Punched in Ear. Will My Tinnitus Go Away?

[ZachB]

I will have to defer to the experts on this issue, but my understanding is that after an initial phase of overprotecting, your sensitivity to sound and spikes will dissipate and you can slowly reintroduce more sound.

This is just the case right now.

Is anyone's T louder than an air conditioner? I can't believe some medications made my tinnitus this bad

Hopefully temporarily, I can't do this

 

[Drone Draper]

There are people on here who describe 90db drills and similar sounds.

But loudness of tinnitus does not have a 1-to-1 correlation to how severe the suffering is. In other words, you can have two people with the exact same tinnitus sound and pitch, one person thinks of it as mild, one as severe.

Don't think about measuring your tinnitus right now, it's not conducive to your betterment.

 

[ZachB]

There are people on here who describe 90db drills and similar sounds.

But loudness of tinnitus does not have a 1-to-1 correlation to how severe the suffering is. In other words, you can have two people with the exact same tinnitus sound and pitch, one person thinks of it as mild, one as severe.

Don't think about measuring your tinnitus right now, it's not conducive to your betterment.

Can my tinnitus go away like the ENT said? I guess I'll only know in a few months.

It has to fade. I can't live my life with this noise constantly there and spiking so often.

I can't believe I am so young and need to suffer with this potentially forever

 

[Drone Draper]

Yes, it can! Read all the success stories I sent you. There's also so many cases of habituation.

I have a friend with loud, intrusive tinnitus who isn't bothered one iota. I also have a few friends with milder tinnitus who don't make a big song and dance. My brother has mild tinnitus in one ear from being a professional musician and he doesn't care. I think you and I are both probably people who are more likely to be able to habituate to mild T, let's hope that's where we end up.

 

[ZachB]

Yes, it can! Read all the success stories I sent you. There's also so many cases of habituation.

I have a friend with loud, intrusive tinnitus who isn't bothered one iota. I also have a few friends with milder tinnitus who don't make a big song and dance. My brother has mild tinnitus in one ear from being a professional musician and he doesn't care. I think you and I are both probably people who are more likely to be able to habituate to mild T, let's hope that's where we end up.

What about the tinnitus going away completely ?

 

[Drone Draper]

Look at the success stories I sent you in PM. It does happen!

 

[ZachB]

Look at the success stories I sent you in PM. It does happen!

Yeah. I really hope this is currently just a spike and not permanent from the medication it's horrifying

 

[ZachB]

Yes, it can! Read all the success stories I sent you. There's also so many cases of habituation.

I have a friend with loud, intrusive tinnitus who isn't bothered one iota. I also have a few friends with milder tinnitus who don't make a big song and dance. My brother has mild tinnitus in one ear from being a professional musician and he doesn't care. I think you and I are both probably people who are more likely to be able to habituate to mild T, let's hope that's where we end up.

I don't think my T is mild anymore if this isn't just a spike. Quiet public place 65 DB and my ears are hurting ringing really loudly and badly. Does this ever fade and stop? Am I always gonna be this sensitive to sound? Is this just a spike from my medication?

I'm so scared

 

[Drone Draper]

I told you not to measure it, lol. You are not an audiologist and are probably not matching it correctly.

Like I said, many people here have been sensitive to sound and have had the sensitivity fade.

 

[ZachB]

I told you not to measure it, lol. You are not an audiologist and are probably not matching it correctly.

Like I said, many people here have been sensitive to sound and have had the sensitivity fade.

I have an app that measures DB. It's like sirens it's so loud I don't know how I'll survive this for another 50+ years

 

[Bill Bauer]

The high pitch in my left ear is like so disturbing I can't take it. It pierced through every masking I try.

How do you sleep ?

The idea is not to use masking to stop hearing T. The idea is to give yourself something else to listen to, besides T. Cricket sounds work well for high-pitch tone T. At first you will still be focusing on your T. Hopefully after 15 minutes you will be able to mostly focus on the sounds of the crickets...

 

[ZachB]

The idea is not to use masking to stop hearing T. The idea is to give yourself something else to listen to, besides T. Cricket sounds work well for high-pitch tone T. At first you will still be focusing on your T. Hopefully after 15 minutes you will be able to mostly focus on the sounds of the crickets...

My T is so severe the loud ringing flares up even in my apartment and stays and switches from sirens to other things. Louder then the sink louder than the fridge louder than almost anything. I think the blow to my ear messed something up so badly that I am now cursed permanently with this horrific sounds

It's not T, it's worse than death. I can't ever function again the ringing is so loud and uncontrollable

 

[Bill Bauer]

Louder then the sink louder than the fridge louder than almost anything.

After the onset, I could hear my T over the sound of a car on a highway... I played nature sounds at the highest possible volume, and I could still hear T over it. Like I said, the idea is not to play masking sounds so loud that you can no longer hear T, the idea is to give yourself something else to listen to, in addition to listening to T.

 

[ZachB]

After the onset, I could hear my T over the sound of a car on a highway... I played nature sounds at the highest possible volume, and I could still hear T over it. Like I said, the idea is not to play masking sounds so loud that you can no longer hear T, the idea is to give yourself something else to listen to, in addition to listening to T.

How the hell did my T go from just hearing it on my pillow to this in 4 weeks? Will this ever be livable?

If it stays this loud at this pitch I don't think I can work or do anything ever and it's torture

I put my ear on the pillow either one and hear static

In public my ears ring so loud it's coming from my head and it's louder than everything around me even if I'm perfectly calm

If mine is this bad at 6-7 weeks will it ever go away or has that ship sailed? Will it get back to only hear it in a quiet room and it's a soft hiss ?

 

[Bill Bauer]

Will this ever be livable?

Don't think about the long term. Focus on surviving until the end of the day... In two years you will hopefully feel a lot better (either due to fading or some habituation), but even in the best case scenario you will still need to live through many bad days...

I put my ear on the pillow either one and hear static

Static is a big improvement over a high pitch tone. Hopefully in a month or two it will change to a hiss (first a high-pitch one, and then a more bearable one).

 

[ZachB]

Don't think about the long term. Focus on surviving until the end of the day... In two years you will hopefully feel a lot better (either due to fading or some habituation), but even in the best case scenario you will still need to live through many bad days...

Static is a big improvement over a high pitch tone. Hopefully in a month or two it will change to a hiss (first a high-pitch one, and then a more bearable one).

It's usually high pitched. Very. Piercing. At this point am I a lost hope for quiet rooms only and for this ever going away?

2 years to cope with this? And avoiding pretty much all social environments? 2 years for this to fade a lot??

I can't do my professional obligations with this or go back to school it's too much it's terrifying I may eventually be homeless due to this

 

[Bill Bauer]

am I a lost hope for quiet rooms only and for this ever going away?

Not at all (although that ototoxic medication that you had taken really worries me). What matters is the monthly trend and the global lows. It is normal to have huge spikes on some days. Hopefully in a couple of months the average level of your T will be somewhat quieter than it is now, and that by that time the quietest T that month will be quieter than the quietest T during the previous month. As long as you experience those things, you don't need to worry about what might happen on any given day.

I can't do my professional obligations with this

What kind of work do you do?

 

[Bill Bauer]

What happened with the guy who attacked you? Was he arrested, or did he just walk away?

 

[ZachB]

Not at all (although that ototoxic medication that you had taken really worries me). What matters is the monthly trend and the global lows. It is normal to have huge spikes on some days. Hopefully in a couple of months the average level of your T will be somewhat quieter than it is now, and that by that time the quietest T that month will be quieter than the quietest T during the previous month. As long as you experience those things, you don't need to worry about what might happen on any given day.

What kind of work do you do?

Let's just say I am in quiet room all the time nearly everyday reading. I can't do that I can't concentrate or do anything

I really hope the ototoxic meds effects aren't permanent. TMS warned me it could make things worse and they weren't specialized in it so I'll probably skip that.

I feel like my life is over and I'm in my 20s. Right now it's so loud I wouldn't survive a year of this.

I hear it in my head then also something different when I put my ear on my pillow. My ears were ringing super loud uncontrollably for hours after being in a public place.

Will I always hear this high pitch thing or can it be relatively mild by August?

Is there no hope for mine going away completely now, does what the ENT say not apply to me after this?

 

[ZachB]

What happened with the guy who attacked you? Was he arrested, or did he just walk away?

Walked away didn't find him

 

[Bill Bauer]

I can't do that I can't concentrate or do anything

How long of a sick leave can you have? If you quit your job, how long will it take for you to find a new job in your field, when you are ready to go back to work?

At least your job doesn't involve noise. One person here (about a year ago) had a landscaping business that involved power tools and a wood chipper. Others drive loud trucks...

Right now it's so loud I wouldn't survive a year of this.

I know exactly how you feel. I've been there. It gets better for many people... Also there are those potential cures that will be introduced soon. Two years ago, when I got T, that wasn't the case. It is my understanding that Neuromod's device works better the louder one's T is.

My ears were ringing super loud uncontrollably for hours after being in a public place.

You might consider protecting your ears against all noises that, in your experience, spike your T. But of course, please don't overdo it.

I have been reading this thread with interest and feel it maybe helpful (for me and others) to out myself as a chronic protector...at the moment, I am talking 24/7. If there is anyone out there who is currently doing this, or has successfully overcome this as a way of life (success being without worsening tinnitus), please get in touch as it would be great to hear from you and get some help on moving out of this successfully.

Why do I overprotect in this way (bit of back story, sorry for wall of text):
I have had tinnitus since I was 17; I am now 31. The onset came after a concert, which I went to 4 days after my dad died (stupid in hindsight, yes, but I went under the 'this is what he would have wanted' philosophy). The noise and the grief and stress basically combined to give me intrusive tinnitus that I had no respite from for about 5 years. I had panic attacks and depression. I started coming out of this, incidentally, when I went onto antidepressants. The noise was there, but my reaction improved. I went traveling - on planes, motorbikes, buses and boats and I was ok. I used my ER earplugs (25 filter) and nothing more. I would even listen to headphones on low volume - with the plugs in - when working at the office or to relax. I took the plugs out at home and could use the shower etc without any issue. I went to restaurants and the cinema (although I did begin to double protect, as certain action films just seems too loud for me to enjoy - the worry of the noise made it pointless being there). At the beginning, and for some years, I also never worse earplugs to drive.

Fast forward to 2017, I was getting married in September. That summer was stressful. I was also attending stadium cricket matches (it was the champions trophy, held in the UK) and other friend's weddings. Whilst I wouldn't stay and dance, I would have the food, stay for the speeches, and, if possible (some summer weddings had outside seating) would stay for the evening, if I could get away from the dancefloor. At a wedding I attended in the August of that year, my tinnitus spiked when I was exposed to some loud bass (not in the same room as the dancefloor, but I was walking past that room. The door was open and the bass got me). This spike lasted months and months, dominated my thoughts around the time of my own wedding and overwhelmed my honeymoon experience (we went to Orlando, Miami and The Bahamas). It was during this time that I started double protecting. I double protected pretty much everywhere: when walking down the street, in shops, in restaurants, by the pool, on the beach...everywhere. I could hear street noise from the hotels and so would sleep in earplugs. The one time I didn't, in Orlando, the fire alarm went off and was louder than anything I had heard for sometime. It was awful. I grabbed my earmuffs and hit the floor, but it went on for 20-30secs of torture. It was at that moment that I upgraded my earmuffs to Peltors.

...hmmm, where am I now. So this behaviour hasn't stopped. The behaviour has actually gotten worse (some of you will read this with a 'WTF is wrong with you' reaction, and that's fair enough, my own family say it to me regularly). Nowadays, I am double protecting in the house and out of the house, in my car (I still drive as I have to for work) and when walking the dog. I listen to the tv and films on subtitles and with no volume. On the rare occasions that I watch something with the wife that requires volume, I can't hear the volume anyway through the double protection. I sleep in earmuffs as I can hear the road outside through the single glaze windows. I take baths and don't shower - if I have to shower it is in peltor muffs. When washing my hair, I used waterproof 'swimmers' earplugs and take great care not to make undue noise and splashing. I don't go out really much any more. I have friends over but make excuses not to go out to restaurants or places where it could be loud. I have even started saying no to golf (sounds stupid, but I have). My world has become a lot smaller. I am getting chewed up inside now as it is my brother's 30th birthday tomorrow and his wife has organised a meal for friends in London. I'm invited, she even consulted me on venue and booked a private room, but as it gets nearer I know that I will likely not go. I want to go, but I feel I just can't. I am also in the midst of a spike right now, caused by some road traffic noise. My front door is 20-30m from a road. I like to avoid exposure here and so run to the car/run the dog past the road to quieter wooded area, but today, I felt my earplugs 'pop' maybe due to wax behind the ear, and I'm now terrified it wasn't in correctly and I've caused lasting damage - this worry and spike is despite me having earmuffs ontop of the plugs.
...I also spend ages pushing the plugs into my ears; if they crack or make a sound or pop, I repeat the process until they do not do this when i take my hand away. Embarrassingly, yet truthfully, it has sometimes taken my 20 mins to leave the house satisfied that they are in ok. If they 'pop' when 5m from the front door, I am back in the house repeating the 'process'.

It is important to mention that these things did not happen to me at once. They were incremental, but they are at the point now where I do not recognise the person I was before they happened. I have almost become used to this life. Trying to do something different or outside of my limited comfort zone, puts me into a panic attack and weeks of protracted stress and rumination. The double protecting within the house started when I was caring for a sick family member, who has since died. I didn't want any spikes ontop of that stress...but since I started doing it, it has now become habit...

Would I like things to be different - obviously yes!
Would I rather live like this than have the tinnitus get worse - sadly also yes, which is why I continue to do it...probably

Anyone who has been at this point and doing these things who has recovered to live a normal life, I really commend you and feel happy for you. I would like to get there one day...but I foresee a lot of stress and struggle ahead...

Will I always hear this high pitch thing or can it be relatively mild by August?

It might switch to a hiss over the next 2-5 months.

Is there no hope for mine going away completely now

Don't say that and don't think that. Right now there is still hope. If it stays at the same level for over six months, then the probability that it will improve will be lower at that point. If you notice it improving (global low starts getting quieter and quieter), the probability will become greater.

Tell yourself that you will assume that it is temporary but that the next several months will not be fun and you will do what you can to ride it out.

 

[Bill Bauer]

Good night.

 

[Drone Draper]

Hope you are doing better today, Zach.

 

[ZachB]

Hope you are doing better today, Zach.

Not really. Still getting 1-2 hours of sleep per night.

Is there any hope my T will go away completely like the ENT said?

Ototoxic effects I should know in a few weeks if this increase is permanent...

 

[ZachB]

I've lost hope. From high pitch sound to now new tones including cricket sound and alarms. Spikes randomly or when someone speaks medium voice, it's hurting my ear drums and is louder than the sink. Plus high high high pitch screeching sound in there too.

I officially have extreme tinnitus and my ears are like jet engines when I press on my ear drum. Pulsating too. Ears constantly popping

Sometimes during the day when it's quiet at home I'm able to put my ear on the pillow and it's not horrible

Do I have any hope of returning to low baseline level or did this ototoxic stuff ruin my life forever? I can't fodus enough to read a book even and slept 1-2 hours a night with sleeping pills before this

 

[Bill Bauer]

Do I have any hope of returning to low baseline level or did this ototoxic stuff ruin my life forever?

There's hope, but you will need to wait for months before finding out just how much hope...

 

[ZachB]

There's hope, but you will need to wait for months before finding out just how much hope...

So all this could just be the ototoxic stuff that will wear off? Was yours ever this bad?

Will it for sure fade a lot and stop spiking so high pitched and loud? Will my sleep ever be normal again?

How do people LIVE and WORK and enjoy life with bad T with different pitches and spikes?

I may have hypercausis or it's just ringing so Loud it hurt my ears

I feel incapacitated and nearly brought myself to the ER for this but they can't do much

I fear what happens if I get 1-2 hours sleep for weeks

Is my T considered severe or is this pretty normal for the beginning <kinda beginning cause of the meds>

 

[Bill Bauer]

So all this could just be the ototoxic stuff that will wear off?

It is likely due to that ototoxic exposure.

Was yours ever this bad?

After the onset, I could hear my T over the sound of a car on a highway... I played nature sounds at the highest possible volume, and I could still hear T over it.

Will it for sure fade a lot and stop spiking so high pitched and loud?

There is a chance that it will. If it begins fading within a month or two, the chance that it will continue to fade will be pretty high. So you will need to wait for several months before you can get a better idea of what will happen in the long run.

No matter what happens, after about 18-24 months you will be able to bear it better than you can now.

I fear what happens if I get 1-2 hours sleep for weeks

Hopefully eventually you will be able to start sleeping again. The more sleep deprived you are, the easier it is to fall asleep (holding T level constant)...

 

[ZachB]

It is likely due to that ototoxic exposure.



There is a chance that it will. If it begins fading within a month or two, the chance that it will continue to fade will be pretty high. So you will need to wait for several months before you can get a better idea of what will happen in the long run.

No matter what happens, after about 18-24 months you will be able to bear it better than you can now.

Hopefully eventually you will be able to start sleeping again. The more sleep deprived you are, the easier it is to fall asleep (holding T level constant)...

Will the ototoxic spike go away? This isn't a baseline right? This is impossible to live with this level of T is so loud and piercing I can't imagine anything but constant misery and torture literally every second if it stays this way

 

[Bill Bauer]

Will the ototoxic spike go away?

I don't know much about the likely prognosis for T caused by an ototoxic medication. I remember reading posts both by the people whose T as a result of taking ototoxic medication hasn't gone away And by the people whose T began fading several weeks after they discontinued their ototoxic medication. You might consider searching this forum for posts by people who had a bad reaction to the drugs that you took. You could then contact them asking them to let you know what happened to them during the first year after the onset...

his is impossible to live with this level of T is so loud and piercing I can't imagine anything but constant misery and torture literally every second if it stays this way

Two years after the onset, some people with debilitatingly loud T have reported not having as strong of an emotional reaction as before upon waking up and hearing T...