Tinnitus and Hyperacusis a Day After Shooting a .357 Magnum Revolver with Hearing Protection

[Mark F.]

So, I took my wife hiking in May of this year. After 3 hours of hiking we came upon an opening where it was obvious people use the spot to shoot. So we each fired 3 rounds from my .357 Magnum revolver. .357 bullets, not the quieter .38 Special bullets. I had earplugs in, she had on earmuffs. Neither of us experienced any pain or ringing.

The next day I noticed ringing and everything seemed louder, and very annoying to my ears. I later learned this was hyperacusis. My wife had no problems whatsoever. After a couple days of the constant 4000 Hz ringing and the mild hyperacusis, I started to panic. Fear, dread, regret, depression, terrible anxiety... You all know the feelings.

Long story short, my ears have quieted down and I can now sleep 7-9 hours/night again. I took no drugs and just had faith that my body would start to heal and adapt, which it has. At first my tinnitus was mild, but fear-inducing as it seemed permanent. I would say it is quieter now, yet still there. I can go about my day and forget about it mostly. Quiet rooms and surroundings make me notice it. But now i don't get that primal, "fight-or-flight", sick feeling in my gut when I become aware of it. Thank God!

I hope it continues to fade away over the next few years, and hopefully I will experience true silence once again. If not, I am already getting used to it.

Any stories involving gunshots or other sudden acoustic traumas would be very welcome here. I would love to hear the experiences of others.

Thank you for reading this! May everyone suffering from these ear issues find healing, sanity, strength, health, peace, and happiness.

 

[gameover]

Welcome. I missed your introduction post, so did others it seems.

We are in a club many of us did not know exists, and we definitely did not want to join. Alas many of us are still here. We all want to leave, I hope you will. Best.

 

[Muggumbo]

If you've already noticed fading, it can definitely fade more. It will just be way slower than you'd like.

 

[RunningMan]

It sounds pretty mild based on your comments about quiet rooms making you notice it and that you mostly forget about it. Maybe it will heal and ease further, but definitely put more effort into protecting your hearing from here on out now that it's been compromised.

I would love to be able to go back and do the same when mine was mild, because it got a lot worse and am still struggling with sleep about 2 years into my tinnitus intensity increasing - got about 4 hours last night.

 

[Mark F.]

Thank you guys for responding.

It sounds pretty mild based on your comments about quiet rooms making you notice it and that you mostly forget about it. Maybe it will heal and ease further, but definitely put more effort into protecting your hearing from here on out now that it's been compromised.

I would love to be able to go back and do the same when mine was mild, because it got a lot worse and am still struggling with sleep about 2 years into my tinnitus intensity increasing - got about 4 hours last night.

I have been carrying 33dB NRR foam earplugs with me wherever I go. As you all know, wearing earplugs silences all but the tinnitus... which is annoying. But, it's better than compromising my healing, or hurting my ears further and making the tinnitus worse.

Have you tried meditation? Maybe focus on your tinnitus instead of your breath. Maybe that could help your brain make peace with the sound(s), allowing your mind to relax and sleep better/longer at night. Just a thought.

 

[RunningMan]

Thank you guys for responding.

I have been carrying 33dB NRR foam earplugs with me wherever I go. As you all know, wearing earplugs silences all but the tinnitus... which is annoying. But, it's better than compromising my healing, or hurting my ears further and making the tinnitus worse.

Have you tried meditation? Maybe focus on your tinnitus instead of your breath. Maybe that could help your brain make peace with the sound(s), allowing your mind to relax and sleep better/longer at night. Just a thought.

I have some. I actually bought the paid version of the Calm app when my tinnitus was more mild yet still distracting at times and was having trouble sleeping. Ironically, but unrelated, my tinnitus got much worse just over a month later, so my sleep got even worse.

I've done a lot of research into it, as far as sleep hygiene, medications, etc. related to sleep trying to improve it. Cooler temps, weighted blanket, avoiding blue light near bedtime, completely darkening, exercise, cricket sounds, music, various supplements, THC, CBD, sleep meds, and more. I haven't been on Mirtazapine that some people use. Zolpidem / Ambien helps some at low dose overnight if I can't sleep. Lorazepam (Ativan) seems to help a little.

I probably average closer to 5 hours of broken sleep - 4 would be more of a bad night. But it's difficult to really measure it because it's broken, and I lie there awake for a while quite a bit. And Fitbit isn't very helpful since it thinks I'm sleeping a lot of times when I'm just lying still thinking about things.

 

[Mark F.]

I have some. I actually bought the paid version of the Calm app when my tinnitus was more mild yet still distracting at times and was having trouble sleeping. Ironically, but unrelated, my tinnitus got much worse just over a month later, so my sleep got even worse.

I've done a lot of research into it, as far as sleep hygiene, medications, etc. related to sleep trying to improve it. Cooler temps, weighted blanket, avoiding blue light near bedtime, completely darkening, exercise, cricket sounds, music, various supplements, THC, CBD, sleep meds, and more. I haven't been on Mirtazapine that some people use. Zolpidem / Ambien helps some at low dose overnight if I can't sleep. Lorazepam (Ativan) seems to help a little.

I probably average closer to 5 hours of broken sleep - 4 would be more of a bad night. But it's difficult to really measure it because it's broken, and I lie there awake for a while quite a bit. And Fitbit isn't very helpful since it thinks I'm sleeping a lot of times when I'm just lying still thinking about things.

I hope you eventually get more/better sleep. I think you said you've been struggling with a tinnitus spike, and poor sleep, for two years now? How loud/bad would you say your tinnitus is nowadays?

 

[RunningMan]

I hope you eventually get more/better sleep. I think you said you've been struggling with a tinnitus spike, and poor sleep, for two years now? How loud/bad would you say your tinnitus is nowadays?

Poor sleep goes back even longer, but I might have been able to average 6 hours of sleep 5 years ago with no sleep meds, which never felt like enough for me. I bought a couple of sound machines back in 2018, and it wasn't exactly a new problem even at that point. My tinnitus goes back many years and just slowly got worse. So that could have been a factor in my worsening sleep over the years.

But yes, in February 2022, I had a sudden increase in tinnitus intensity, which brought on a lot of anxiety as well. In the months after, I was getting nights with 0 hours (back to back nights one time), 2 hours, 3 hours, maybe 4 hours. It took a few months for my average to get closer to 5 hours, but even then varying quite a bit from night to night, and that's with low dose Zolpidem assistance at some point overnight most nights to get back to sleep for another hour or so.

It seems pretty bad. I also have low-frequency tinnitus that varies in how bothersome it is, and a mid-frequency tinnitus started a year after the high-frequency tinnitus spiked that would cycle in and out every several seconds - very distracting trying to sleep. Sometimes that mid-frequency tinnitus is less noticeable for a while and then comes back as it has recently with less of a cycling characteristic. The high-frequency tinnitus has been there the longest and cycles (over hours/days) in intensity and sound (piercing single tone vs. high-frequency hiss). I can hear it over general environmental and city sounds, sounds of crickets/cicadas in neighborhood trees, over the TV, over box fans, pretty much anything except the shower. Even so, my night time crickets/cicadas sound through a pair of Bluetooth speakers to each side helps take away some of the focus on it.

Fortunately, my hyperacusis hasn't been too bad, and my TTTS isn't acting up most of the time. If I have any pain in my ears, it's pretty brief with no change over the last 22 months. So, I realize I don't have it as bad as some of the people suffering out there. And for me, the anxiety is as much of a problem or more than my sleeping issues.

 

[Mark F.]

Poor sleep goes back even longer, but I might have been able to average 6 hours of sleep 5 years ago with no sleep meds, which never felt like enough for me. I bought a couple of sound machines back in 2018, and it wasn't exactly a new problem even at that point. My tinnitus goes back many years and just slowly got worse. So that could have been a factor in my worsening sleep over the years.

But yes, in February 2022, I had a sudden increase in tinnitus intensity, which brought on a lot of anxiety as well. In the months after, I was getting nights with 0 hours (back to back nights one time), 2 hours, 3 hours, maybe 4 hours. It took a few months for my average to get closer to 5 hours, but even then varying quite a bit from night to night, and that's with low dose Zolpidem assistance at some point overnight most nights to get back to sleep for another hour or so.

It seems pretty bad. I also have low-frequency tinnitus that varies in how bothersome it is, and a mid-frequency tinnitus started a year after the high-frequency tinnitus spiked that would cycle in and out every several seconds - very distracting trying to sleep. Sometimes that mid-frequency tinnitus is less noticeable for a while and then comes back as it has recently with less of a cycling characteristic. The high-frequency tinnitus has been there the longest and cycles (over hours/days) in intensity and sound (piercing single tone vs. high-frequency hiss). I can hear it over general environmental and city sounds, sounds of crickets/cicadas in neighborhood trees, over the TV, over box fans, pretty much anything except the shower. Even so, my night time crickets/cicadas sound through a pair of Bluetooth speakers to each side helps take away some of the focus on it.

Fortunately, my hyperacusis hasn't been too bad, and my TTTS isn't acting up most of the time. If I have any pain in my ears, it's pretty brief with no change over the last 22 months. So, I realize I don't have it as bad as some of the people suffering out there. And for me, the anxiety is as much of a problem or more than my sleeping issues.

Wow! That's a lot you're dealing with. Based on what I picked up from reading your response, I'd say your tinnitus would be severe? Would you agree with that? What has been helpful for you to reduce/manage your anxiety?

 

[RunningMan]

Wow! That's a lot you're dealing with. Based on what I picked up from reading your response, I'd say your tinnitus would be severe? Would you agree with that? What has been helpful for you to reduce/manage your anxiety?

Yes, I would say my tinnitus is severe. The best thing for my anxiety has been exercise that gets my heart rate up for about an hour. But, I usually do that in the late afternoon, and it helps for the remainder of the day along with louder tinnitus. Sleep is still poor, and the exercise effect benefit doesn't carry over to the next morning. Walking low impact exercise doesn't help so much, which i normally do earlier in the day.

I take Ativan (Lorazepam) every few days for anxiety or as needed, which I actually did at a family Christmas dinner away from home yesterday. I have tried Nortriptyline, Sertraline (Zoloft), and Escitalopram (Lexapro) to help with anxiety, but none worked out. I took Nortriptyline at half the prescribed dose for a few months, still had some side effects, and I felt no benefit. Sertraline was only a week due to side effects, and Escitalopram was 6 weeks at regular dose, no benefit, and had side effects. So I'm off all of them now.

I'm hoping to find something other than exercise and occasional Ativan (Lorazepam) that will help and that my doctor would be willing to prescribe. I've done the research, so I just need to follow up with the doctor, but I feel like I haven't yet returned to baseline after stopping Escitalopram. So I'm holding off a while for now before trying anything new.

Hyperacusis only bothered me one time yesterday, when someone laughed really loud. I forgot to mention I have moderate hearing loss, plus it drops off quickly near 8 kHz+.

 

[Mark F.]

I hope everyone has a happy new year! Hopefully we will see progress in reclaiming peace and joy in our lives. Here's to a better year in 2024!

 

[Mark F.]

I am leaving these forums as I need a break from all the understandable pain and misery. I have mild/stable tinnitus that I think has gotten a bit quieter since the onset 9 months ago. I have gotten used to it, for the most part. My hyperacusis and ear pain have mostly gone away.

Thank you all for your support over the last few months. Tinnitus Talk, and all you people, have been a true blessing! I just want to try and forget about this trauma and move on with my life. I will continue to protect my ears going forward. I will post an update in 6 months. God bless you all. May we all find healing and peace!

 

[Mark F.]

I'm back with an update. The tinnitus is still with me—mild and stable—and for that, I am VERY grateful. I know it could be much, much worse. The hardest part has been forgiving myself for the poor choices I made the day my wife and I went shooting. I already had a mountain of regrets, and when this happened, I couldn't believe it. I knew better.

I had two clear rules: *always* wear muffs over plugs when shooting, and *never* shoot magnum loads unless it's a life-or-death situation. But that day, I broke both of my own rules. Now, I'll probably live with the noise in my head—and the regret—forever. I guess that's life. No matter how smart or careful we try to be, we're all capable of making mistakes.

I still carry 33dB foam plugs with me everywhere, and I never hesitate to use them. This summer, I built a deck with my neighbor. Between hammering nails, using circular saws, and operating masonry drills, I wore earmuffs. That way, I could remove them quickly to communicate. I also use muffs over plugs when mowing the lawn.

On the positive side, I've noticed that my hyperacusis has pretty much disappeared. I can bike, walk, or jog along busy roads without needing earplugs—and I'm fine. Although wearing plugs reminds me of the regret (as all I hear is the ringing), I remind myself of all the other challenges I've already survived. When it gets tough, I tell myself, *"This too shall pass."* Maybe the noise will even get quieter someday.

Even if it doesn't, I've healed a lot since May '23. I've started taking on home projects again and am beginning to feel more like my old self. The darkness is finally lifting.

Stay strong, everyone!

 

[Furetto]

I'm back with an update. The tinnitus is still with me—mild and stable—and for that, I am VERY grateful. I know it could be much, much worse. The hardest part has been forgiving myself for the poor choices I made the day my wife and I went shooting. I already had a mountain of regrets, and when this happened, I couldn't believe it. I knew better.

I had two clear rules: *always* wear muffs over plugs when shooting, and *never* shoot magnum loads unless it's a life-or-death situation. But that day, I broke both of my own rules. Now, I'll probably live with the noise in my head—and the regret—forever. I guess that's life. No matter how smart or careful we try to be, we're all capable of making mistakes.

I still carry 33dB foam plugs with me everywhere, and I never hesitate to use them. This summer, I built a deck with my neighbor. Between hammering nails, using circular saws, and operating masonry drills, I wore earmuffs. That way, I could remove them quickly to communicate. I also use muffs over plugs when mowing the lawn.

On the positive side, I've noticed that my hyperacusis has pretty much disappeared. I can bike, walk, or jog along busy roads without needing earplugs—and I'm fine. Although wearing plugs reminds me of the regret (as all I hear is the ringing), I remind myself of all the other challenges I've already survived. When it gets tough, I tell myself, *"This too shall pass."* Maybe the noise will even get quieter someday.

Even if it doesn't, I've healed a lot since May '23. I've started taking on home projects again and am beginning to feel more like my old self. The darkness is finally lifting.

Stay strong, everyone!

Thank you very much for coming back with an update; it's really appreciated.

So, if I understand correctly:

• You are 17 months post-incident.
• From the onset, you had mild tinnitus, pain, and hyperacusis.
• It took 10 months for the pain and hyperacusis to heal.
• Has the volume of your tinnitus stayed the same, or has it faded a bit?
• You have habituated and don't notice it anymore?

 

[kingsfan]

I'm back with an update. The tinnitus is still with me—mild and stable—and for that, I am VERY grateful. I know it could be much, much worse. The hardest part has been forgiving myself for the poor choices I made the day my wife and I went shooting. I already had a mountain of regrets, and when this happened, I couldn't believe it. I knew better.

I had two clear rules: *always* wear muffs over plugs when shooting, and *never* shoot magnum loads unless it's a life-or-death situation. But that day, I broke both of my own rules. Now, I'll probably live with the noise in my head—and the regret—forever. I guess that's life. No matter how smart or careful we try to be, we're all capable of making mistakes.

I still carry 33dB foam plugs with me everywhere, and I never hesitate to use them. This summer, I built a deck with my neighbor. Between hammering nails, using circular saws, and operating masonry drills, I wore earmuffs. That way, I could remove them quickly to communicate. I also use muffs over plugs when mowing the lawn.

On the positive side, I've noticed that my hyperacusis has pretty much disappeared. I can bike, walk, or jog along busy roads without needing earplugs—and I'm fine. Although wearing plugs reminds me of the regret (as all I hear is the ringing), I remind myself of all the other challenges I've already survived. When it gets tough, I tell myself, *"This too shall pass."* Maybe the noise will even get quieter someday.

Even if it doesn't, I've healed a lot since May '23. I've started taking on home projects again and am beginning to feel more like my old self. The darkness is finally lifting.

Stay strong, everyone!

At least you used hearing protection - though maybe not as much as you would have liked. Things could have ended up a lot worse if you hadn't.

 

[Mark F.]

Thank you very much for coming back with an update; it's really appreciated.

So, if I understand correctly:

• You are 17 months post-incident.
• From the onset, you had mild tinnitus, pain, and hyperacusis.
• It took 10 months for the pain and hyperacusis to heal.
• Has the volume of your tinnitus stayed the same, or has it faded a bit?
• You have habituated and don't notice it anymore?

• Yes... It's been 17 months since the incident.
• Yes... Tinnitus, pain, hyperacusis were maybe "moderate" right after the incident.
• I'd say at least 3 months for dull ache in my ears to go away. 9 months, at least, for the hyperacusis to settle down.
• The volume of my tinnitus HAS faded. It is definitely in the mild category nowadays.
• I notice it every day, but I am getting used to it. I no longer get that nasty, panic feeling in my gut when I become aware of the tinnitus.
• And I am back to sleeping 7-8 hours every night. I have taken ZERO medications, have done ZERO counselling, no TRT... nada! I believe the body will heal itself, if you just leave it alone. Messing around with Big Pharma and dubious doctors has made a lot of people here worse.

How are you doing? Any improvements?

At least you used hearing protection - though maybe not as much as you would have liked. Things could have ended up a lot worse if you hadn't.

Just gotta say... I love your avatar! Hahaha.

 

[Furetto]

• The volume of my tinnitus HAS faded. It is definitely in the mild category nowadays.
• I notice it every day, but I am getting used to it. I no longer get that nasty, panic feeling in my gut when I become aware of the tinnitus.

I'm so happy and personally relieved to hear that! From what I understand, before your tinnitus can start to heal, all the other underlying issues need to be resolved. My theory is that your tinnitus really began to heal over the past 7-8 months. Do you have the same impression?

I believe your next update might be something like, "My tinnitus has faded to the point that I only hear it in a quiet room if I focus on it, and it never bothers me anymore. I even forget about it for days." Fingers crossed!

 

[Mark F.]

I'm so happy and personally relieved to hear that! From what I understand, before your tinnitus can start to heal, all the other underlying issues need to be resolved. My theory is that your tinnitus really began to heal over the past 7-8 months. Do you have the same impression?

I believe your next update might be something like, "My tinnitus has faded to the point that I only hear it in a quiet room if I focus on it, and it never bothers me anymore. I even forget about it for days." Fingers crossed!

If I understood your last reply, your theory is that the ear aches/pain and hyperacusis must subside BEFORE the
tinnitus starts to fade. Am I correct on that? If so, I really don't have a clue how the body/mind heal, and if healing is in a
certain order, or everything at once. All I know is I have been fortunate that I am not working these last 17 months, and I
have been very vigilant about protecting my ears from loud sounds. In other words, I've really been able to rest my ears
and my psyche... thus giving myself the best chance at recovery.

 

[Furetto]

If I understood your last reply, your theory is that the ear aches/pain and hyperacusis must subside BEFORE the
tinnitus starts to fade. Am I correct on that? If so, I really don't have a clue how the body/mind heal, and if healing is in a
certain order, or everything at once. All I know is I have been fortunate that I am not working these last 17 months, and I
have been very vigilant about protecting my ears from loud sounds. In other words, I've really been able to rest my ears
and my psyche... thus giving myself the best chance at recovery.

From what I've seen on this forum, I've never come across anyone saying, "My tinnitus is gone, but my hyperacusis and aches are still there."

What I usually see is the opposite: "My hyperacusis resolved after X months, and then, after another X months, my tinnitus faded."

If I'm wrong, please feel free to correct me.