That is a phrase my chiropractor says to me when I have so many different things going on at one time. Too many kinds of fruit make it hard to know what is the culprit. But I will share my story and hope for some insight and support.
My tinnitus started on Dec 9, 2017 at exactly 2pm. I had just returned from errands and was sitting on the couch watching TV. It was literally as if someone flipped a switch in my head and the sound was on. Now I have moments when I don't hear it or notice it, but it is basically there all the time. It does seem to lessen in certain rooms of my house, and when I am out and about - in the car, running errands, etc, I can tune it out.
Allow me to rewind and give some history, all which may be relevant. I am 57 year old female. In 1990 I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism and been on Synthroid since. In 2004 I was diagnosed with Type2 Diabetes, which has been fully resolved with diet and exercise since 2006. At the same time I was diagnosed with Nephrotic Syndrome, but my kidney function has been fine so they consider it in remission. In November, my latest bloodwork showed issues in ALL areas - my A1C was elevated, by Thyroid was elevated, and my kidney function was borderline. They are repeating the tests to be sure there wasn't an issue with the labs. I will get those results at the end of this week.
In January 2017 our home was destroyed by a flood and my husband and I lived in a hotel for 8 months. I mention this because during this time we both experienced repeated eye infections (something at the hotel?) and I was on prescription eye drops 3 times over the last year. My symptoms included facial swelling and pain as if someone had punched me in my right cheekbone.
On July 29, 2017 I had a bad fall in a parking lot - I went down hard and sustained a bad whiplash injury in my neck, and sprained my left rotator cuff. I experienced extreme dizziness when walking for about 8 weeks after. Xrays showed C5 and C6 cervical compression, but it was determined that my symptoms were primarily caused by tissue damage.
In October my husband and I moved back to our home. Lots of boxes, unpacking, furniture moving, etc. In November I got an extreme low-back flare up in the tailbone area. It was so bad I could barely walk. The doctor put me on a 5-day prednisone burst - 40 mg once per day from Nov 28- Dec 2. (Wondering if there is a connection to my tinnitus starting exactly one week later).
Then, as I mentioned, my tinnitus started on Dec 9. It was mild, but annoying. More like continuous hissing with a slight high pitch tone to it. It is hard to tell if it is in my ear or my head, but it seems right-side oriented. Over the next week or so my right ear started to become sore and full feeling, and my low back pain had returned. I went back to the Dr on Dec 21. She looked in my ears and said there was visible fluid and inflammation. She put me back on prednisone for my back and prescribed ear drops for my ears, indicating that the prednisone may help with the inflammation in my ears too.
I remained on the ear drops for 7 days and this time tapered the prednisone instead of doing the "burst" method. The ear drops seemed to do nothing - I still had pain and noise in my right ear and felt generally unwell. Back to the Dr on Dec 29 - his time she said my ears were completely clear - there was no evidence of fluid or inflammation. She said it could be viral or there could be fluid trapped behind my ear drum. She referred me to an ENT and I am awaiting my appointment.
The very next day - Saturday Dec 30 - a full-on typical head cold emerged. Sneezing, stuffy, congested, sore throat. No change to my ears - still lots of noise, aching, and fullness. This was also the last day of my prednisone taper, which was a 10 mg dose.
Now here is where it gets REALLY strange. On Sunday Dec 31 I had SILENCE for the first time since Dec 9. ALL DAY SILENCE. I was sure the tinnitus was gone and assumed it had been a preliminary symptom of this head cold/sinus illness that hit me. But then, when I woke up on Monday Jan 1, I had a new sound - even louder - that was less of hiss and more of pitched tone. And that sound has not lessened at all since I woke up on Monday morning. I am wondering if the tinnitus has worsened because the prednisone is completely out of my system.
Needless to say I am extremely worried - I cannot imagine living with this noise in my head forever. I have tried playing various white noise sounds but they only help a little. When I massage my right ear, or hold it closed for a few seconds and then release, I can diminish the sound a bit for a few seconds, but it comes back immediately.
That is my story and where I am right now, and in summary, this could be from any number of things. I am currently awaiting an appointment with an ENT - but they seem to be booked up for weeks if not months. I really hope someone can see me within the next week.
Thanks for listening.
My tinnitus started on Dec 9, 2017 at exactly 2pm. I had just returned from errands and was sitting on the couch watching TV. It was literally as if someone flipped a switch in my head and the sound was on. Now I have moments when I don't hear it or notice it, but it is basically there all the time. It does seem to lessen in certain rooms of my house, and when I am out and about - in the car, running errands, etc, I can tune it out.
Allow me to rewind and give some history, all which may be relevant. I am 57 year old female. In 1990 I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism and been on Synthroid since. In 2004 I was diagnosed with Type2 Diabetes, which has been fully resolved with diet and exercise since 2006. At the same time I was diagnosed with Nephrotic Syndrome, but my kidney function has been fine so they consider it in remission. In November, my latest bloodwork showed issues in ALL areas - my A1C was elevated, by Thyroid was elevated, and my kidney function was borderline. They are repeating the tests to be sure there wasn't an issue with the labs. I will get those results at the end of this week.
In January 2017 our home was destroyed by a flood and my husband and I lived in a hotel for 8 months. I mention this because during this time we both experienced repeated eye infections (something at the hotel?) and I was on prescription eye drops 3 times over the last year. My symptoms included facial swelling and pain as if someone had punched me in my right cheekbone.
On July 29, 2017 I had a bad fall in a parking lot - I went down hard and sustained a bad whiplash injury in my neck, and sprained my left rotator cuff. I experienced extreme dizziness when walking for about 8 weeks after. Xrays showed C5 and C6 cervical compression, but it was determined that my symptoms were primarily caused by tissue damage.
In October my husband and I moved back to our home. Lots of boxes, unpacking, furniture moving, etc. In November I got an extreme low-back flare up in the tailbone area. It was so bad I could barely walk. The doctor put me on a 5-day prednisone burst - 40 mg once per day from Nov 28- Dec 2. (Wondering if there is a connection to my tinnitus starting exactly one week later).
Then, as I mentioned, my tinnitus started on Dec 9. It was mild, but annoying. More like continuous hissing with a slight high pitch tone to it. It is hard to tell if it is in my ear or my head, but it seems right-side oriented. Over the next week or so my right ear started to become sore and full feeling, and my low back pain had returned. I went back to the Dr on Dec 21. She looked in my ears and said there was visible fluid and inflammation. She put me back on prednisone for my back and prescribed ear drops for my ears, indicating that the prednisone may help with the inflammation in my ears too.
I remained on the ear drops for 7 days and this time tapered the prednisone instead of doing the "burst" method. The ear drops seemed to do nothing - I still had pain and noise in my right ear and felt generally unwell. Back to the Dr on Dec 29 - his time she said my ears were completely clear - there was no evidence of fluid or inflammation. She said it could be viral or there could be fluid trapped behind my ear drum. She referred me to an ENT and I am awaiting my appointment.
The very next day - Saturday Dec 30 - a full-on typical head cold emerged. Sneezing, stuffy, congested, sore throat. No change to my ears - still lots of noise, aching, and fullness. This was also the last day of my prednisone taper, which was a 10 mg dose.
Now here is where it gets REALLY strange. On Sunday Dec 31 I had SILENCE for the first time since Dec 9. ALL DAY SILENCE. I was sure the tinnitus was gone and assumed it had been a preliminary symptom of this head cold/sinus illness that hit me. But then, when I woke up on Monday Jan 1, I had a new sound - even louder - that was less of hiss and more of pitched tone. And that sound has not lessened at all since I woke up on Monday morning. I am wondering if the tinnitus has worsened because the prednisone is completely out of my system.
Needless to say I am extremely worried - I cannot imagine living with this noise in my head forever. I have tried playing various white noise sounds but they only help a little. When I massage my right ear, or hold it closed for a few seconds and then release, I can diminish the sound a bit for a few seconds, but it comes back immediately.
That is my story and where I am right now, and in summary, this could be from any number of things. I am currently awaiting an appointment with an ENT - but they seem to be booked up for weeks if not months. I really hope someone can see me within the next week.
Thanks for listening.
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