another setback after attending a DJ event, despite using professional ear protection. I'm not sure if my hearing has worsened audiometrically, but right after the concert, I felt an annoying pressure without additional hearing loss. Unfortunately, in the days and weeks that followed, the pressure worsened. Then, my tinnitus flared up again, and while it might have decreased a bit after three months, the pressure has come back even stronger. I also feel like I'm hearing less in the mid and low frequencies.

My ears have been very sensitive since the first sudden hearing loss, and I've taken great care to protect them – perhaps too much. I suspect that my ears, already sensitive, are now stressed by even minimal noise, leaving them completely out of balance.

I hope this pressure improves over time. It feels as if there's glue in my ears, and low tones sound very short, as if my eardrums aren't vibrating properly.

It's a huge mess, and I wouldn't recommend anyone with hearing issues to attend concerts. The risk just isn't worth it, and I'm learning that the hard way.

 

[orenge01]

Hi,

I can only say that if you already have hearing damage, it's better to avoid concerts or loud events altogether, even with the best ear protection. I learned this the hard way in July.

I've had ear-damaging incidents 20 and 10 years ago. First, I experienced sudden hearing loss, mainly in my left ear. Then, about ten years later, I suffered noise trauma after sitting in a very loud restaurant for 3–4 hours. After that second incident, it took about a year and a half for things to become somewhat bearable again.

Now, ten years later, I'm dealing with another setback after attending a DJ event, despite using professional ear protection. I'm not sure if my hearing has worsened audiometrically, but right after the concert, I felt an annoying pressure without additional hearing loss. Unfortunately, in the days and weeks that followed, the pressure worsened. Then, my tinnitus flared up again, and while it might have decreased a bit after three months, the pressure has come back even stronger. I also feel like I'm hearing less in the mid and low frequencies.

My ears have been very sensitive since the first sudden hearing loss, and I've taken great care to protect them – perhaps too much. I suspect that my ears, already sensitive, are now stressed by even minimal noise, leaving them completely out of balance.

I hope this pressure improves over time. It feels as if there's glue in my ears, and low tones sound very short, as if my eardrums aren't vibrating properly.

It's a huge mess, and I wouldn't recommend anyone with hearing issues to attend concerts. The risk just isn't worth it, and I'm learning that the hard way.

I agree, but it truly is a shame having to give up music events like this. :/

 

[tomytl]

I agree, but it truly is a shame having to give up music events like this. :/

I don't care about giving the music events up. I've been in such pain since I attended this event.

 

[orenge01]

I don't care about giving the music events up. I've been in such pain since I attended this event.

That's understandable and makes sense. Hopefully it improves for you soon. Setbacks are always a pain.

 

[tomytl]

That's understandable and makes sense. Hopefully it improves for you soon. Setbacks are always a pain.

Thank you! It's really hard to accept that the decision to attend an event with my professional custom-made hearing protection left me with such torture for nothing.

 

[orenge01]

Thank you! It's really hard to accept that the decision to attend an event with my professional custom-made hearing protection left me with such torture for nothing.

Custom-made as well. Wow, that sucks.

I was thinking about getting custom-made earplugs, but if the risk still exists like this, then I don't know if it's worth it. I mean, they aren't exactly cheap...

 

[tomytl]

Custom-made as well. Wow, that sucks.

I was thinking about getting custom-made earplugs, but if the risk still exists like this, then I don't know if it's worth it. I mean, they aren't exactly cheap...

Yes, indeed, I was very shocked, and I'm certain I plugged them in correctly. Otherwise, I would never have attended the event. I can only guess what happened. Perhaps the bass was transmitted through bone conduction, causing issues with my hyperacusis-traumatized inner ear. It's really not worth the risk. Besides, most concerts are either fully or partially playback anyway.

 

[Nick47]

This happened to me. After 15 dB reduction from Vibes earplugs, I spent 3 hours across 3 different bars, with rest time in between.

48 hours later, I experienced tinnitus spikes, pain while listening to the radio, and loudness hyperacusis. There was a significant increase in reactivity and a decrease in stability.

This all started just over 6 weeks ago.

 

[Nettles]

I accidentally came across a slide series from a lecture about noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL). It mentioned that "green" ears, those less exposed to noise, are more susceptible to damage than "ripe" ears, which have been exposed to noise before. This suggests that there's a balance between protecting ourselves from further damage and not allowing our systems to become too shielded. If we do, more damage can occur when we exceed our usual noise threshold too quickly.

I've attached a copy of the slides for anyone who's interested. I don't know who the doctor is, and there's obviously more context that would have been provided during the lecture since slides usually just cover the basics. Still, I found it interesting, especially since I have NIHL in my left ear (a -45 dB notch).

PPT - Noise Induced Hearing Loss PowerPoint Presentation, free download - ID:822015

Noise Induced Hearing Loss. Dr. Vishal Sharma. Definitions. Noise = wrong sound, in wrong place, at wrong time (Park & Park) Acoustic Trauma = sudden, permanent sensori-neural deafness due to single exposure to an intense sound (130-140dB) of < 0.2 sec

www.slideserve.com

 

[Jupiterman]

I broke my leg some time ago, but every time I try to sprint, the pain seems to worsen. How odd, right?

Not really—it's quite obvious, just like the answer to the question in the title of this thread.

I'm surprised that experienced tinnitus sufferers are shocked when using 15 dB earplugs in a noisy environment worsens their tinnitus!

Let everyone read this thread and learn from these honest testimonials.

 

[kingsfan]

Well, evidence suggests that fusiform cells in the dorsal cochlear nucleus become more active and exhibit altered properties in individuals with tinnitus. This makes it quite different from simply having hearing loss without tinnitus. I believe that tinnitus can worsen without any additional hearing loss due to this increased sensitivity. This could also explain why we become sensitive to many medications, especially those that affect serotonin levels - we know that SSRIs cause fusiform cells to become hyperactive and hypersensitive.

 

[Sayon]

This happened to me. After 15 dB reduction from Vibes earplugs, I spent 3 hours across 3 different bars, with rest time in between.

48 hours later, I experienced tinnitus spikes, pain while listening to the radio, and loudness hyperacusis. There was a significant increase in reactivity and a decrease in stability.

This all started just over 6 weeks ago.

Have you noticed any hearing loss along with this, or was it just a spike in your tinnitus and hyperacusis?

 

[Nick47]

Have you noticed any hearing loss along with this, or was it just a spike in your tinnitus and hyperacusis?

I already had profound high-frequency hearing loss. While the environment and noise exposure weren't intense or prolonged enough to cause permanent damage, they were loud enough to trigger a spike and worsen my hyperacusis. On top of that, I drank six pints after being alcohol-free for two and a half years, and alcohol isn't exactly a helpful drug for these conditions.

It seems the sound exposure aggravated my nerves, which in turn intensified the tinnitus. For two and a half years, I avoided wearing hearing protection, making progress with both noxacusis and hyperacusis by staying away from loud, prolonged environments without completely shielding myself. Ironically, this was the first time I used hearing protection.