- Feb 6, 2015
- 104
- Tinnitus Since
- 2001 & then again in 2021
- Cause of Tinnitus
- 1st tone 2001 ear plugs, 3 other tones 2021 Pfizer vaccine
In May 2021, I developed new tones in my ears two days after receiving the vaccine. These sounded like cicadas and a mass of hissing. Before that, I only had a low rumbling hum. While the new sounds were unpleasant, they remained stable. The hissing was reactive, but I found that the sound of a crackling fire from a white noise machine helped reduce it enough for me to cope.
Then in May 2024, I developed severe hyperacusis after being exposed to a loud, sudden scream directly in my ears. Since then, anything above normal speaking volume causes pain. This event did not significantly affect the loudness of my tinnitus, though the tone became slightly more intense. That change was only noticeable when my ear was pressed against a pillow or otherwise blocked.
In December 2024, I became ill with what was likely COVID. I began to feel better around the 28th, but within the following week, my tinnitus became three times worse. It shifted to a much higher pitch, became louder and more intense, and the reactivity increased dramatically. Now almost every sound makes it feel even louder. High-pitched whines have been added, and the severity changes every few hours, though it never returns to how it was before December. If I take a nap, I wake up with my ears screaming. It has now been three full months without any improvement, and I am beginning to give up hope that it will get better.
I hate this so much and have no idea why it happened. I am currently using five white noise machines at once: two with crackling fire sounds, two with cicadas, and one with a fan, which helps with the rumbling hum I have had for decades. I cannot cope without them. If I am in a quiet room without white noise, I feel like I am going to break down and cry. I cannot watch TV or do anything anymore without being overwhelmed by this constant noise.
The problem is that the white noise does not fully mask it. The tinnitus is too high-pitched and reactive. I am desperate to know if there is anything I can do. The high-pitched screeching in both ears sounds, as best as I can describe, like cutting glass with a box cutter knife. At this point, I have around four or five distinct tones: the low hum, the screeching, the high-pitched whines, a sizzling sound like frying bacon, and the cicadas.
Oddly, even though naps make it worse, if I get seven or more hours of sleep, I sometimes wake up with it at its quietest. But within an hour, the volume and tones all return. I am so tired of this. How did one illness make it so much worse? I had COVID two years ago and the flu a year ago, and neither affected my existing tinnitus. So why now?
Maybe it has to do with the hyperacusis, which I did not have during previous illnesses.
I feel so lost and unsure of what to do. I know many people here are in a similar situation, but if anyone has found a type of white noise that helps with high-pitched reactive tinnitus, please let me know. Also, if anyone has experienced something like this, did it improve? I had been slowly getting better at coping with the tinnitus that started in 2021, but the hyperacusis set me back, and then everything worsened in December.
Thank you to anyone who can help.
Then in May 2024, I developed severe hyperacusis after being exposed to a loud, sudden scream directly in my ears. Since then, anything above normal speaking volume causes pain. This event did not significantly affect the loudness of my tinnitus, though the tone became slightly more intense. That change was only noticeable when my ear was pressed against a pillow or otherwise blocked.
In December 2024, I became ill with what was likely COVID. I began to feel better around the 28th, but within the following week, my tinnitus became three times worse. It shifted to a much higher pitch, became louder and more intense, and the reactivity increased dramatically. Now almost every sound makes it feel even louder. High-pitched whines have been added, and the severity changes every few hours, though it never returns to how it was before December. If I take a nap, I wake up with my ears screaming. It has now been three full months without any improvement, and I am beginning to give up hope that it will get better.
I hate this so much and have no idea why it happened. I am currently using five white noise machines at once: two with crackling fire sounds, two with cicadas, and one with a fan, which helps with the rumbling hum I have had for decades. I cannot cope without them. If I am in a quiet room without white noise, I feel like I am going to break down and cry. I cannot watch TV or do anything anymore without being overwhelmed by this constant noise.
The problem is that the white noise does not fully mask it. The tinnitus is too high-pitched and reactive. I am desperate to know if there is anything I can do. The high-pitched screeching in both ears sounds, as best as I can describe, like cutting glass with a box cutter knife. At this point, I have around four or five distinct tones: the low hum, the screeching, the high-pitched whines, a sizzling sound like frying bacon, and the cicadas.
Oddly, even though naps make it worse, if I get seven or more hours of sleep, I sometimes wake up with it at its quietest. But within an hour, the volume and tones all return. I am so tired of this. How did one illness make it so much worse? I had COVID two years ago and the flu a year ago, and neither affected my existing tinnitus. So why now?
Maybe it has to do with the hyperacusis, which I did not have during previous illnesses.
I feel so lost and unsure of what to do. I know many people here are in a similar situation, but if anyone has found a type of white noise that helps with high-pitched reactive tinnitus, please let me know. Also, if anyone has experienced something like this, did it improve? I had been slowly getting better at coping with the tinnitus that started in 2021, but the hyperacusis set me back, and then everything worsened in December.
Thank you to anyone who can help.
