I have TMD (temporomandibular joint disorder), and my ear symptoms (tinnitus, ear pain, popping) began appearing in May 2023. For the first three months, it was mainly neurological symptoms (numbness, tingling, trigeminal pain, burning, high heart rate), not only limited to my ears but my whole body. My jaw started clicking and shifting in June. Clicking on the left stopped, but now it clicks (like a rubber band) on the right sometimes; mainly after eating. A lot of those neurological symptoms subsided, but my jaw is still shifted to the left, challenging to open, and I have muscle and nerve pain every day throughout my body. I noticed my pain is positional or gets better or worse with activities and sitting/lying positions, but it's also a gamble because it isn't always so predictable.
My tinnitus has changed a lot throughout the months. It was awful in the summer. It was VERY loud, but it has weaned off since then. However, the pain only got worse. Here are some things about my tinnitus: my doctors look at me with '?????' written all over their faces. I have several sounds, and each behaves in different ways:
My tinnitus has changed a lot throughout the months. It was awful in the summer. It was VERY loud, but it has weaned off since then. However, the pain only got worse. Here are some things about my tinnitus: my doctors look at me with '?????' written all over their faces. I have several sounds, and each behaves in different ways:
- There is a positional sound. It does not change in volume or pitch but simply turns on and off when I turn isolated parts of my body. For example, I will only rotate my head to the right, a simple turn to my shoulder, and the same motion to the left side, and the sound goes on and off. Next, I will only rotate my hips, standing to the right and left, and the sound comes back. I will lean forward, then back, standing, and the sound goes on and off. This sound first appeared in May 2023. It's neither loud nor bothers me; it sounds like a squeaky car brake. I am still concerned about it, regardless.
- My tinnitus gets momentarily louder with specific actions, such as yawning (with the jaw) and then yawning/stretching with the upper body muscles.
- My tinnitus in my right ear gets loud when I swallow. This is more obvious when I lie down and yawn while the upper shoulder/neck muscles are still tense, and then I swallow; it's like plucking a key on a piano. It's stupid, and I hate it. Over the summer, my neck began crackling all of a sudden, and swallowing started feeling weird.
- My tinnitus gets momentarily louder when I hiccup, burp, speak loudly, or cry. When other people speak loudly to me, my tinnitus acts like piano keys are getting plucked. I still hate it.
Member
