I've been reading Tinnitus Talk since February, but this is my first post. I'm 36 years old. I had jaw surgery in 2017 for sleep apnea. During a routine orthodontic checkup in February 2019 when I opened my jaw, I had an anterior disc displacement of my right TMJ, which eventually led to osteoarthritis of the TMJ.
On February 14, I had some Eustachian tube issue. At first I thought it was some earwax in my ears, so I proceeded to try to remove the earwax. Big mistake. Along with the Eustachian tube dysfunction, I ended up with some some mild hyperacusis and an outer ear infection of my right ear. My family physician prescribed me some Ciprodex, and doing a Valsalva manuever would equalize my ear pressure so that the sound sensitivity would go away for a few hours. However, my journey with tinnitus didn't really begin until the week after that, when I developed a cold. The cold and the outer ear infection quickly resolved, but the tinnitus stayed.
The tinnitus has multiple sounds, one of which is a higher frequency tea kettle on both ears, and the other is a very low frequency hum only on my right ear. I can also hear my heartbeat from time to time. I had a CT scan done at a private clinic, which ruled out the common causes of pulsatile tinnitus. In late May, when the COVID-19 restrictions were lifted in my city, I finally got a chance to see an ENT specialist, who did a hearing test. The audiogram came back with no hearing loss, and the tympanometry test came back as Type A, meaning no significant Eustachian tube dysfunction. However, all this time I still had tinnitus, and the ENT specialist said that if the tinnitus doesn't resolve on its own, then it's essentially idiopathic tinnitus. He said I've done everything that I could have done already. Before I left the ENT clinic, I said that I also had some balance issues ever since the cold, so he did schedule me to do a balance test and a hospital at a future date.
Besides tinnitus, some of the other issues that I have include:
If this tinnitus is something that will stay with me as the ENT hinted at, I want to habituate to it quickly so that it doesn't affect my life and ability to work anymore. I tend to be very sensitive when it comes to health issues, which would make it harder for me to habituate. I've watched a video on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for tinnitus, though I don't know if that would help. For now I have to deal with my TMJ first, because the osteoarthritis is worsening and my jaw is becoming unstable.
On February 14, I had some Eustachian tube issue. At first I thought it was some earwax in my ears, so I proceeded to try to remove the earwax. Big mistake. Along with the Eustachian tube dysfunction, I ended up with some some mild hyperacusis and an outer ear infection of my right ear. My family physician prescribed me some Ciprodex, and doing a Valsalva manuever would equalize my ear pressure so that the sound sensitivity would go away for a few hours. However, my journey with tinnitus didn't really begin until the week after that, when I developed a cold. The cold and the outer ear infection quickly resolved, but the tinnitus stayed.
The tinnitus has multiple sounds, one of which is a higher frequency tea kettle on both ears, and the other is a very low frequency hum only on my right ear. I can also hear my heartbeat from time to time. I had a CT scan done at a private clinic, which ruled out the common causes of pulsatile tinnitus. In late May, when the COVID-19 restrictions were lifted in my city, I finally got a chance to see an ENT specialist, who did a hearing test. The audiogram came back with no hearing loss, and the tympanometry test came back as Type A, meaning no significant Eustachian tube dysfunction. However, all this time I still had tinnitus, and the ENT specialist said that if the tinnitus doesn't resolve on its own, then it's essentially idiopathic tinnitus. He said I've done everything that I could have done already. Before I left the ENT clinic, I said that I also had some balance issues ever since the cold, so he did schedule me to do a balance test and a hospital at a future date.
Besides tinnitus, some of the other issues that I have include:
- TMJ related pain in my right ear
- Some sound sensitivity in my right ear upon hearing loud noises, or when I talk a bit loudly (the right ear would make some sound reflex about half a second after I pronounce the last syllable)
- Fast resting heart rate (90+ bpm)
- Dizziness and imbalance whether walking, sitting, or standing still
- Nausea without vomiting
If this tinnitus is something that will stay with me as the ENT hinted at, I want to habituate to it quickly so that it doesn't affect my life and ability to work anymore. I tend to be very sensitive when it comes to health issues, which would make it harder for me to habituate. I've watched a video on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for tinnitus, though I don't know if that would help. For now I have to deal with my TMJ first, because the osteoarthritis is worsening and my jaw is becoming unstable.
