So, apparently my rushing water, low frequency tinnitus is pulsatile in nature (it was really hard to pick out the heartbeat tempo, but it was there all along). It sometimes increases after earplug use, but is typically louder in the morning when I get out of bed or go to a standing position, or if I am sitting or doing some other kind of compromising maneuver (bending over, squatting, etc). I also get another strange phenomenon in the middle of the night where the level of environmental sounds are also synced to my pulse at night (so they will vary in loundess while my heart beats).
I also have a documented (but small) low frequency hearing loss which appeared in only 2 months in both ears. Every night, or when I take a nap in bed, I realize that my low frequency hearing goes out regularly to some degree. Sometimes it comes back when standing up and being active, and sometimes it does not. I also notice a small drop in my lows when I am doing things to increase my intracranial pressure (coughing, sneezing, bending over, tensing up, laughing, etc, which are also frequently triggers for pulsatile tinnitus). My ears otherwise always feel stuffed up, but not full, and are not relieved by eustachian tube opening (my ears just pop explosively).
These symptoms have often been accompanied by migraine-like headaches, which get worse or appear whenever I am lying down or when I put even minimal pressure on the back of my head. I also occasionally have pressure behind my eyes, especially when lying down. I additionally have other migraine-like symptoms such as parasthesisas, visual snow or strobing and random (half-second) blackouts in my vision (when my headache is more severe), extremely tight, sometimes painful neck muscles and facial muscles, and a feeling of numbness in the back of my head, which follow a perceived hearing loss. My back has also been behaving strangely recently as well, with new curvatures and a lot of stiffness where there were none 2 weeks ago.
Finally, I have subtle balance problems that do not resemble peripheral vertigo, wherein I feel like the world is made of jello and that objects around me have no weight. These balance problems have sometimes resulted in mild ataxia, and in general feelings of spatial disorientation.
I realize that I do not meet the traditional criteria for intracranial hypertension, in that my headache is not always there and is rarely severe, and that I have not had a prolonged deterioration of my vision.
I have been diagnosed with migraine headaches before, but this just seems a little off for that particular diagnosis.
But all of these other symptoms make me very suspicious, especially because they follow events where my CSF pressure is increased naturally.
Any thoughts?
I also have a documented (but small) low frequency hearing loss which appeared in only 2 months in both ears. Every night, or when I take a nap in bed, I realize that my low frequency hearing goes out regularly to some degree. Sometimes it comes back when standing up and being active, and sometimes it does not. I also notice a small drop in my lows when I am doing things to increase my intracranial pressure (coughing, sneezing, bending over, tensing up, laughing, etc, which are also frequently triggers for pulsatile tinnitus). My ears otherwise always feel stuffed up, but not full, and are not relieved by eustachian tube opening (my ears just pop explosively).
These symptoms have often been accompanied by migraine-like headaches, which get worse or appear whenever I am lying down or when I put even minimal pressure on the back of my head. I also occasionally have pressure behind my eyes, especially when lying down. I additionally have other migraine-like symptoms such as parasthesisas, visual snow or strobing and random (half-second) blackouts in my vision (when my headache is more severe), extremely tight, sometimes painful neck muscles and facial muscles, and a feeling of numbness in the back of my head, which follow a perceived hearing loss. My back has also been behaving strangely recently as well, with new curvatures and a lot of stiffness where there were none 2 weeks ago.
Finally, I have subtle balance problems that do not resemble peripheral vertigo, wherein I feel like the world is made of jello and that objects around me have no weight. These balance problems have sometimes resulted in mild ataxia, and in general feelings of spatial disorientation.
I realize that I do not meet the traditional criteria for intracranial hypertension, in that my headache is not always there and is rarely severe, and that I have not had a prolonged deterioration of my vision.
I have been diagnosed with migraine headaches before, but this just seems a little off for that particular diagnosis.
But all of these other symptoms make me very suspicious, especially because they follow events where my CSF pressure is increased naturally.
Any thoughts?
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