I have several doctoral degrees and am a physician surgeon. I have tinnitus which is relatively recent onset. There are some observations that I wish to make as a scientist. First, I am not looking for zebras. More simply not every sound of horse hoofs is a zebra sometimes it just a horse.
From my observations I note the following:
1) T occurs more frequently in secretaries, heavy computer users, and people with back and neck pain.
2) I know for a fact that reading intensely for hours can cause neuropraxias in neck and back. It can affect the plexus between the shoulder blades and can even damage motor function to the arms. A person for example suffering from chronic neck and upper back pain from reading or computers is often surprised that one of their arms will collapse when attempting a pushup.
3) Since the rise in tinnitus is associated with these kinds of computer, reading and typing activities, it is in a way similar to carpel tunnel.
4) Tinnitus is a nerve problem. Cranial nerve VIII is vestibulocochlear nerve. the nerve innervates both the cochlear nerve, vestibular nerve. Not surprisingly may with Tinnitus also have occasional labyrinths. Thus Tinnitus is more likely a disease of inflammation that is persistent because the human activity causing the inflammation is consistent.
5) Additionally it is worth noting that the sufferer of Tinnitus also generally suffers from a lack of accommodation of the eye which has been associated with computer screens. This causes blurred vision and presbyopia even in younger workers.
6) There is a significant discussion that vestibular problems are a result of crosslinking of the vestibular stones and cochlear nerve. Of course inflammation causes crosslinking.
Causes of inflammation of the nerves: Viruses, bacteria, impingement, and meningitis type symptoms. I am not looking for zebras here. No I DO NOT SUBSCRIBE TO EMG as the cause of Tinnitus. What I will say is that if you study carpal tunnel you will note that the impingement is on the distal wrist but the never pain can ride as high as both shoulders.
The same thing applies to the cranial nerves. Some innervate the neck, subglossal areas, etc. So inflammation from the neck could in fact radiate up and proximal to the cranial nerves. Computer related neck and upper back pain can be quite severe and unremitting. Those motor and sensory nerves also proximate the cranial nerves and can cause proximate inflammation.
One of the more surprising aspects of chronic computer related back and neck pain is that sleeping in bed does not relieve it. In fact morning stiffness is very common even neck kinking. This almost endless negative feedback pain system simply causes more inflammation and more pain.
Here is how you can test this. If you have these chronic symptoms, focus on your Tinnitus and simply tip your head backward looking more upward. Chances are the symptoms of your Tinnitus will get worse or more simply louder. Move it very slowly.
Any strategy that does not relieve the neck and back inflammation will not allow the cranial nerves to tame down. It would take 3 months for a typical nerve to heal from a neuropraxia. Could Creatine supplements be of benefit? Research is conflicting if not compelling. Glutamine has been shown to reduce soreness over a 96 hour resting period.
The notion of using more muscles to relieve the weaker strap muscles fatigue is also a strategy. For this I would suggest three exercises: Bench press, squats and deadlifts. I would not use particularly heavy weights but limit the reps to no more than three sets of five. The purpose is to spread the duties of the smaller fatigued muscles to the larger muscle groups. This recruitment allows the smaller muscles to rest and recover while the larger muscle assume some of the skeletal positioning and motor duties.
Warm baths and whirlpools may relieve muscle spasms allowing for improved recovery as well.
If inflammation is not stopped then cross linking will occur and nerve damage could become chronic and progressive. The good news is that while nerves are slow growing, they are quite resilient. Most people that work on a computer do have periods of the year where their pain goes into remission. Of course this is healing and when they feel better, they go back to the worst habits. They squint at screens, lean their necks forward and fire up the inflammation again.
Worse, every one of you knows that chronic neck and upper and even lower back soreness. Computer addicts almost all have meningitis type symptoms the full length of the spine. There are no super chairs or proper ergonomic placements or keyboards that can correct for insane computer overuse. Sadly the very traits that make Computer people so important are their ability to focus for long periods of time and concentrate. Mere mortals who check their emails twice a week, don't have your brainpower or your work ethic. More simply a brilliant high powered mind is capable of treating the body like a prisoner in a labor camp. The mind doesn't stop so why should the body be allowed by the brain to stop? So you treat your body like a plow horse beating it until it starts to fail.
One thing about Einstein's brain that was different from other smart brains is that Einstein had more glial cells to insulate the neurons and reduce inflammation. When a typical smart brain focuses, the body temp can rise and can even damage neurons. Bertram Russell after he tried to apply symbolic logic to math was never quite the same. He had a bit of a brain meltdown. A powerful brain needs discipline too. Do not melt your body down just because you have a runaway freight train for a brain. The brain and body need recovery and cool down time. Rule of thumb... don't focus your brain for more than one hour without applying an hour of brain and body rest. Issac Newton and Einstein were both noted for working for about an hour then taking long slow walks of an hour or two in length. Einstein walked with his friend... Kurt Gödel and Newton walked with his dog Diamond. Newton of course was a super genius. So was Maxwell but Maxwell burned out and died young. Maxwell was known for working 16 hours straight with no breaks even for food. Newton had several breakdowns showing that the powerful mind can treat the body with reckless abandon.
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