So if you guys saw my previous post you might know that I thought that my hearing loss was caused by ear wax, and that I was pretty dismayed to find out that the ear irrigation hadn't worked.
I potentially thought that going to concerts and et cetera might have caused some hearing loss, so I decided to do a couple of online tests. I'm not too naive - I know they don't hold a candle to proper tests but I figured that if, say, two or three tests all said similar things it might be of note.
So I tried a few. Surprisingly, all of them said that I wasn't suffering from any hearing loss. Brill, right? Well, not quite, as the ringing persists.
Then as I was reaching over to grab something off the floor, I opened my mouth and my jaw clicked. I then realised - hang on, it's not meant to do that. To cut a long story short, my jaw has always clicked and clunked, and it's often been quite sore. I tend to clench my jaw ever so slightly, or hold it at an odd 'angle', aided in no part by anxiety (I'm sadly an anxiety sufferer too).
This led me to do a home TMJ test where you feel near your ear to see if your jaw clicks or clunks. Funnily enough, my jaw clicks on the exact side that my tinnitus comes from.
I then sort of thought back to my previous issues. I've never been one for loud noises - I went to a few concerts in my time but I don't go regularly, and interestingly I never had increased ear ringing afterwards, even when the Nine Inch Nails concert I went to last year nearly bloody killed me haha.
Is it possible that TMJ or jaw issues are contributing to my tinnitus? I've got a list off Google of the most common tinnitus causes and I'm going to go through them. If a more knowledgeable user could help out I'd be grateful.
Hearing loss - Unlikely. I've never been around loud noises too much and even at concerts I was usually very far back. I did go to one concert when I was fifteen where I was right up against the speaker, and despite being very loud it didn't (to my knowledge) make my ears ring. No more than it would for anyone usually, anyways. Online tests say I haven't got it, and I'm going to book a Specsavers free hearing test if symptoms don't clear up in a couple days (I'll remain hopeful that it will clear up after the irrigation - it seems to be doing that now, though it might placebo).
Stress and Anxiety - Definitely probable. I am a very stressed out dude!
Ear Infections - I doubt it. It's been going on for a while. It could be this and once I have my hearing test results I'll go to an ENT - in the UK it's hard to see an ENT unless you thrust the results of a hearing test in the face of your GP.
Ear Wax Build-up - Maybe. The procedure was about twelve hours ago and the volume seems to be decreasing but I have no idea. It's very apparent in silence and it was pretty bloody deafening after my shower, but that seems normal. Even someone I asked who has great hearing says their ears ring after the shower sometimes. Who knows.
Ménière's Disease - Uh. Yeah. Probably not haha.
Glue Ear - Apparently clears up over time and affects young children. I doubt it.
Otosclerosis - I actually know a bit about inherited diseases after A-Level biology, and as my dad's hearing is worryingly good for a man approaching fifty I doubt this is it.
Perforated Eardrum - Nah. No symptoms.
Anyways, this is all I have for now. Hopefully one of you can spot something I haven't. I must say that this community has been bloody brilliant, you're all amazing people and I thank you for your time and effort when it comes to listening to a clueless teenager ramble on haha. I'm a bit more hopeful now.
I potentially thought that going to concerts and et cetera might have caused some hearing loss, so I decided to do a couple of online tests. I'm not too naive - I know they don't hold a candle to proper tests but I figured that if, say, two or three tests all said similar things it might be of note.
So I tried a few. Surprisingly, all of them said that I wasn't suffering from any hearing loss. Brill, right? Well, not quite, as the ringing persists.
Then as I was reaching over to grab something off the floor, I opened my mouth and my jaw clicked. I then realised - hang on, it's not meant to do that. To cut a long story short, my jaw has always clicked and clunked, and it's often been quite sore. I tend to clench my jaw ever so slightly, or hold it at an odd 'angle', aided in no part by anxiety (I'm sadly an anxiety sufferer too).
This led me to do a home TMJ test where you feel near your ear to see if your jaw clicks or clunks. Funnily enough, my jaw clicks on the exact side that my tinnitus comes from.
I then sort of thought back to my previous issues. I've never been one for loud noises - I went to a few concerts in my time but I don't go regularly, and interestingly I never had increased ear ringing afterwards, even when the Nine Inch Nails concert I went to last year nearly bloody killed me haha.
Is it possible that TMJ or jaw issues are contributing to my tinnitus? I've got a list off Google of the most common tinnitus causes and I'm going to go through them. If a more knowledgeable user could help out I'd be grateful.
Hearing loss - Unlikely. I've never been around loud noises too much and even at concerts I was usually very far back. I did go to one concert when I was fifteen where I was right up against the speaker, and despite being very loud it didn't (to my knowledge) make my ears ring. No more than it would for anyone usually, anyways. Online tests say I haven't got it, and I'm going to book a Specsavers free hearing test if symptoms don't clear up in a couple days (I'll remain hopeful that it will clear up after the irrigation - it seems to be doing that now, though it might placebo).
Stress and Anxiety - Definitely probable. I am a very stressed out dude!
Ear Infections - I doubt it. It's been going on for a while. It could be this and once I have my hearing test results I'll go to an ENT - in the UK it's hard to see an ENT unless you thrust the results of a hearing test in the face of your GP.
Ear Wax Build-up - Maybe. The procedure was about twelve hours ago and the volume seems to be decreasing but I have no idea. It's very apparent in silence and it was pretty bloody deafening after my shower, but that seems normal. Even someone I asked who has great hearing says their ears ring after the shower sometimes. Who knows.
Ménière's Disease - Uh. Yeah. Probably not haha.
Glue Ear - Apparently clears up over time and affects young children. I doubt it.
Otosclerosis - I actually know a bit about inherited diseases after A-Level biology, and as my dad's hearing is worryingly good for a man approaching fifty I doubt this is it.
Perforated Eardrum - Nah. No symptoms.
Anyways, this is all I have for now. Hopefully one of you can spot something I haven't. I must say that this community has been bloody brilliant, you're all amazing people and I thank you for your time and effort when it comes to listening to a clueless teenager ramble on haha. I'm a bit more hopeful now.