Ringing in Ears After Using In-Ear Headphones

[Denny33142]

It is unfortunate that i have to post this here under these circumstances, but hopefully some of you can give me guidance on what i should do.

On saturday night i was listening to music with my headphones through my PC, I had the volume to about 70% which is loud but it was not what i would consider "extremely loud", The whole music session lasted about 15-20 minutes, About thirty minutes later my ears started ringing, It is similar to the sound the old CRT TV's use to make when you would turn them on.

When i woke up on sunday morning i still had the ringing sound except that now it was accompanied by muffles and mild pain on both ears, it is a similar feeling to what you get when you dive into a pool and swim about 7-10 feet under water.

Today i still have the ringing and the soreness and it seems unchanged from yesterday, I can clearly hear the ringing when its in a slightly noisy room, However when i go outside the traffic noise seems to be enough to drown out the noise.

If you are curious the headphones i was using are the ones that come with the Samsung S8, Here is the link to the headphones https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16875866099&ignorebbr=1&nm_mc=KNC-GoogleAdwords-PC&cm_mmc=KNC-GoogleAdwords-PC-_-pla-_-Cell+Phone+-+Wired+Headsets+&+Speakers-_-N82E16875866099&gclid=CjwKCAiA693RBRAwEiwALCc3u85WKOm2saSsh3k7ZlLRATYFEUd3LiEBewP_64ZeiBmSouY3yk6G_xoCjNcQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

Also i want to add that i now have more sensitivity to sound, Any moderate sound like a semi truck passing by or the horn of a car really bothers me and seems to aggravate the ringing.

I am 28 years old by the way.

Is this likely to go away or am i screwed? Are there any suggestions out there on what i should be doing to possibly reduce or eliminate this?

Thank You in advance.

 

[billie48]

Welcome to the forum. I looks like you have acoustic trauma from the headphones. Try to get prednisone steroid treatment asap. Also during this period of unstable ears, you need to protect the ears from more loud noise exposure. Give it some time to settle down. You should also see an ENT to make sure no more problem inside the ears. Best of luck. God bless.

 

[Bill Bauer]

There is still a chance that it will be gone before the week is up. If it doesn't end within a week, there is a good chance it will be gone in 3-6-12-24 months. Check out the many studies listed in the thread below
https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/spontaneous-recovery-stats-over-70-recover-3-studies.21441/
Ears can take forever to heal...
xb
If the worst happens and your T becomes permanent, keep in mind that T tends to improve for the better (lower volume, pitch that is easier to ignore), so the sound you are being tormented by now is most likely not the sound you will end up being stuck with.

Search this forum for threads about prednisone. If I remember correctly, prednisone is most effective when taken within 48 hours of acoustic trauma, but I might be wrong.

The bad news is that now that your ears have been compromised, it doesn't take much to cause T to return (if you are one of the lucky people whose T went away), or to make your T louder. Noises that healthy people won't even notice can cause many problems for T sufferers. Do what you can to avoid loud noises. Consider never using headphones again, even at low volume. Check out
https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/isnt-it-ok-to-use-headphones-even-at-low-volume.25287/
https://www.tinnitustalk.com/search/2011950/?q=headphones&o=relevance&c[title_only]=1

I didn't think listening to headphones would affect my ears since I never exceeded 25% of max volume (usually stayed between 10%-15%). I would use them at the gym to help mask my T and they offered some protection against loud noises at the gym. After about 3 months my T was so bothersome and I couldn't pinpoint the cause since I also work with kids and it can get loud at times. I stopped using the headphones and now use earplugs at the gym and the T did subside. I wouldn't recommend using headphones for more than 20 mins a day and no more than 3 times a week. I used to be at the gym for 2 hours 4-5 times a week so it took a toll on my ears.

You might also want to stay away from even moderate noises like that of a vacuum cleaner, blender, hair dryer, etc. for a year or two, to give your body a chance to heal. Many people (including me) tried doing that and were happy with the results.

Some people continue going to concerts while making sure to wear hearing protection like ear plugs. Others choose not to take that risk.

This forum is full of horror stories of people finding out the hard way that ear plugs will not always be enough to protect you.
https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/earplugs-muffs-give-very-little-protection.21737/

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/tinnitus-much-worse-after-club-despite-wearing-solid-35-db-custom-earplugs-—-im-at-my-wits-end.15744/#post-186018

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/bad-spike-not-subsiding-after-loud-bar-—-despite-wearing-properly-inserted-earplugs.20675/#post-239000

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/thread...t-an-acoustic-trauma-shock.18964/#post-219363

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/thread...le-in-real-life-situations.19067/#post-220314

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/33-decibel-earplug-not-protecting-from-sound.22151/

https://www.tinnitustalk.com/threads/why-is-this-spike-not-going-away-1-5-hours-using-heat-gun-hair-dryer.25186/

" iwholovemusic " had a spike for about 2 years after loud event . I remember he had posted this about 2-3 years ago .
He was also wearing ear plugs and ear muffs !

It's been passed 3 month mark and I still have this annoying spike, the ear pain is gone but the spike remained.

Yes. I have Noise induced T. My spike was due to going out to a bar/day drinking/brewery/lots of alcohol. Since that day my T has been screaming.

No live loud music, just a restaurant and a lot of people in it.

I could go on and on and on (provide links to more horror stories where people found out the hard way that it was a bad idea to rely on earplugs), but you get the idea.

Even if those spikes end up being temporary, we are given a limited number of second chances. If one keeps being reckless, eventually a time might come when the spike won't go away...

 

[Denny33142]

Not much has changed today, I haven't lost any sleep which is the only positive thing I can say so far.

I work at a large Medical School and I visited the employee clinic which is staffed by a nurse practitioner, She looked at my ears and noted that I had fluid buildup in my inner ear, I don't know if I have had that for a long time or if it's a direct result of the headphone incident. She ended up prescribing me Loratadine 10MG and Propionate, I was told that if it does not get better within 7 days to schedule an appointment with my doctor, Honestly I don't think I am going to wait that long, If it doesn't get any better by tomorrow I am scheduling an appointment with an ear specialist, although I don't know how long I would have to wait for an appointment.

 

[Bill Bauer]

She looked at my ears and noted that I had fluid buildup in my inner ear

Perhaps that's a positive sign. It is possible that once the doctors fix whatever is wrong with your ear, your T will eventually end too.

And of course it makes sense to see an ENT as soon as possible. The people scheduling your appointment are doing so under the assumption that your symptoms are not very serious. They are trained to think that tinnitus is a minor annoyance, and not anything serious. In reality, your symptoms are very worrying - you began having T, that might get worse if something is not done soon.

 

[Denny33142]

I went to the ENT today and according to the tests i have no hearing loss, They didn't see anything abnormal when looking in my ears, They didn't prescribe me anything and just told me to not "concentrate" on the ringing.

Today the ringing seems worse, its definitely louder as i could now hear it even when walking outside, I hope it gets better because i couldn't concentrate all day at work, Especially because i also have that ear ache and and headache.

 

[Bill Bauer]

Today the ringing seems worse

Did any of the tests seem loud?

 

[Denny33142]

The ringing has been considerably lower today, Actually i noticed yesterday around 8PM that the ringing had been reduced by about 50% from what it was an hour before, Today when i woke up i noticed that it had changed from the high pitched sound i have had for the past 4 days to a hissing sound similar to what you hear on a TV that has no signal, Overall it seems to be at about half as loud now.

I still have sensitivity to sound especially high tones like those from a cell phone ringing, I also still have the ear "fullness" although the ear ache seems to be diminishing.

hopefully this means that that i will totally heal eventually.

 

[Bill Bauer]

Today when i woke up i noticed that it had changed from the high pitched sound i have had for the past 4 days to a hissing sound similar to what you hear on a TV that has no signal

You are healing fast. Good for you. Now just make sure to not get another acoustic trauma.

 

[sjtinguy]

Take it very easy with all sounds for a while and I hope you will recover fully, or at least the tinnitus will drop to a level where you do not think about it except in certain quiet situations. Even if it does go completely away you will need to take extra precaution now with your ears in all loud situations for the rest of your life or risk it coming back. I managed to heal from a particularly bad case of tinnitus 10 years ago only to bring it back recently with exposure that most people would have been able to handle.

if you find them beneficial, try using some masking sounds to help you not think about the tinnitus.. concentrating and stressing out on the sounds on it just reinforces those pathways in your brain. I like fire crackling sounds and rain sounds like these, but there are tons of different sounds on youtube. I would be careful listening though headphones though.. I only listen though normal speakers





this can also be helpful but sometimes i find it annoying and not soothing

 

[Red]

Yep. Also got tinnitus from headphones. Been some months. Still here. Prepare to always have it, but do not let yourself despair. There is hope. But it is also possible it will not go.

Things to avoid:
Movie theaters, concerts, bars, loud restaurants, conventions, etc. Any place you have to shout to be heard

And stop using headphones. Use speakers and keep volume low for a while. (Maybe forever tbh)

 

[Michael B]

Thought I'd add my two cents here to say that I also got tinnitus from earphone use. Used them for years while running.
Hoping the best for you, Denny.

 

[Denny33142]

As of yesterday morning the earache/fullness is gone from my left ear and i also no longer have any ringing from that ear, The right ear still has a slight hiss which i would rate a 3 out of 10 and still feels slightly "clogged" but nowhere near as much as before, I am still suffering from sensitivity to sound but its about half as bad as it was the first 5 days.

I would also like to add that yesterday i had 2 instances where the ringing on my right ear spiked all of a sudden and then died back down within 5 seconds.

I was invited on Saturday to see Jumanji which i turned down, It sucks because i have been waiting for that movie all year (Dwanye Johnson is my favorite actor).

I will not be avoiding Movie Theaters and Restaurants "Forever" as suggested by a poster above, I will be taking precautions in loud events from now on but will not cut myself off from the things that i like to do.

I did have a trip planned for Disney World early next month which i will be postponing as a precaution, I only live 150 miles from Orlando so it's no big deal anyway.

 

[Denny33142]

Sorry for the double post.

Since the T is now gone from my left ear now my right ear T is very annoying, Now i feel "Out of balance" since my left ear is perfect but my right ear is still slightly muffled and still has the ringing noise (although now its more of a hiss than a ringing). I don't know why the T just stopped in one ear and not both, My acoustic trauma was caused by headphones so both ears got an equal amount of noise when it happened.

I am hopeful that if it was able to stop on one ear that the other ear will eventually stop also, I am only 9 days into this mess and it has already felt like a century.

 

[Denny33142]

I have been trying to stay away from loud noises to give my ears a chance to heal, Unfortunately on New Years Eve while doing barbecue with the family in my back yard I experienced the full effects of a Pyrotechnic Salute, You all have probably heard it before, Its a flash in the sky followed by a huge bang that shakes everything, It blew about 25 feet from me.

Fortunately it doesn't seem like it caused any adverse effects, The tinnitus is still only on my right ear now, The hyperacusis is much improved but still not back to normal.