Struggling a Lot — Is This Hyperacusis or Something Else?

[Yuuls]

I have had tinnitus since November 20th. Started out as crazy ringing in both ears, multiple tones, loud crickets, beeping sounds, tuning forks, pretty much every sound people have described on here and then some.

My tinnitus followed a weekend of lots of noise exposure. Friday night - concert. Just a band and a singer, very calm music so not heavy metal or EDM, don't remember it feeling too loud. No ringing after/fullness.

Saturday night, went out for a friend's birthday. Got water stuck in my left ear after a shower and attempted multiple Reddit cures to get it out, jumping on my left side, laying down for a bit, stupidly I used a blow dryer to try and dry it out ( on low) I LITERALLY CRINGE EVERY TIME I THINK OF THIS. WHY AM I SO STUPID. I never felt the water flow out btw. The empty drum sound when my teeth touched was gone so I thought it was fine. No issues the next morning. That Sunday I went to a restaurant and sat outside, so it wasn't loud, and spent maybe 2 or 3 hours in a dive bar that was playing music but I don't recall it being loud either. I do have a history of headphone use and concerts with no ear plugs (I honestly didn't know it was a thing) but I've never experienced even a mild ringing after concerts or nights out.

That following Wednesday, I'm sitting at work and my ears almost popped and I heard a wind sound in my ear. It was so drastic it disoriented me. The ringing set in and never went away.

3 weeks later I'm visiting my parents and noticed at breakfast my dad's voice sounded overly loud. After that, I go down a rabbit hole of searching about hyperacusis - yay another shitty symptom. Of course I freak out even more. I had severe mental breakdowns from the onset of my tinnitus and am generally a very anxious person.

I am now about 2 months out and for the past few weeks have noticed a weird whistle sound that appears over things like distant traffic, distant fans, some music, blow dryers, basically any sort of white noise. It drives me absolutely crazy and is making me extremely depressed.

I'm not sure if my tinnitus has gotten better as recently I've been using a fan in my room and always have my TV on so it's masked for the most part and I am afraid of turning it all off. When I plug my ears the ringing does seem a bit better - but sometimes it takes like 30 seconds or so of silence to get back in gear so could be that as well.

But anyone here experience the same thing or have any advice? I have heard of things such as dysacusis or it being linked with hyperacusis. Will it get better with time? I am at that point where I am just mentally exhausted and tired of feeling sad. The tinnitus I can manage, but this is a whole other beast because the things that seem to help others (white noise and music) seem to irritate me even further, but silence is not an option.

I seem to be okay with tolerating things like dishes now, and even buses passing by. I don't seem to get that "burning" pain that comes with hyperacusis, maybe it's too early for that?

I've seen an audiologist and I don't have any hearing loss according to the basic test. I have not yet tested for hidden loss.

Please help. I can't take this anymore

 

[Juan]

It can be just a temporary threshold shift in your hearing, if sound does not feel balanced but you hear like the central frequencies amplified and the subtle low and high sounds dampened.

At the beginning of tinnitus or hyperacusis ears get specially crazy but there is a better chance of recovery.

Your normal weekend, concert, bar, sounds pretty loud actually. If you looked at decibel readings at some of those places maybe you will be surprised.

Anyway, the best you can do now is first of all relax, then try to avoid noisy places and specially impulse noise, rest your ears, do a bit of exercise, eat healthy and give this problem a good 6 months to see how it evolves. Hearing heals extremely slowly.

 

[Yuuls]

It can be just a temporary threshold shift in your hearing, if sound does not feel balanced but you hear like the central frequencies amplified and the subtle low and high sounds dampened.

At the beginning of tinnitus or hyperacusis ears get specially crazy but there is a better chance of recovery.

Your normal weekend, concert, bar, sounds pretty loud actually. If you looked at decibel readings at some of those places maybe you will be surprised.

Anyway, the best you can do now is first of all relax, then try to avoid noisy places and specially impulse noise, rest your ears, do a bit of exercise, eat healthy and give this problem a good 6 months to see how it evolves. Hearing heals extremely slowly.

That is what it feels like. I feel like before, I heard fine at all times and now even if I'm in my car and I turn my head different the music (not loud) feels like it sound a bit different. That extra sound I hear over white noise almost sounds like amp feed back but more dull, consistent and not as sharp.

When I woke up today, my fan sounded normal, as it should, but last night it was all over the place so I know what I'm hearing isn't normal.

But yeah, I'd have that type of weekend maybe once a month. I usually don't go out all three days, let alone even one so I wouldn't call that a normal weekend. But I have been measuring db levels and while I haven't been to a loud place in over two months now, I think even the usual happy hour bars that I went to with coworkers were loud.

I am opting for outdoor breweries, quiet bars/restaurants now, avoiding public transportation where possible and bringing ear plugs for unexpected loud noises.

I do think I had some hearing sensitivity/very mild hyperacusis that was developing before my ears started ringing. Trying to stay positive but it's really hard, hoping patience pays off.

 

[Auron]

noticed a weird whistle sound that appears over things like distant traffic, distant fans, some music, blow dryers, basically any sort of white noise

I have this. I hear humming, ringing, beeps among others. My dryer is worse, I could still hear my dryer as I remember, but it definitely takes a back seat to this really loud ringing coming from it. Bad news for me is that I'm almost 8 months in with this and it hasn't gotten better. But good news for you is that you are in the early stages and many people have reported that it has gotten better for them, and since you reported that your fan sounded better upon waking, that is a good sign. I'm making no promises but others with dysacusis have reported it going away even after a year! As you mentioned patience is the key.

 

[Yuuls]

I have this. I hear humming, ringing, beeps among others. My dryer is worse, I could still hear my dryer as I remember, but it definitely takes a back seat to this really loud ringing coming from it. Bad news for me is that I'm almost 8 months in with this and it hasn't gotten better. But good news for you is that you are in the early stages and many people have reported that it has gotten better for them, and since you reported that your fan sounded better upon waking, that is a good sign. I'm making no promises but others with dysacusis have reported it going away even after a year! As you mentioned patience is the key.

Fingers crossed it gets better for you as well! 8 months in, you still have a chance.

I was just sitting at a sandwich shop and there was no music playing there and I was so happy. Then they turned it on - not too loud thank good. But Warwick Avenue by Duffy was on and the song was emitting the most annoying tone during certain notes. Good thing I was almost finished with my food.

It almost sounded like one of those Tibetan sound bowls. It's as if certain tones are slightly higher pitched and drag out longer.

 

[Backpacker]

I'm sitting at work and my ears almost popped and I heard a wind sound in my ear. It was so drastic it disoriented me.
for the past few weeks have noticed a weird whistle sound

Would you describe "wind sound" or "weird whistle sound" as water streaming tinnitus?

 

[Yuuls]

Would you describe "wind sound" or "weird whistle sound" as water streaming tinnitus?

No - I only experienced the wind sound for like 5-10 seconds before the actual ringing began. It sounded like when wind blows around your house during a bad storm. My ears kinda clicked and popped and then woooooshh, and the ringing set in at some point after that.

 

[Auron]

That extra sound I hear over white noise almost sounds like amp feed back but more dull, consistent and not as sharp.

Good description of what I hear too.

if I'm in my car and I turn my head different the music (not loud) feels like it sound a bit different.

Are you saying if you tilt or move your head around a little that you can lessen the intensity of this noise? On trigger objections, like a fan for example, if I tilt my head just a little or move my whole body even a few inches I can lessen the ringing noise if I find the right spot. So weird.

 

[Yuuls]

Good description of what I hear too.

Are you saying if you tilt or move your head around a little that you can lessen the intensity of this noise? On trigger objections, like a fan for example, if I tilt my head just a little or move my whole body even a few inches I can lessen the ringing noise if I find the right spot. So weird.

I was in the shower the other day and looking up there was this annoying whistle noise coming from the water. When I looked down, it almost stopped.

I'm not sure if it's the movement that's causing it, or just the position of my ears in relation to the noise.

Right now I have our house heater going and my left ear is doing this weird whistle over it. I can almost feel it if that makes sense but it's very very quiet. It kinda feels like someone is blowing into my ear mildly but it sounds like a very very very distant soft train horn (like the old school trains).

WTF is this!! This is the ear I got water stuck in and that feels sticky and pops a bunch when I chew.