Slap to Ear Caused Tinnitus, Perforated Eardrum, and Ear Infection

[Lulu123]

I am so drained.

3 weeks ago, I was slapped in the left ear. Immediately I felt my hearing was muffled and a ringing. 2 days later I went to my doctor who said my eardrum was perforated and I had an infection. I was prescribed Amoxicillin and Ciprofloxacin eardrops.

A week ago the doctor confirmed that the ear infection is gone and my eardrum is scarring so it's healing. I have a further appointment with an ENT this weekend.

The ringing in my ear is like a high pitched eeeee sound sometimes, other times it sounds like crickets. I've heard another sound a few times like when your phone is vibrating.

In the beginning it was maddening but it seems like it's getting better.

It gets quieter to the point I forget it's there and then louder at various points in the day. When I go to bed now it's usually quieter and I can sleep with the sound machine on, when I get up it gets a bit louder and then quietens down again. It's at its louder when I'm most active.

Is there a chance my tinnitus is fading? I'm very hopeful it does and I'm trying my best not to be anxious. What else can I do to ensure it doesn't get any worse?

Any positive comments will help this very anxious mum, I miss enjoying my son without being anxious about this tinnitus.

Thanks.

 

[Kendra]

Hopefully the ringing will go away or at least lessen quite a bit since it's due to a perforated eardrum. You might ask for prednisone to reduce any possible inflammation thats adding to the ringing.

 

[Lulu123]

Thank you Kendra, I will mention this at my appointment with the ENT.

 

[frpp]

I am so drained.

3 weeks ago, I was slapped in the left ear. Immediately I felt my hearing was muffled and a ringing. 2 days later I went to my doctor who said my eardrum was perforated and I had an infection. I was prescribed Amoxicillin and Ciprofloxacin eardrops.

A week ago the doctor confirmed that the ear infection is gone and my eardrum is scarring so it's healing. I have a further appointment with an ENT this weekend.

The ringing in my ear is like a high pitched eeeee sound sometimes, other times it sounds like crickets. I've heard another sound a few times like when your phone is vibrating.

In the beginning it was maddening but it seems like it's getting better.

It gets quieter to the point I forget it's there and then louder at various points in the day. When I go to bed now it's usually quieter and I can sleep with the sound machine on, when I get up it gets a bit louder and then quietens down again. It's at its louder when I'm most active.

Is there a chance my tinnitus is fading? I'm very hopeful it does and I'm trying my best not to be anxious. What else can I do to ensure it doesn't get any worse?

Any positive comments will help this very anxious mum, I miss enjoying my son without being anxious about this tinnitus.

Thanks.

Be very careful with Ciprofloxacin. It's extremely ototoxic and known to cause hearing loss and tinnitus. It was prescribed to me by a wannabe "doctor" and made everything worse. Still not sure why they make the stuff.

 

[Lulu123]

Story so far

About 6 weeks ago, I was slapped in the left ear. Immediately I felt my hearing was muffled and a ringing. 2 days later I went to my doctor who said my eardrum was perforated and I had an infection. I was prescribed Amoxicillin and Ciprofloxacin eardrops.

2 weeks ago, ENT confirmed ear infection is gone and eardrum healed. Hearing test last night confirmed no hearing loss.

The tinnitus is coming from my left ear and sometimes I feel like its in my head but on the left side. My ENT suggested an MRI because its only in my left ear however now I think about it, sometimes I hear a crackling sound in my right ear when I flex my jaw which only lasts for seconds and doesn't bother me. Also sometimes, I can hear my heartbeat in my right ear when it's very quiet and still, but I think this used happened before the incident.

When I go to lie down in bed (and sometimes when I'm up), I can literally feel a pulsing/buzzing in my face and neck, when I start feeling this, my tinnitus gets louder, almost like its in tune with the pulsing. I use a cold compress and now sleep sitting up which helps sometimes, sometimes less so.

So now my question is should I go for an MRI as I don't want to risk making this worse as I've read it can do. My TINNITUS has gotten better since it started, it does fluctuate from loud to silent but I have more good days than not. Night time is the worst because of all the pulsing and sounds but I can usually sleep ok. Should I leave this alone for a few months to see if it gets better? Or is it worth doing an MRI?

Also I should mention I have high blood pressure, controlled with medication.

 

[Backpacker]

ENT suggested an MRI because its only in my left ear

Type "slap on the ear/ slap/ slap to ear", and check if anyone ever discovered any middle/inner ear damage on MRI.

 

[Lulu123]

Type "slap on the ear/ slap/ slap to ear", and check if anyone ever discovered any middle/inner ear damage on MRI.

Thank you, spent a couple hours looking and doesn't seem to be much results. Haven't really learnt anything.

I'm just confused at this point. Wish I had more answers. Don't know what to do.

 

[Lulu123]

It is the middle of the night and I can't sleep. After a couple of days where my tinnitus was getting more manageable, now my left ear is screaming away and my right ear is thumping away and I can hear my heartbeat in it more loudly. At this point I just feel so dejected. Why me? This is now 7 weeks in and instead of getting better I feel like it is getting worse.

Trying so hard to stay positive.

 

[ajc]

Why me?

Because life is chaotic, unpredictable, and nobody is more special than the other. Why would you be exempt from life's miseries? I've never understood this "why me" thing. Would it be better if someone else was now suffering in your stead? Would you rather inflict this pain and suffering unto someone else? Some people get terminal cancers, or other terminal diseases, some people lose kids to suicides, some people stumble on the street and get paralyzed from neck down.

You got this problem. You have to accept and live with it until there's medical solutions for it.

 

[Lulu123]

Because life is chaotic, unpredictable, and nobody is more special than the other. Why would you be exempt from life's miseries? I've never understood this "why me" thing. Would it be better if someone else was now suffering in your stead? Would you rather inflict this pain and suffering unto someone else? Some people get terminal cancers, or other terminal diseases, some people lose kids to suicides, some people stumble on the street and get paralyzed from neck down.

You got this problem. You have to accept and live with it until there's medical solutions for it.

Thank you for your response but I think it is a pretty unfair thing to say to someone who feels pretty down already. Sometimes people come on sites like this for a little encouragement and understanding.

 

[star-affinity]

@Lulu187, how are you now?

 

[Lulu123]

I've decided to come back and post this update as I remember quite how frustrating it was to not to find many positive recovery stories here relating to my situation. I now understand that most people who recover from their tinnitus pretty much get on with life and don't want to be reminded of it by coming back to tinnitus support groups.

For anyone reading my story, I have completely recovered from my tinnitus. When I look back at how dejected I felt posting my initial messages, I didn't think it could get better and felt pretty hopeless. My ENT doctor did all the tests and found no issues once my eardrum had healed, he told me to ignore it and it would go away and at the time I couldn't comprehend that. I wish I listened to him earlier rather than spending time googling and reading the horror stories as i'm pretty sure that contributed to my suffering.

So how did I get better? Well I took advice from watching Julian Cowan Hill and Joey Remenyi YouTube videos, stopped all googling and coming to tinnitus support groups. I started practicing mindfulness and meditation. I tried to get on with my life as well as possible, started an online business, enjoying my little boy, going out with my family and friends. I also downloaded an app called Curable which also helped me to manage anxiety and stress related to my tinnitus.

Honestly that's all I did, and within 6 months the volume of my tinnitus reduced enough to the point where I noticed it a little less and I could sleep better. It continued to improve and now almost 2 years later I almost never notice it, and when I do, it's so quiet I can ignore it and get on with life. About a year ago, I went to a club and when I came back it was noticeably louder but I didn't panic, I just did some breathing exercises, went to sleep and by the next morning it was back to quiet. I've been to clubs and parties since and never had any issues.

I still hear my heartbeat in my right ear, depending how I rotate my neck. However this doesn't bother me anymore either and I can pretty much just ignore it mostly.

I probably won't come back here anymore so I may miss any future messages. I hope anyone reading this can take comfort in my experience and know it can and will get better. Stay away from the negative horror stories!